Age of the Nandas and Mauryas c12.s12.11

c12.s12.11

(iii) The third dialect of Aśoka is that of the South-west as in Surāṣṭra or peninsular Gujarat (Girnār). This is well-established there, and if the Gujarat speech of the 3rd century B.C. is derived from that of the Midland, then in Aśoka's Girnār edict we can see a form of the Midland speech, slightly modified perhaps from the genuine Midland dialect of the Mathurā area, given a recognition far away from its own home district—for, as we have just seen, in the Midland proper the Eastern official language was used in inscriptions.