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Mother Tongue Asia

Asia

Cambodia

Status
Yes
Year
2019
Form
General Population Census of Cambodia — Form B, Part 2 Individual Particulars
Question
Column 9
What is the person's mother tongue?

Responses:

Response / codeOption
01–29Coded mother-tongue list; Khmer and other named language categories plus Other

Question type: 1 — coded mother-tongue item

Notes: Mother Tongue is a dedicated person-level column in the supplied form.

Source: Cambodia

Indonesia

Status
Yes
Year
2020
Form
Population Census 2020 — SP2020-C2 Long Form
Question
P423
Bahasa apakah yang pertama kali (Nama) kuasai? / What language did the person first master?

Responses:

Response / codeOption
1Bahasa Indonesia
2Bahasa Daerah
3Bahasa Asing
4Bahasa Isyarat

Question type: 1 — first-language question

Notes: This is the clearest explicit first-language item in the supplied Indonesian census form.

Source: 2020 Long Form

Kazakhstan

Status
Yes
Year
2021
Form
National Population Census — Individual (Index 3-I)
Question
Q12
Specify your native language

Responses:

Response / codeOption
1Kazakh
2Russian
3Other — specify

Question type: 1 — native-language categories with other write-in

Notes: Q12 is an explicit native-language question.

Source: 2021 Individual Form

Kyrgyzstan

Status
Yes
Year
2022
Form
Population and Housing Census — Form 2
Question
Q10.1
Your mother tongue

Responses:

Response / codeOption
11Kyrgyz
5Kazakh
1Russian
12Tajik
4Uzbek
OtherOther language — specify which language

Question type: 1 — coded mother-tongue item plus other-language write-in

Notes: The supplied English questionnaire explicitly labels Q10.1 YOUR MOTHER TONGUE.

Source: 2022 Census Forms (English)

Nepal

Status
Yes
Year
2021
Form
National Population and Housing Census — Main Questionnaire
Question
Individual Information
Mother tongue

Responses:

Response / codeOption
Response structureCoded language list in the Nepali questionnaire

Question type: 1 — coded mother-tongue item

Notes: The English documentation explicitly identifies mother tongue as an individual characteristic.

Source: Nepal 2021 questionnaire

Pakistan

Status
Yes
Year
2023
Form
7th Population & Housing Census — Census Form 2
Question
Mother tongue item
Mother tongue

Responses:

Response / codeOption
Listed languagesUrdu; Punjabi; Sindhi; Pushto; Balochi; Kashmiri; Saraiki; Hindko; Brahvi; Shina; Balti; Mehwati; Kalasha; Kohistani; Others

Question type: 1 — coded mother-tongue item

Notes: The 2023 report explicitly identifies mother tongue as a census variable and gives the detailed categories; five languages (Shina, Balti, Mehwati, Kalasha, Kohistani) were added for the first time in 2023.

Source: Pakistan 2023 individual form

Taiwan

Status
Yes
Year
2020
Form
2020 Population and Housing Census — questionnaire / glossary
Question
Language usage — earliest learned in childhood
What language was earliest learned in childhood?

Responses:

Response / codeOption
DefinitionThe language earliest learned after birth

Question type: 1 — first/earliest-learned language item

Notes: The supplied glossary explicitly defines this component of Taiwan's language-usage questionnaire item. It is included here as a first-language/mother-tongue equivalent.

Source: Taiwan 2020 question glossary

Timor-Leste

Status
Yes
Year
2022
Form
Population and Housing Census — Module E: Individual information
Question
Mother tongues
What languages did <Name> learn as a child?

Responses:

Response / codeOption
Language responseSelect at least one and no more than two languages from the list
ExamplesAtauran; Bahasa Indonesia; Adabe; Tetun Prasa; Tetun Terik; Portuguese; Other language

Question type: 3 — multiple mother-tongue/first-language question

Notes: The questionnaire identifies this block as Mother tongues and asks which languages were learned as a child.

Source: Timor-Leste 2022 census report/questionnaire