Everything You Need To Learn Odia
Odia (ଓଡ଼ିଆ and also Oriya) is the majority language of the Indian state of Odisha, which is situated in the eastern portion of India. It’s also one of the 22 official languages of India; and with over 35 million speakers, it’s the 9th most spoken language in the country.
Odia belongs to the Indo-Aryan language family, and it’s closely related to Bengali and Assamese, with some considering them to be mutually intelligible.
The language uses the Odia (or Oriya) script, which descends from the Brahmi script.
The bad news is, there’s a dearth of learning resources for English speakers wanting to learn Odia. Below is everything we could find, and we hope they’ll be useful to you.
Odia Language Learning Books
With such a limited selection of learning materials from which to choose, currently one of the only ways to learn Odia on your own is by using an Odia course/study book. At least with one of these, you’ll be able to learn the basics, including things like how the alphabet works, grammar concepts, and how Odia is structured.
You’ll also need a good, solid English-Odia/Oriya dictionary to aid you. As you progress, there will be more and more words that you’ll need to learn the meaning of and how to use them in different contexts.
Odia Children’s Books
One of the most effective and fun ways to add new vocabulary that sticks is by reading children’s books in Odia. As they’re written using language that’s easy-to-read, beginners won’t have too many issues getting through them, yet they’ll still improve their overall Odia comprehension by reading them.
Odia Fiction
At some point, you’ll want to expand your reading abilities beyond children’s books and move on to Odia books for adults/older readers. These books are written using more difficult language, and tackle more advanced concepts, so will provide you with a challenge.
Odia Movies & TV Shows
Watching Odia-language movies or TV shows is another excellent language-learning tool. You’ll pick up a lot of new vocabulary and get exposure to the Odia language in its natural discourse.
This is also a great way to hear Odia idioms, slang, and other regional words that you might not normally encounter in formal learning situations.
