Languages · Profile
मगही
Magahi
The language of ancient Magadh, the land of the Mauryas and the Buddha's journeys, still spoken in villages on both sides of the border.
230,117
mother tongue speakers in Nepal (2021 census)
0.79%
of Nepal's population
Indo-Aryan
language family
Devanagari, historically Kaithi
script
In Nepal
Where it is spoken
Language of ancient Magadh
Small communities in the Terai districts of Madhesh and Koshi Provinces near the Bihar border.
MadheshKoshi
Beyond Nepal
Who else speaks it
- India: 12,706,825 speakers (2011 census), in south and central Bihar and Jharkhand
The Dehat
Our work in Magahi
Cross-border coverage of Magahi-speaking communities.
Speak Magahi, or know someone who does? We want to hear your stories.
ContributeSources: National Population and Housing Census 2021, Nepal (mother tongue); Census of India 2011. Figures for small and endangered languages are estimates.