Dramatic Prakrit

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The Dramatic Prakrits are the three main dialects of Prakrit, used extensively in Ancient Indian literature. The term "dramatic" is used because the main record of these languages is in the speech of minor characters in the Sanskrit drama. These are always accompanied by Sanskrit translations, and are therefore a useful resource in tracing the history of the Indo-Aryan languages.

Maharashtri Prakrit was used in the southwestern regions of Ancient India, later evolving into the Southern Indo-Aryan languages, including Marathi and Konkani.

Sauraseni Prakrit was used in north-central India, later evolving into the Central Indo-Aryan languages, including Hindi, Urdu, Punjabi, and Gujarati, among others.

Magadhi Prakrit was used in eastern India, later evolving into the Eastern Indo-Aryan languages, including Bengali, Assamese, Oriya, and the Bihari languages (Bhojpuri, modern Magadhi, Maithili, etc.), among others.