The Oriya script developed from the Kalinga script, one of the many descendents of the Brahmi script of ancient India. The earliest known inscription in the Oriya language, in the Kalinga script, dates from 1051.
The curved appearance of the Oriya script is a result of the practice of writing on palm leaves, which have a tendency to tear if you use too many straight lines.
Notable features:
Type of writing system: syllabic alphabet in which all consonants have an inherent vowel. Diacritics, which can appear above, below, before or after the consonant they belong to, are used to change the inherent vowel.
When they appear the the beginning of a syllable, vowels are written as independent letters.
When certain consonants occur together, special conjunct symbols are used which combine the essential parts of each letter.
Direction of writing: left to right in horizontal lines.
Oriya, an Indo-Aryan language spoken by about 31 million people mainly in the Indian state of Orissa, and also in West Bengal, Jharkhand, and Gujarat. Oriya is closely related to Bengali and Assamese.
Also used to write a number of the other languages spoken in Orissa and Sanskrit.
Oriya is spoken in Orissa; Bihar; West Bengal; Assam; Andhra Pradesh. Also spoken in Bangladesh and ORIYA, ADIVASI is spoken in Andhra Pradesh, Visakhapatnam District, Araku Valley; Orissa, Koraput District. Total population speaking oriya in all countries are 32,000,000. Three Letter Code for oriya is ORY. Alternative Names are URIYA, UTKALI, ODRI, ODRUM, OLIYA, ORISSA, VADIYA, YUDHIA, TRIBAL ORIYA, DESIYA, DESIA, DESHIA, KOTIYA, KOTIA ORIYA, ADIWASI ORIYA. Dialects include MUGHALBANDI (ORIYA PROPER, STANDARD ORIYA), SOUTHERN ORIYA, BHATRI, NORTHWESTERN ORIYA, WESTERN ORIYA (SAMBALPURI), NORTH BALASORE ORIYA, MIDNAPORE ORIYA, HALBI, KORAPUT ORIYA (DESIA ORIYA), ADIVASI ORIYA, VALMIKI ADIVASI ORIYA.
ORIYA: Some of the larger dialects have many subdialects. Sambalpuri around Sambalpur and Sundargh needs intelligibility testing with Standard Oriya. Spoken as mother tongue by the Bathudi, Bhuiya, some Koda, and the Mali. Investigation needed: intelligibility with Sambalpuri, other dialects. National language. Literacy rate in first language: 30% to 60%. Literacy rate in second language: 25% to 50%. Oriya script.
ORIYA, ADIVASI: Andhra Pradesh varieties 38% to 42% lexical similarity with Standard Oriya; 80% to 85% with Desiya dialects in Orissa. Kotia is a Scheduled Tribe in India. The language is called 'Adivasi Oriya' (Tribal Oriya); the people are called 'Kotia'. The name 'Adivasi Oriya' is used in Andhra Pradesh; 'Desiya' in Koraput District.
