Indo-Aryan language of the eastern group spoken mainly in the state of Orissa, India. Oṛiyā is one of the 14 regional languages recognized by the Indian constitution. A direct descendant of the Ardhamāgadhī Prākrit spoken in the ancient kingdom of Magadha, it is now most closely related to Maithilī, Assamese, and Bengali. Oṛiyā has not changed greatly since the 14th century, the time of the earliest-known inscriptions in the language. It shows less foreign influence (Muslim and British) than most Indo-Aryan languages because its speakers were among the last to be conquered. Oṛiyā's literary style borrows heavily from Sanskrit. In grammar, Oṛiyā distinguishes between rational and nonrational beings and objects. Like Bengali, it uses the plural verb forms instead of the singular to show respect to a rational being.