ದ್ರಾವಿಡ ಭಾಷೆಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಬಹಳ ಹಳೆಯದರಲ್ಲಿ ಒಂದಾದ ಕನ್ನಡ ಭಾಷೆ/ನುಡಿಯನ್ನು ಅದರ ವಿವಿಧ ರೂಪಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಸುಮಾರು ೪೫ ದಶಲಕ್ಷ ಜನರು ಆಡುನುಡಿಯಾಗಿ ಬಳಸುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಇದು ಭಾರತದ ೨೨ ಅಧಿಕೃತ ಭಾಷೆಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಒಂದು, ಹಾಗೂ ಕರ್ನಾಟಕ ರಾಜ್ಯದ ಅಧಿಕೃತ/ಸರಕಾರೀ ಭಾಷೆ.
Kannada (ಕನ್ನಡ, [ˈkʌnːəɖa]) or Canarese, is a language spoken in India predominantly in the state of Karnataka. Kannada, whose native speakers are called Kannadigas (Kannadigaru) and number roughly 38 million, is one of the 40 most spoken languages in the world. It is one of the scheduled languages of India and the official and administrative language of the state of Karnataka.
Spoken In : Karnataka, Kasaragod, Kerala, Maharashtra, Goa, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. significant communities in USA, Australia, Singapore, UK, Mauritius, United Arab Emirates.
Native Speakers: 35 million (1997 census), 9 million as a second language.
Language family: Dravidian > Southern > Tamil–Kannada > Kannada–Badaga > Kannada
Writing system: Kannada script.
Official language in: Karnataka, India
Regulated by: Various academies and the Government of Karnataka (India)
Language codes: kn (ISO 639-1), kan (ISO 639-2, ISO 639-3)
The Kannada language is written using the Kannada script, which evolved from the 5th century Kadamba script. Kannada is attested epigraphically from about one and a half millennia, and literary Old Kannada flourished in the 6th century Ganga dynasty and during 9th century Rashtrakuta Dynasty. With an unbroken literary history of over a thousand years, the excellence of Kannada literature continues into the present day. Works of Kannada literature have received eight Jnanpith awards and fifty-six Sahitya Akademi awards. Based on the recommendations of the Committee of Linguistic Experts, appointed by the Ministry of Culture, the Government of India officially recognised Kannada as a classical language. In July 2011, a centre for the study of classical Kannada was established under the aegis of Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL) at Mysore to facilitate research related to the language.
