Rapid Fire
The Kokborok Language
- 18 Jan 2025
- 2 min read
Members of the Twipra Students’ Federation (TSF) were detained for protesting at the Tripura Assembly entrance, demanding the inclusion of the Roman script for Kokborok ( a Sino-Tibetan language) in textbooks and official work.
- Language and Community: Kokborok, is the mother tongue of the Borok people (Tripuris) and tribal communities in Tripura, including Debbarma, Reang, Jamatia, and others.
- Etymology: "Kok-Borok" combines Kok (language) and Borok (man), meaning "the language of man" or "the language of the Borok people."
- Script and Writing: Kokborok originally used the Koloma script but now lacks a native script and is written in Bengali script.
- Historical Roots: Existed since at least the 1st century AD. Rajratnakar, a chronicle of Tripuri kings, was initially written in Kokborok and Koloma script by Durlobendra Chontai.
- Recognition: Kokborok was recognised as the official language of Tripura in 1979 (spoken by 23.97% of Tripura’s population (2011 Census)), second only to Bengali.
- Use of Roman Script: Kokborok, favored by tribal groups, has been written in Roman script for decades. Two commissions, led by Shyama Charan Tripura and Pabitra Sarkar, supported Roman, while the government preferred Bengali.
- Tribal organizations oppose Bengali or Devanagari scripts, fearing cultural imposition and identity disruption.
Read more: NRC in Tripura
