Editing Languages of the United States (section)

===South Asian languages===
There are many South Asians in the United States. These include [[Indian American|Indians]], [[Pakistani American|Pakistanis]], and [[Bangladeshi American|Bangladeshis]], who speak various South Asian languages. Major [[Languages of South Asia|South Asian languages]] spoken in the US include [[Telugu language|Telugu]] (see "Telugu" below), [[Malayalam language|Malayalam]], [[Kannada language|Kannada]], [[Tamil language|Tamil]] (see "Tamil" below), [[Gujarati language|Gujarati]], [[Hindi]] and [[Urdu]] (see "Hindi-Urdu" below), [[Bengali language|Bengali]], [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]], [[Sinhala language|Sinhala]], [[Nepali language|Nepali]] (see "Nepali" below), and [[Marathi language|Marathi]].

====Hindi and Urdu====
{{Main|Hindustani language}}
[[Hindi]] and [[Urdu]] are the two standard registers of the Hindustani language, an [[Indo-Aryan languages|Indo-Aryan]] language native to [[Hindi Belt|North India]], [[Deccan Plateau|Central India]], and [[Pakistan]]. While the formal registers draw vocabulary from Sanskrit and Arabic & Persian respectively, the colloquial forms are indistinguishable. Hindi and Urdu are widely spoken among the [[Indian Americans|Indian]] and [[Pakistani Americans|Pakistani]] communities in the United States as a first or second language. Speakers are concentrated in states with large South Asian populations, including California, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Texas, and Virginia.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Results |website=American FactFinder |url=https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?src=bkmk#none |publisher=U. S. Census Bureau |access-date=2019-08-30|archive-date=July 14, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180714212254/https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?src=bkmk#none|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Additionally, Hindi-Urdu (Hindustani) is a cultural language for many South Asians who have different mother tongues and dialects. Bollywood in particular, as well as film music, is an important cultural product that influences many South Asian youth. Some South Indians, Bangladeshis, and Indian Bengalis learn the language or its dialects through films.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Shankar|first=Shalini|date=2008|title=Speaking like a Model Minority: "FOB" Styles, Gender, and Racial Meanings among Desi Teens in Silicon Valley|journal=Journal of Linguistic Anthropology|language=en|volume=18|issue=2|pages=268–289|doi=10.1111/j.1548-1395.2008.00022.x}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Shankar|first=Shalini|title=Reel to real|date=2010|journal=Pragmatics|volume=14|issue=2–3|pages=317–335|doi=10.1075/prag.14.2-3.12sha|doi-access=free}}</ref>

====Nepali====
{{unreferenced section|date=August 2017}}
The first Nepalese to enter the United States were classified as "other Asian". Immigration records show that between 1881 and 1890, 1,910 "other Asians" were admitted to the United States. However, Nepal did not open its borders until 1950, and most Nepalis who left the country during that time went primarily to India to study. Nepalese Americans were first classified as a separate ethnic group in 1974 when 56 Nepalese immigrated to the United States. New York City, Boston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Columbus, Los Angeles, Cincinnati, Erie, Harrisburg, Chicago, Denver, [[Gainesville, Florida|Gainesville]], Portland, and Saint Paul have the largest number of Nepalese. There are some Nepalese community or cultural events in every American state, including [[Dashain]], [[Tihar (festival)|Tihar]], [[Holi]], [[Teej]] Special, and [[Nepali New Year]].

====Tamil====
The Tamil community in the United States is largely bilingual. Tamil is taught in weekly classes in many Hindu temples and by associations such as the American Tamil Academy in South Brunswick, Tamil Jersey School in Jersey City, New Jersey,<ref>See [http://ns.gmnews.com/news/2014-09-04/Front_Page/School_offers_Tamil_language_classes.html "School offers Tamil language classes" ''Sentinel'' Sept. 4, 2014] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160315035938/http://ns.gmnews.com/news/2014-09-04/Front_Page/School_offers_Tamil_language_classes.html |date=March 15, 2016 }}</ref>

The written form of the language is highly formal and quite distinct from the spoken form. A few universities, such as the University of Chicago and the University of California Berkeley, have graduate programs in the language.<ref>Vasudha Narayanan, "Tamils" in David Levinson and Melvin Ember, eds. ''American immigrant cultures: builders of a nation'' (1997). p. 878.</ref>

In the second half of the 20th century, Tamils from India migrated as skilled [[professional]]s to the United States, [[Canada]], [[Europe]], and [[Southeast Asia]]. The Tamil American population numbers over 195,685 individuals,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/hhes/socdemo/language/data/other/detailed-lang-tables.xls|title=US Census 2006-2008 American Community Survey See Row# 125}}</ref> and the [[Federation of Tamil Sangams of North America]] functions as an [[umbrella organization]] for the growing community.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fetna.org/index.php/2011-12-22-02-18-20/2011-12-22-02-21-42|title=About FETNA|publisher=Federation of Tamil Sangams of North America|access-date=April 1, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116211514/http://www.fetna.org/index.php/2011-12-22-02-18-20/2011-12-22-02-21-42|archive-date=January 16, 2013}}</ref>

