Skip to main content
Government of India

Northern Zone

About the Northern Zone

Documentation efforts within the Northern Zone focus on 16 endangered languages spoken across Chandigarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand. SPPEL academicians are coordinating with the Principal Investigators and Junior Resource Persons working under the Principal Investigators for the documentations of endangered languages spoken in this area.

The region spans vast geographic and cultural diversity — from the cold deserts of Ladakh and the Spiti valley, to the foothills of the Himalayas and the fertile plains of Uttar Pradesh. Each language in this zone carries a unique worldview, oral tradition, and cultural heritage that is at risk of disappearing.

Northern Zone
Himachal Pradesh Jammu and Kashmir Uttar Pradesh Uttarakhand
4
States & UTs
25
Languages Documented
41
Field Researchers
11
Principal Investigators
Northern Zone Overview

Documenting the Northern Linguistic Diversity

The Northern Zone encompasses states and union territories with diverse and critical ethnolinguistic communities. Our dedicated research teams work closely with native speakers to document, archive, and revitalize languages that form an essential part of the region's cultural heritage.

  • Comprehensive fieldwork and data collection
  • Development of bilingual dictionaries and grammars
  • Digital archiving in Bhasha Sanchika

States and Languages Documented

25 endangered languages documented across 4 states and union territories.

Himachal Pradesh

Western Himalayas

State
6 Languages
CHINALI GAHRI JAD JANGSHUNG KANASHI / MALANI SPITI

Jammu and Kashmir

Kashmir valley & Ladakh

UT
16 Languages
BALASTIN BATERI BEDA BHADRALIAM DARGARI GOJAPURI HASSADI KHANA KHASHA / KHASH KUSHWAHI MASIDI MESHABI PADDARI SIAN SIRAM TEHGUL

Uttar Pradesh

Largest state by population

State
1 Language
THARUA

Uttarakhand

Kumaon & Garhwal hills

State
4 Languages
DARMIYA JAD JANGALI RONGPO

Research Team

Research team assigned to each language — Principal Investigators and their Junior/Senior Resource Persons.

Language
Region
Principal Investigator
Research Team
ABC
SRP Prof. ASA
BEDA
Jammu & Kashmir
Mr. Ritesh Kumar
JRP Mr. Yogesh Dawer
BHADRALIAM
Jammu & Kashmir
Prof. Adil Amin Kak
JRP Ms. Farha Aarif
JRP Mr. Shahid Yousuf Gilkar
CHINALI
Himachal Pradesh
Prof. Imtiaz Hasnain
JRP Bharat Bhushan
JRP Mr. Farooq Ahmad Mir
JRP S. Murtuza Hussain
DARMIYA
Uttarakhand
Prof. K. Srikumar
SRP Dr. Vishnu Kumar Singh
JRP Mr. Ashish Kumar Pandey
GAHRI
Himachal Pradesh
SRP Dr. Parman Singh
GOJAPURI
Jammu & Kashmir
Prof. Nazir Ahmad Dhar
JRP Ms. Farkhana Mushtaq Qazi
JRP Ms. Syed Iram Bashir
JRP Ms. Syed Raiya Dawarki
HASSADI
Jammu & Kashmir
Prof. Nazir Ahmad Dhar
JRP Ms. Asifa Zargar
JRP Mr. Javaid Ahmad Sofi
JRP Mr. Younis Rashid Dar
JAD
Uttarakhand & Himachal Pradesh
Prof. Kavita Rastogi
SRP Dr. Sumedha Shukla
JRP Ms. Anjana Ramola
JRP Mr. Gaurav Anand
KHANA
Jammu & Kashmir
Prof. Adil Amin Kak
JRP Ms. Humaira Khan
JRP Mr. Javaid Ahmad Lone
KHASHA
Prof. Aejaz Mohammed Sheikh
JRP Mr. Hilal Ahmad Dar
JRP Ms. Rahila Safdar
JRP Ms. Saima Jan
MESHABI
Jammu & Kashmir
Prof. M.K. Kaul
JRP Mr. Adil Ahmad Zargar
JRP Mr. Firdoos-ur-Rehman Teli
JRP Ms. Rafia Nabi
PADDARI
Jammu & Kashmir
Prof. M.K. Koul
JRP Ms. Ambreen Farooq
JRP Mr. Irfan-ul-Salam
JRP Ms. Sanna Usman
RONGPO
Uttarakhand
Prof. Ayesha Kidwai
SRP Dr. Meiraba Takhellambam
JRP Karthick Narayanan
JRP Ojaswee Bhalla
JRP Raja Mathangi S
SIRAM
Jammu & Kashmir
Dr. Aejaz Mohammed Sheikh
JRP Ms. Nasreen Khaja
JRP Mr. Sameer Ahmad Kuchay
JRP Mr. Zahid Bashir Lone
SPITI
Himachal Pradesh
Prof. Ayesha Kidwai
SRP Dr. Meiraba Takhellambam
JRP Karthick Narayanan
JRP Ojaswee Bhalla
JRP Raja Mathangi S
SPPEL Assistant (BETA)

Hi, I'm the SPPEL Assistant.

Ask me about zones, languages, announcements, workshops, staff, or resources.

👋
Thinking…