Bengali বাংলা is the official and most widely used language in Bangladesh. Bengali বোয়ে ৰ ্ৰম is the national language of Bangladesh. The recorded history of Bengali can be traced back to the 8th century when it first appeared in written records of what was then called Gaur, according to one theory.Bengali has been influenced by Sanskrit, Arabic, Persian and Urdu for centuries. It contains around 100 million speakers worldwide (95% are in Bangladesh).  Bangladesh is the fourth largest country in terms of Bengali speakers in the world, with approximately 39 million speakers. Bangladesh has one of the oldest literary traditions in the world. It generally believes that writing was introduced to Bengal by Maharaja Devapala, who ruled northern part of Bengal from 636-668 AD, so it is generally dated back to 6th century AD. Bengali literature is considered to be extremely prolific and varied. The earliest medieval Bengali writings are found in Buddhist texts written between seventh and fifteenth century.  The most famous of them is Manasamangal, an epic poem written by the Buddhist poet Bipradasa in 1200 AD.Bengali literature reached its height in medieval period. The Baro Bhuyans are considered as the trail blazers of Bengali prose. Chandidas are highly regarded for their contribution to Bengali literature. The 15th century also saw the emergence of two outstanding poets, namely Daulat Qazi and Lalon Fakir whose devotional songs still inspires millions of followers.  This period also saw the emergence of some great Bengali Muslim poets like Alaol, Mukunda Das and Robin Sen. These three poets are regarded as the trail blazers of modern Bengali language poetry.The 17th century saw further development. During this period, Krishna Kishore Roy published his well received translation of Bhagawad Gita. This period also saw the emergence of two brilliant literary figures, namely Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar and Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay. Rabindranath Tagore was awarded the Nobel Prize in literature in 1913 for his work Gitanjali which is considered one of the greatest contribution to Bengali literature in 19th century.  Kazi Nazrul Islam and Sukumar Ray were also awarded the Nobel Prize in literature in 1937 and 1993 respectively.Bangladesh has a rich heritage of folk literature. The folk literature has been passed down through generations from the past. Folk literature is associated with the oral tradition of storytelling which was prevalent as early as 15th century. The folk literature portrays the rural as well as urban society of Bangladesh. It is an important part of Bangladesh's culture and heritage.Bengali has around 240 million speakers around the world (217 million in India, 21 million in Bangladesh). There are 75,000 books published every year on a variety of subjects including science, politics, religion and arts. 578eeb4e9f3211

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