THE DRAVIDIAN LANGUAGE TELUGU (ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION: /

TLU/; TELUGU, IPA: [TT ELTUU]) IS NATIVE TO INDIA. IT STANDS

ALONGSIDE HINDI, ENGLISH AND BENGALI AS ONE OF THE ONLY LANGUAGES
WHICH PREDOMINATE IN MORE THAN ONE INDIAN STATE IT IS THE PRIMARY
LANGUAGE IN THE STATES OF ANDHRA PRADESH AND TELANGANA, AS WELL
AS IN THE TOWN OF YANAM WHERE IT IS ALSO AN OFFICIAL LANGUAGE. IT IS
ALSO SPOKEN BY SIGNIFICANT MINORITIES IN THE ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR
ISLANDS, CHHATTISGARH, KARNATAKA,MAHARASHTRA, ODISHA, TAMIL NADU,
AND PUDUCHERRY, AND BY THE SRI LANKAN GYPSY PEOPLE. IT IS ONE OF SIX
LANGUAGES DESIGNATED CLASSICAL LANGUAGE OF INDIA. TELUGU RANKS
SECOND BY THE NUMBER OF NATIVE SPEAKERS IN INDIA (74 MILLION) (2001
CENSUS) FIFTEENTH IN THE ETHNOLOGUE LIST OF MOST-SPOKEN
LANGUAGES WORLDWIDE AND IS THE MOST WIDELY-SPOKEN DRAVIDIAN
LANGUAGE. IT IS ONE OF THE TWENTY-TWO SCHEDULED LANGUAGES OF THE
REPUBLIC OF INDIA.[11]
IN LOANS FROM SANSKRIT, TELUGU RETAINS SOME OF THE FEATURES THAT
HAVE SUBSEQUENTLY BEEN LOST IN SOME OF SANSKRIT'S DAUGHTER
LANGUAGES SUCH AS HINDI AND BENGALI, ESPECIALLY IN THE
PRONUNCIATION OF SOME VOWELS AND CONSONANTS.