This is an elicitation of a word list of temporal and directional words and concepts, color terms, religious terms, words related to profession, metals and precious stones, adjectives (related to physical sensation, size and shape, quality and quantity), person-related words, abstract terms, personal pronouns, and family relations in the Central (Zhung) variety of the Zangskari language. Recorded in Youlang village, Ladakh Union Territory, India.

Ghulam Abbas describes Sunni Islam in the Zangskar region, beginning with the tale of a Leh king dispatching his son to govern Zangskar. In a poignant letter to his father, the prince pleads for his companion "Ju," a Muslim, to join him. This tale takes a pivotal turn when Ju, desiring halal meat, invites a Muslim butcher to Zangskar. The butcher’s eventual settlement and matrimony mark the beginning of the Muslim community in the region. Abbas also draws attention to the abodes of these early Muslim settlers, enriching the narrative’s depth. Recorded in Padum village, Ladakh Union Territory, India.

Tshering Garmo and Tshering Dolma, sisters from the village of Karsha in Zangskar, share personal narratives about their family and life in Zangskar. Assisted by Sonam Phalkay, we delve into memories of his grandmother and her younger sister. A candid pre-interview exchange unfolds between the Tshering sisters and Chhuskit Angmo (Sonam's mother) while the recording equipment was being set up, which enriches the narrative. Recorded in Youlang village, Ladakh Union Territory, India.

This is an elicitation of a word list consisting of words related to fire and fuel, flora and fauna in the Central (Zhung) variety of the Zangskari language. Recorded in Youlang village, Ladakh Union Territory, India.

This recording captures an in-depth elicitation session of words in the Central (Zhung) variety of the Zangskari language, encompassing several diverse categories such as celestial entities, nature-related elements, household and farm equipment, food items, temporal and directional concepts, color terms, religious terminology, professional words, metals, precious stones, and various adjectives detailing physical sensation, size, shape, quality, and quantity. With Chhuskit Angmo as the consultant, this session revisits the same word list earlier elicited from Tshering Garmo, serving as a cross-check for consistency and variation. Recorded in Youlang village, Ladakh Union Territory, India.

This is an elicitation of a word list consisting of numerals (mainly cardinal and some ordinal) and a few body parts in the Central (Zhung) variety of the Zangskari language. Recorded in Youlang village, Ladakh Union Territory, India.

This is an elicitation of a word list consisting of numerals, words related to person (body parts, body functions), the physical universe (celestial entities, nature-related objects, and events), house and household items, farm and farming equipment, and food items in the Central (Zhung) variety of the Zangskari language. Recorded in Youlang village, Ladakh Union Territory, India.

The transcription and free translations in English, Urdu, and Hindi of a performance of a drama by the title – Gharphū̃kan patōh 'Spendthrift daughter-in-law' (in English). The drama depicts a typical rural life of the North Indian plains where a woman and her family are very frustrated by the misdeeds of the daughter-in-law because she is a spendthrift.

This is a personal narrative of the life of the speaker Shazia Shaikh. She narrates many of her childhood incidences. Additionally, she provides a detailed description of most of her family members as well as her village Bairidih.

This is a recording of a conversation while cleaning fishes. There was some conversation between women who were cleaning fishes. In order to get natural data, Maaz goes near to them, sits, and starts recording without alerting them. Suddenly as few seconds pass, one of them alerts, and everyone takes a surprise! But a few moments later, they become comfortable with it. They then start imitating and mocking the far northern variety of Azamgarhi spoken in Dewārā, the flood plain area of the Ghaghra river in the northern part of Azamgarh.

This is a discussion on the popular irrigation systems used in Azamgarh and nearby areas of Purvanchal, Uttar Pradesh state, before the invention of tube wells. This discussion briefly also extends to farming systems and agricultural tools. This discussion was primarily between the researcher and two residents of southern Azamgarh who were distant relatives to the researcher. It took place almost entirely in Urdu, whereas some background noises can be frequently heard in Azamgarhi.

This is a performance of a traditional song by the title ‘Dulahē tērī ãkhiā̃’ (Eng. O bridegroom, your eyes) sung on the occasion of marriage. It praises the beauty of the bridegroom and his costume. Such songs are of great significance to the community; however, until recently, their popularity and importance have started dwindling because of the penetration of urban culture into rural society.

This is a performance of a traditional song by the title ‘Dulahē kī ammā’ (Eng. O the mother of the bridegroom). In this song, the bridegroom’s mother is asked to bless her son on this auspicious marriage occasion. Such folksongs are of great significance to the community; however, until recently, their popularity and importance have started dwindling because of the penetration of urban culture into rural society. This folksong is in the Eastern dialect of Urdu.

