Bengalispeaking

Bengali-speaking refers to people who speak the Bengali language as their first language or as a significant part of their linguistic repertoire. Bengali is an Indo-Aryan language and the official language of Bangladesh, as well as the most widely spoken language in the Indian state of West Bengal. In India, Bengali is one of the 22 scheduled languages and is an official language in the states of West Bengal and Tripura. Globally, Bengali is among the most widely spoken languages, with around 230 million native speakers and more than 300 million total speakers when second-language users are counted.

Bengali is used by large populations in Bangladesh and India, and by diaspora communities around the world. There are sizeable Bengali-speaking communities in parts of northeastern India, particularly Tripura and parts of Assam, and in major diaspora hubs such as the United States, the United Kingdom, the Middle East, and other regions.

The Bengali language uses its own script, the Bengali script (Bangla), derived from Brahmi. Standard Bengali is based largely on the central dialects of Bengal, including areas around Kolkata and Dhaka. Regional varieties include Sylheti, Chittagonian, and others, some of which are sometimes treated as distinct languages by linguists. The standard form is widely used in education, media, literature, and formal communication.

Bengali-speaking regions have a rich literary and cultural heritage, with notable figures such as Rabindranath Tagore and Kazi Nazrul Islam. Cultural traditions, including Pohela Boishakh (Bengali New Year), festivals, cinema, and music, are integral to Bengali-speaking communities. Contemporary contexts involve ongoing efforts in language preservation, education, and the maintenance of linguistic identity within diverse, multilingual environments.