North Dravidian languages

Northern Dravidian is characterized by the retraction of Proto Dravidian *k to /q/ before vowels other than /i(ː)/ and later spirantizing in Brahui and Kurukh, in return the *c also retracted to /k/ in the same environment.

Initial *w became b likely due to influence from Eastern Indo-Aryan languages. Brahui also has a voiceless lateral which formed after the merge of *ḷ to *l as there are words from both of them but the conditions of the split are not clear.

The Dravidian languages form a close-knit family. Most scholars agree on four groups, North Dravidian being one of them:

• North Dravidian (Brahui-Kurukh)
  • Kurukh-Malto
    • Kurukh (Oraon, Kisan) 2.28 million (2002-2011)
    • Malto (Kumarbhag Paharia, Sauria Paharia) 159,215 (2011 census)
  • Brahui 2,640,000

The most closely related language to Malto is Kurukh, and the closely connected to Kurukh is Malto; together with Brahui, all three languages form the North Dravidian branch of the Dravidian language family.

Brahui: براہوئی (also known as Brahvi or Brohi) is a Dravidian language spoken by the Brahui people who are mainly found in the central Balochistan Province of Pakistan, with smaller communities of speakers scattered in parts of Iranian Baluchestan, Afghanistan, and Turkmenistan (around Merv) and by expatriate Brahui communities in Iraq, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.

It is isolated from the nearest Dravidian-speaking neighbouring population of South India by a distance of more than 1,500 kilometres (930 mi). The Kalat, Khuzdar, Mastung, Quetta, Bolan, Nasirabad, Nushki, and Kharan districts of Balochistan Province are predominantly Brahui-speaking.

Kurukh (Kurux, Oraon or Uranw) is a North Dravidian language spoken by the Kurukh (Oraon) and Kisan people of East India. It is spoken by about two million people in the Indian states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, West Bengal, Assam, Bihar and Tripura, as well as about 5,000 in Bhutan. 28,600 speakers of a dialect called Uranw are reported to live in Nepal. In Nepal, the language is called Dhangar or Jhangar, being spoken alongside another Dravidian language called Kisan; however, Kisan and Dhangar are treated as Kurukh dialects. Kurux is also spoken by about 65,000 people in northern Bangladesh, in Barind and Sylhet.

Malto is a North Dravidian language spoken by the Malto or Maler people in Rajmahal Hills of western Jharkand and eastern Chhattisgarh, but also in West Bengal, Tripura and Orissa. Scholarship identifies three dialects: Kumarbhag, Mal Paharia and Sawriya. According to Sanford Steever, Malpaharia and Kumarbhag show "more affinity", while Sawriya is more conservative.