Languages of Sri Lanka | |
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A sign in Sinhala, Tamil and English | |
Official | Tamil and Sinhala |
Semi-official | English |
Vernacular | Sri Lankan Tamil dialects, Sri Lankan English, Sri Lanka Malay |
Minority | Sri Lankan Portuguese creole, Vedda, Arwi |
Foreign | English |
Signed | Sri Lankan sign languages |
Keyboard layout |
The main languages spoken in Sri Lanka are Sinhala and Tamil. Several languages are spoken in Sri Lanka within the Indo-Aryan, Dravidian, and Austronesian families. Sri Lanka accords official status to Sinhala and Tamil, with English as a recognised language. The languages spoken on the island nation are deeply influenced by the various languages in India, Europe and Southeast Asia. Arab settlers and the colonial powers of Portugal, the Netherlands and Britain have also influenced the development of modern languages in Sri Lanka. See below for the most-spoken languages of Sri Lanka.[1]
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