During the period of the Delhi Sultanate, which language served as the main official language of administration and court records?

Introduction / Context:
The Delhi Sultanate brought new ruling elites and administrative practices to northern India. One important change was the adoption of a particular language for royal correspondence, revenue records and court literature. Knowing which language functioned as the official administrative medium sheds light on cultural influences and the spread of certain scripts and literary traditions in medieval India.

Given Data / Assumptions:

- The question concerns the official language of the Delhi Sultanate. - The options are Urdu, Arabic, Persian and Hindi. - We assume standard descriptions of Sultanate administrative practice from history textbooks.

Concept / Approach:
Although the rulers of the Delhi Sultanate were of Turkic and Afghan origin, their court culture was deeply influenced by Persian traditions. Persian became the primary language of administration, high culture and historiography under the Sultans and continued under the early Mughals. Many chronicles, farmans and revenue records were written in Persian script. Arabic was the sacred language of Islam, but it was not the usual language of day to day administration in India. Urdu developed later as a contact language in north Indian cities, and Hindi (in its modern sense) emerged over time, not as the official language of the Sultanate court.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Recall that Persian was widely used by Muslim courts across Central and South Asia as a language of governance and literature. Step 2: Recognise that chronicles of the Delhi Sultans, such as works by Ziauddin Barani and Minhaj us Siraj, were written in Persian. Step 3: Understand that Arabic, while important for religious texts like the Quran, did not become the routine administrative language in the Delhi Sultanate. Step 4: Note that Urdu as a developed literary language took shape more fully in later centuries and was not the formal language of the early Sultanate state. Step 5: Modern Hindi in its standardised form is a much later development and cannot be the answer for a medieval Muslim dynasty. Step 6: Conclude that Persian was the main official language of the Delhi Sultanate.

Verification / Alternative check:
Historical documents preserved from the Sultanate period, including revenue manuals, court histories and royal orders, are predominantly in Persian. Even under the Mughals, Persian continued as the high language of governance until the nineteenth century. Administrative reforms, legal digests and literary patronage all confirm the dominance of Persian in official contexts, whereas Arabic remained largely restricted to religious scholarship and Quranic studies. This evidence strongly supports Persian as the correct option.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Urdu: Developed as a camp and city language mixing Persian, Turkish and local dialects, but it was not the formal administrative language of the early Sultanate.
Arabic: A sacred religious language of Islam, important in theology and law, but not the primary language of state administration in Delhi.
Hindi: Refers to later standardised forms of north Indian speech and was not adopted as the official court language under the Sultans.

Common Pitfalls:
Students may confuse Arabic and Persian because both use similar scripts and are associated with Islamic cultures. Another mistake is to project modern linguistic situations backwards, assuming that Hindi or Urdu must have been official simply because they are widespread today. Remembering the specific historical role of Persian as a court language across many Islamic empires helps avoid these errors.

Final Answer:
The official language of administration under the Delhi Sultanate was Persian.