The Sinhala language is an Indo-Aryan language primarily spoken in Sri Lanka. It is the mother tongue of the majority ethnic group, the Sinhalese, and has around 17 million speakers. Sinhala has its own unique script, which is derived from the ancient Brahmi script, and is used for writing literature, government documents, and education. Sinhala is one of the official languages of Sri Lanka, alongside Tamil. The language has a rich literary history, with texts dating back over 2,000 years. It incorporates many loanwords from Pali, Sanskrit, Portuguese, and English, reflecting the island's diverse cultural influences.