Assamese language in the past. There are also significant Assamese-speaking communities in Australia, Dubai, the United Kingdom, Canada, Nepal and the United States. Assamese is the official language of Assam, and one of the 23 official languages recognised by the Republic of India. The Assam Secretariat functions in Assamese. The Assamese phonemic inventory consists of eight vowels, ten diphthongs, and twenty-three consonants (including two semivowels). Consonant clusters in Assamese include thirty three pure consonant letters in the Assamese alphabet. Each letter represents a single sound with an inherent vowel, the short vowel . The first twenty-five consonants letters are called "sparxa barna"
Assamese cuisine so common in Indian cooking, is absent in the cuisine of Assam.) The preferred oil for cooking is the pungent mustard oil. A traditional meal in Assam begins with a "khar", a class of dishes named after the main ingredient, and ends with a "tenga", a sour dish. The food is usually served in bell metal utensils made by an indigenous community called Mariya. The belief is that when food and water is served in such utensils its good for health and boost up immunity. "Tamul" (betel nut, generally raw) and "paan" generally concludes the meal. Though still obscure, this