Marathi

About Marathi

Marathi is the language of Maharashtra in western India, the state that includes Mumbai and Pune, and it is spoken as a first language by about 83 million people. It is the official language of Maharashtra and one of the 22 languages recognised in India's constitution.

Marathi is written in Devanagari, the same script as Hindi, and the guides add a spelling in Latin letters. It is an Indo-Aryan language and shares many words with Hindi, but its grammar and everyday vocabulary are its own. Use tumhi for a polite "you" with elders and strangers and tu with friends and children.

FamilyIndo-European, Indo-Aryan
Native speakersabout 83 million (2019)
Official inIndia, regionally (Maharashtra)
ScriptDevanagari
Codesmr (ISO 639-1), mar (ISO 639-3)

Speaker number: Ethnologue (2019), via Wikidata. Retrieved 26 September 2026.

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