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Sylheti (native name সিলটী Siloti; Bengali name সিলেটী Siletee) is the language of Sylhet proper, a North Eastern region of Bangladesh and of some bordering districts. It is also spoken by large expatriate communities in the UK, USA, Canada and the Middle East. It is similar enough to Bengali (Bangla) to be considered a dialect of that language, but at times it is probably better seen as a separate language. According to Grierson (Language Survey of India, Vol II, Pt 1, p224), "The inflections also differ from those of regular Bengali, and in one or two instances assimilate to those of Assamese". Indeed it was formerly written in its own script, Sylheti Nagari, similar in style to Kaithi but with differences. Now it is almost invariably written in Bengali script. Approximately 70-75%% of the Sylheti vocabulary is thought to have derived from Bengali, while the rest from Arabic, Persian, Hindi, Assamese and some of the other Bengali dialects. 
Syloti Nagri in wood block font
While modern Sylhetis consider themselves as Bengali people and part of the overall Bengali ethnno-linguistic identity, they are often noticed by and identified with their Sylheti regional linguistic identity when contrasted with other Bengalis - both by others and by themselves. The Sylheti dialect as spoken by the rural population residing in their home district is largely unintelligible to other Bengalis.
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