Editing Maharashtra (section)

=== Language ===
{{Further|Languages of India|Marathi people}}

[[File:Language Map of Maharashtra (2011 Census).svg|250px|thumb|Languages spoken by district<br/>
'''Marahthi'''
{{legend|#ffead1|30–40%}}
{{legend|#ffdcb3|40–50%}}
{{legend|#ffc885|50–60%}}
{{legend|#ffb152|60–70%}}
{{legend|#ff9a1f|70-80%}}
{{legend|#eb8100|80-90%}}
{{legend|#cc7000|90–100%}}
'''Bhil Languages'''
{{legend|#cdafdf|40–50%}}
]]

{{Pie chart
|thumb = left
|caption = Languages of Maharashtra (2011)<ref name="2011census-language"/>
|label1  = [[Marathi language|Marathi]]     |value1  = 68.93 |color1  = red
|label2  = [[Hindi]]                        |value2  = 12.89 |color2  = orange
|label3  = [[Urdu]]                         |value3  = 6.71  |color3  = green
|label4  = [[Gujarati language|Gujarati]]   |value4  = 2.11  |color4  = skyblue
|label5  = [[Bhili language|Bhili]]         |value5  = 2.00  |color5  = khaki 
|label6  = [[Khandeshi language|Khandeshi]] |value6  = 1.44  |color6  = coral
|label7  = [[Telugu language|Telugu]]       |value7  = 1.18  |color7  = steelblue
|label8  = [[Kannada]]                      |value8  = 0.89  |color8  = darkslateblue
|label9  = Others                           |value9  = 3.86  |color9  = grey
}}

[[Marathi language|Marathi]] is the official language although different regions have their own dialects.<ref name="auto" /><ref name="Marathi">{{cite web |url=http://bombayhighcourt.nic.in/libweb/acts/1965.05.PDF |website=[[Bombay High Court]] |title=The Maharashtra Official Languages Act, 1964 |access-date=2 April 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402225839/http://bombayhighcourt.nic.in/libweb/acts/1965.05.PDF |archive-date=2 April 2015}}</ref><ref name=speakers>{{cite news |title=Most spoken language in Maharashtra |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Maharashtra-has-38-languages-other-than-Marathi-finds-survey/articleshow/21063263.cms |access-date=27 February 2014 |newspaper=[[The Times of India]] |date=14 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140927044931/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Maharashtra-has-38-languages-other-than-Marathi-finds-survey/articleshow/21063263.cms |archive-date=27 September 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref> Most people speak regional languages classified as dialects of Marathi in the census. [[Powari language|Powari]], [[Lodhi language|Lodhi]], and [[Varhadi dialect|Varhadi]] are spoken in the Vidarbha region, Dangi is spoken near the Maharashtra-Gujarat border, [[Bhil languages]] are spoken throughout the northwest part of the state, [[Khandeshi language|Khandeshi]] (locally known as Ahirani) is spoken in Khandesh region. In the Desh and Marathwada regions, [[Deccani language|Dakhini Urdu]] is widely spoken, although Dakhini speakers are usually bilingual in Marathi.<ref>Vijayendra, T., Dakhni—People's Language, frontierweekly.com Volume 39, issue 22, [http://www.frontierweekly.com/archive/vol-number/vol/vol-39-2006-07/vol-39-22/dhakni-39-22.pdf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220403074654/http://www.frontierweekly.com/archive/vol-number/vol/vol-39-2006-07/vol-39-22/dhakni-39-22.pdf|date=3 April 2022}}</ref>

Konkani, and its dialect Malvani, is spoken along the southern Konkan coast. Telugu and Kannada are spoken along the border areas of Telangana and Karnataka, respectively. At the junction of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Chhattisgarh a variety of Hindi dialects are spoken such as Lodhi and [[Powari language|Powari]]. Lambadi is spoken through a wide area of eastern Marathwada and western Vidarbha. Gondi is spoken by diminishing minorities throughout Vidarbha but is most concentrated in the forests of Gadchiroli and the Telangana border.{{Citation needed|date=July 2024}}

Marathi is the first language of a majority or plurality of the people in all districts of Maharashtra except [[Nandurbar district|Nandurbar]], where [[Bhili language|Bhili]] is spoken by 45% of its population. The highest percentage of [[Khandeshi language|Khandeshi]] speakers are [[Dhule district]] (29%) and the highest percentage of [[Gondi language|Gondi]] speakers are in [[Gadchiroli district]] (24%).<ref name="2011census-language">{{cite web |title=Table C-16 Population by Mother Tongue: Maharashtra |url=https://censusindia.gov.in/nada/index.php/catalog/10212/download/13324/DDW-C16-STMT-MDDS-2700.XLSX |website=censusindia.gov.in |publisher=[[Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India]] |access-date=12 February 2023 |archive-date=18 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230718113847/https://censusindia.gov.in/nada/index.php/catalog/10212/download/13324/DDW-C16-STMT-MDDS-2700.XLSX |url-status=live }}</ref>

The highest percentages of mother-tongue Hindi speakers are in urban areas, especially Mumbai and its suburbs, where it is mother tongue to over a quarter of the population. Pune and Nagpur are also spots for Hindi-speakers. Gujarati and Urdu are also major languages in Mumbai, both are spoken by around 10% of the population.<ref name="2011census-language"/> [[Urdu]] and its dialect, the [[Deccani language|Dakhni]] are spoken by the Muslim population of the state.<ref>Kazi, N.M., 2013. Measuring Impact of Tourism in India: A Case Study of Aurangabad.</ref>

The [[Mumbai Metropolitan Region|Mumbai metropolitan area]] is home to migrants from all over India.  In Mumbai, a wide range of languages are spoken, including Telugu, Tamil, Konkani, Kannada, Sindhi, Punjabi, Bengali, Tulu, and many more.<ref name="2011census-language" />