Persian language became widespread in the Mughal Empire by the timeof Akbar’s reign. Abul Fazl was a great scholar and historian of his period.He set a style of prose writing and it wasfollowed by many generations.
Many historical works were written during this period. They include Ain-i-Akbari and Akabar Nama authored by Abul Fazl. The leading poet of thatperiod was his brother Abul Faizi. The translation of Mahabharata intothe Persian language was done under his supervision. Utbi and Naziriwere the two other leading Persian poets.
Jahangir’s autobiography, Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri was famous for its style. Healso patronized many scholars like Ghiyas Beg, Naqib Khan andNiamatullah. Shah Jahan also patronized many writers and historians likeAbdul Hamid Lahori, author of Padshah Nama and Inayat Khan whowrote Shah Jahan Nama. His son Dara Shikoh translated the BhagavatGita and Upanishads into the Persian language. Many historical workswere written during the reign of Aurangazeb. Famous dictionaries of thePersian language were also compiled during the Mughal period.
Regional languages such as Bengali, Oriya, Rajasthani and Gujarathi hadalso developed during this period. Many devotional works including theRamayana and Mahabharata were translated into regional languages.
From the time of Akbar, Hindi poets were attached to the Mughal court.The most influential Hindi poet was Tulsidas, who wrote the Hindiversion of the Ramayana, the Ramcharitmanas.