This is a story of a teacher who once — while teaching his students — says, “I have made you human from donkey by beating, but you don’t understand.” A washerman who had no children passes by and hears this. He then approaches the teacher and pleads with him to turn a donkey into a son for his sake. The teacher agrees to this and asked him to return after six months. The washerman returns after six months and asks for his son. The teacher replies that he taught and trained him so much that he became a judge at the Allahabad High Court. The washerman then visits the court, and the story continues.

This is a personal narrative of the life of the speaker Mohammad Khalid. The narrative is in the Northern (Mandē) dialect of Azamgarhi with some code-switching to Urdu.

This is a conversation between four-five people. Maaz — accompanied by his father — visits his (late) paternal grandmother’s ancestral home in Mande village. His father and his grandmother’s sister-in-law have a conversation which was joined by her relatives too. Maaz finds the conversation quite interesting and decides to record it. It ranges from a discussion on the modern age and its issues on family members, religion, current issues, politics, etc.

This is a recording of Mr. Anwar reciting a joke on the wit of an Indian involved in an argument with an American and a Russian.

This is a story of a king who has seven children and once tells one of his children to bring a few things from the market. He instead brings a book that makes the king angry, and he evicts him. The son leaves the palace, goes to another village, and begins to stay there. He takes up a challenge and wins. The king gets pleased and marries his daughter with him. The prince then returns to his father’s kingdom, and the story continues. The story is recited by Asiya Khatoon, who is a Bhojpuri speaker hailing from Siwan district from Bihar, in (Eastern) Urdu. The researcher asks her maternal grandmother to interpret in Azamgarhi. She interprets in the Northern dialect.

This is a reading and simultaneous interpretation of an Urdu article Khōkhlā vajūd 'Hollow existence', which appeared in the Urdu daily newspaper 'The Inquilab' dated 26th of December 2019. The article was read by Naazli at her residence, and her cousin Faiza Khan simultaneously interpreted it into Azamgarhi. This was done at the request of Maaz, and the article was suggested to him by his grandfather.

This is a conversation in (Pharaī) Chāndpūr village situated in the Maū district of UP, between Irfan Ahmad Usmani, Maaz Shaikh and his uncle Saeeduz Zafar Ali. The conversation begins with a discussion on the variety of Azamgarhi spoken in this village and continues to the Azamgarhi language and thereafter to the different local vernaculars spoken in Eastern UP and Bihar. Further, Mr. Usmani describes the village, its iconic location due to it being situated near the banks of a tributary (Pharaī in Azamgarhi) of the Ghāgrā river, and its unique tongue. Then, the conversation moves on to a discussion on relatives. Later on, his sister too joins the conversation.

This is a discussion about the language and language varieties spoken in the districts of the Pūrvānchal region of the state of Uttar Pradesh, such as Maū, Balliā, and Āzamgaṛh. The speaker Mr. Maqsood Khan initiates with a short monologue on the election season in his mother tongue Bhojpuri spoken in his village Jogarī. He then proceeds to the varieties spoken in the region as he seems to have excellent knowledge on the same. The monologue then turns into a discussion about the differences of culture and language of Āzamgaṛh and Maū. It then shifts to the state of Urdu in India.

This is a conversation primarily with Mr. Akhlaque. After recording some conversations in Rāmpūr village, the researcher learns the language of the Muslims to be Bhojpuri and almost the same as that of the Hindu population, unlike that in Fatehpūr. He then moves near to Mr. Akhlaque to enquire about this. Mr. Jameel then joins the conversation and adds his opinion on the ongoing topic.

This is a video recording of a conversation of Aquil Ahmad at his farm with the farm laborers and when visiting his farms. The conversation starts with Mr. Aquil introducing and enumerating the benefits of technology in agriculture, such as the ‘Superseeder’ machine that plows the stubble left after harvesting and sows the seeds. Then he directs his workers on how to scatter the seeds and fertilizer. After that, Mr. Musafir arrives, and Mr. Aquil discusses the various farm produce in recent years and the required efforts and challenges involved. Then he asks Mr. Musafir to share his personal accounts with the researcher. Mr. Aquil too shares his personal experiences from the past. Later on, they both talk about political issues.

This is a conversation between four people in Sonwārā, the researcher’s village. Maaz, accompanied by his cousin Noman, visits Shahida Bano to document some folk songs mostly sung on the occasion of marriages. Rehana Bano—the neighbor of Shahida Bano—on noticing some folksongs being sung and recording taking place, joins the gathering at the request of Shahida. Maaz and Noman then ask her to brief them on topics such as changing times, a description of the demography of the village Sonwārā, the languages/ varieties spoken by Muslims and Hindus. Meanwhile, Maaz—on having noticed Shahida’s language to match with Bhojpuri than Azamgarhi—starts records the ongoing conversation. Shahida then extends the conversation to cover family members and some significant events along with some personal narratives. While Shahida Bano talks in Bhojpuri, the other people converse in Azamgarhi.