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How did Sanskrit diphthongs such as ai and au change in Middle Indo-Aryan?
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Indo-Aryan languages
Devanagari script from a section of the Sanskrit Bhagavata Purana, c. 1880āc. 1900; in the British Library.
In Middle Indo-Aryan, the Sanskrit diphthongs ai and au underwent a process of monophthongization, changing into the monophthongs e and o, respectively.1
This shift is a characteristic feature of the phonological reduction that defines the Middle Indo-Aryan period. Examples of this transition include:1
* Sanskrit maitrÄ«- ("friendship") becoming PÄli mettÄ«-1
* Sanskrit aurasa- ("legitimate") becoming PÄli orasa-1
While these diphthongs were replaced by monophthongs in Middle Indo-Aryan, it is worth noting that they were retained well into the subsequent New Indo-Aryan period and continue to be pronounced in certain modern areas, such as in Braj Bhasha.2