Editing Bengal (section)

=== Language ===
{{Main|Bengali language}}
[[File:Bengali letters.svg|thumb|left|[[Bengali alphabet|Bengali Letters]]]]
The [[Bengali language]] developed between the 7th and 10th centuries from [[Apabhraṃśa]] and [[Magadhi Prakrit]].<ref name="britannica2">{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://global.britannica.com/topic/Bengali-language |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |title=Bengali language |access-date=7 January 2017}}</ref> It is written using the indigenous [[Bengali alphabet]], a descendant of the ancient [[Brahmi script]]. Bengali is the [[List of languages by number of native speakers|5th most spoken language in the world]]. It is an eastern [[Indo-Aryan language]] and one of the easternmost branches of the [[Indo-European language family]]. It is part of the [[Bengali-Assamese languages]]. Bengali has greatly influenced other languages in the region, including [[Odia language|Odia]], [[Assamese language|Assamese]], [[Chakma language|Chakma]], [[Nepali language|Nepali]] and [[Rohingya language|Rohingya]]. It is the sole [[state language]] of Bangladesh and the second most spoken language in India.<ref>{{cite web |title=Scheduled Languages in Descending Order of Speakers' Strength – 2011 |url=http://censusindia.gov.in/2011census/Language-2011/Statement-4.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://censusindia.gov.in/2011census/Language-2011/Statement-4.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |website=censusindia.gov.in |access-date=10 April 2020}}</ref> It is also the seventh most spoken language by total number of speakers in the world.

Bengali binds together a culturally diverse region and is an important contributor to regional identity. The 1952 [[Bengali Language Movement]] in East Pakistan is commemorated by [[UNESCO]] as [[International Mother Language Day]], as part of global efforts to preserve linguistic identity.