Odia (ओड़िआ) is one of the rare 6 classical languages of India. (Just like shahtriya sangeet, sashtriya bhasha, Old & rich in heritage). Official language of Odisha (ओड़िसा), on the East Coast of India (what was once, Kalinga, Utkal). It is progressive & genderless with no gender binary. Marathi is a younger language, official language of the state Maharashtra, exactly on the opposite side on the West Coast of India.
Odisha is India's best kept secret; especially from Indians. Best.Tagline.Ever.😅 International newspapers applaud India's state for ancient festival celebrating menstruation with a 3 day state wide holiday. But non-Odia Indians have no idea about Raja (Rajaw). The Supreme Court of India giving the verdict that Rasagolla originated thousands of years earlier in the Jagannatha pratha of feeding Rasagolla to Mahalaxmi made everyone hear about us. Or the largest hockey stadium in the world.
Words that are exactly the same in pronunciation & writing but mean something COMPLETELY DIFFERENT
आई ≠ ଆଈ
Aai = mother in Marathi = ବୋଉ = ମାଁ = माँ
ଆଈ = mother's mother = नानी
What are the similarities between Odia & Marathi?
It was a pleasant shock, that so many words are exactly the same in Marathi (मराठी) (ମରାଠୀ) & Odia (ओड़िआ) । The most common similarity between Marathi & Odia is the retroflex LA
Marathi ळ = Odia ଳ
Common words in Marathi & Odia
Some words that are exactly the same are:
पाणि = ପାଣି = water = पानी
चाहा = ଚାହା = चाय = tea (formal)
चा=ଚା = chā (informal usage)
In everyday colloquial usage, nobody says chaahaa in Odia but ଚା is used. Chai is life for every Indian, or let's say our entire Indian subcontinent. So, what better to unite us than water & tea? (Chai paani nahi पूछेंगे?)
Namaskar = नमस्कार = ନମସ୍କାର୍
Thankyou = धन्यवाद = ଧନ୍ୟବାଦ୍
सुप्रभात = ସୁପ୍ରଭାତ = shubha(w) sakala = ଶୁଭ ସକାଳ = शुभ सकाळ = Good Morning
शुभ रात्री = ଶୁଭ ରାତ୍ରି = Good Night
In Odia, the hack is to learn the अ = ଅ sound behind every word. In very few words, Odia has ହଳନ୍ତ (halanth), (Hindi like abrubt ends). So, shubh = Shubh(aw). We all know how to do aww. Just a bit of aw (like awe) sound at the end completes the full अ = ଅ. In Bengali, it is O sound, in Odia, it's Aw.
Similarly, Odisha itself is written "shā", but pronounced "sā". All स (ସ),ष (ଷ), श (ଶ) are just dantesha sa (ଦନ୍ତେଶ ସ, दन्तेश स), talabesha sha ଶ श is never really uttered. It's become archaic, just as in Bengali, every sha is talabesha sha ଶ श । As the name suggests, for talabesha you use ତାଳୁ = तालु = tongue touches upper mouth top; for dantesha you use ଦାନ୍ତ= दांत = teeth.
तु = ତୁ = You (informal)
ତମେ = तुमि = तुम = you (medium formal)
ଆପଣ = आपण = आप = you [formal]
English, Hindi & Marathi have genders, Male, female. Odia has no gender. So, neither do verbs change as per gender nor does Odia have any pronouns based on gender. It's ସେ for all. Hence, very easy.
He = तो =ସେ
She = ती = ସେ
ସେ for all, he/she/it/things/inanimate
ଆସିଲା = came [transliteration: aasilaa (आसिला) ]
English
Hindi
Odia
She came
वो आयी
ସେ ଆସିଲା
He came
वो आया
ସେ ଆସିଲା
आम्ही = ଆମେ = we
Author Mrunmayee Manaja (known as dOVERanalyst Rj Mrunmayee on radio) is the first Odia to be radio jockey hosting live radio shows in Hindi & English in Mumbai, broadcasted worldwide in the largest radio network of the world.
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