The [[New York City]] and [[Los Angeles]] metropolitan areas are home to the largest concentrations of Tamil-speaking [[Sri Lankan American]]s.<ref name=LPR12>{{cite web |url=https://www.dhs.gov/yearbook-immigration-statistics-2012-legal-permanent-residents |title=Yearbook of Immigration Statistics: 2012 Supplemental Table 2|publisher=U.S. Department of Homeland Security|access-date=March 31, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130403073333/http://www.dhs.gov/yearbook-immigration-statistics-2012-legal-permanent-residents |archive-date=April 3, 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=LPR11>{{cite web |url=https://www.dhs.gov/files/statistics/publications/LPR11.shtm |title=Yearbook of Immigration Statistics: 2011 Supplemental Table 2 |publisher=U.S. Department of Homeland Security|access-date=March 31, 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120808080130/http://www.dhs.gov/files/statistics/publications/LPR11.shtm|archive-date=August 8, 2012}}</ref><ref name=LPR10>{{cite web |url=https://www.dhs.gov/files/statistics/publications/LPR10.shtm|title=Yearbook of Immigration Statistics: 2010 Supplemental Table 2 |publisher=U.S. Department of Homeland Security|access-date=March 31, 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120712200141/https://www.dhs.gov/files/statistics/publications/LPR10.shtm|archive-date=July 12, 2012}}</ref> New York City's [[Staten Island]] alone is estimated to be home to more than 5,000 Sri Lankan Americans,<ref name="SriLankansStatenIsland">{{cite news |author=Kirk Semple |date=June 8, 2013 |title=Sri Lankans have gathered on Staten Island,... |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/06/09/nyregion/new-york-citys-newest-immigrant-enclaves.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005001531/http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/06/09/nyregion/new-york-citys-newest-immigrant-enclaves.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 |archive-date=October 5, 2013 |access-date=June 9, 2013 |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref> one of the largest Sri Lankan populations outside [[Sri Lanka]] itself,<ref name=lankasrilittle>{{cite web |title=Why Staten Island? |publisher=Little Sri Lanka |url=http://macaulay.cuny.edu/eportfolios/lankasrilittle/gallery/ |access-date=July 25, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150726083820/http://macaulay.cuny.edu/eportfolios/lankasrilittle/gallery/ |archive-date=July 26, 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> and a significant proportion of whom speak Tamil.

[[File:Top of Rock Cropped.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.15|The [[Indians in the New York City metropolitan region|New York City Metropolitan Area]], including [[Central Jersey|Central]] [[New Jersey]] as well as [[Long Island]] and [[Staten Island]] in [[New York (state)|New York]], is home to the largest [[Tamil American]] population.]]

[[Central Jersey|Central New Jersey]] is home to the largest population concentration of Tamils. [[New Jersey]] houses its own [[Tamil Sangam]].<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20100902115102/http://www.njtamilsangam.info/ New Jersey Tamil Sangam<!-- Bot generated title -->]}}</ref> Sizeable populations of [[Indian American]] Tamils have also settled in the [[New York metropolitan area|New York City]] and [[Washington metropolitan area|Washington]] metropolitan areas, as well as on the West Coast in Silicon Valley, where there are Tamil associations such as the Bay Area Tamil Mandram.<ref name="Bay">{{Cite web |title=Introduction|website=Bay Area Tamil Manram |url=http://www.bayareatamilmanram.org/eng/introduction.php |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101027163310/http://www.bayareatamilmanram.org/eng/introduction.php|url-status=dead |archivedate=October 27, 2010}}</ref>

==== Telugu ====
{{See also|Telugu Americans}}

There were {{sigfig|171495|3}} speakers of [[Telugu language|Telugu]] in 2006–2008.<ref>{{cite web| title =  Table 1. Detailed Languages Spoken at Home| url = https://www.census.gov/hhes/socdemo/language/data/other/detailed-lang-tables.xls| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604062111/http://www.census.gov/hhes/socdemo/language/data/other/detailed-lang-tables.xls| archive-date=June 4, 2011| url-status = dead}}</ref>
In the second half of the 20th century, Telugu people from India (especially from [[Andhra Pradesh]], [[Telangana]], [[Karnataka]] and [[Tamil Nadu]]) migrated as professionals to the United States. [[Central Jersey|Central New Jersey]] is home to the largest population concentration of Telugu people. Telugu people have also settled in [[New York City]] and the [[DC metropolitan area]], as well as on the West Coast in Silicon Valley. The [[New York City]] and [[Los Angeles]] metropolitan areas are home to the largest concentrations of Telugu-speakers.