<P> Marathi is the official language of Maharashtra and co-official language in the union territories of Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli . In Goa, Konkani is the sole official language; however, Marathi may also be used for all official purposes . </P> <P> Over a period of many centuries the Marathi language and people came into contact with many other languages and dialects . The primary influence of Prakrit, Maharashtri, Dravidian languages, Apabhraṃśa and Sanskrit is understandable . At least 50% of the words in Marathi are either taken or derived from Sanskrit . Many scholars claim that Sanskrit has derived many words from Marathi . Marathi has also shared directions, vocabulary and grammar with languages such as Indian Dravidian languages, and foreign languages such as Persian, Arabic, English and a little from Portuguese . </P> <P> Tamil (also spelt as Thamizh: தமிழ்) is a Dravidian language predominantly spoken in Tamil Nadu, Puduchery and many parts of Sri Lanka . It is also spoken by large minorities in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius and throughout the world . Tamil ranks fifth by the number of native speakers in India (61 million in the 2001 Census) and ranks 20th in the list of most spoken languages . It is one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and was the first Indian language to be declared a classical language by the Government of India in 2004 . Tamil is one of the longest surviving classical languages in the world . It has been described as "the only language of contemporary India which is recognisably continuous with a classical past ." The two earliest manuscripts from India, acknowledged and registered by UNESCO Memory of the World register in 1997 and 2005, are in Tamil . Tamil is an official language of Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Sri Lanka and Singapore . It is also recognized as minority language in Canada, Malaysia, Mauritius and South Africa . </P> <P> After independence, Modern Standard Urdu, the Persianised register of Hindustani became the national language of Pakistan . During British colonial times, a knowledge of Hindustani or Urdu was a must for officials . Hindustani was made the second language of British Indian Empire after English and considered as the language of administration . The British introduced the use of Roman script for Hindustani as well as other languages . Urdu had 70 million speakers in India (as per the Census of 2001), and, along with Hindi, is one of the 22 officially recognised regional languages of India and also an official language in the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Telangana that have significant Muslim populations . </P>

First indian language to be declared as a classical language