The aphorisms of Dak Mahapurush, wise maxims from economic activities as well as social behaviour, constitute the earliest didactic compositions in Assamese, so far recorded in books. Assam has an unbroken heritage of written literature starting from at least the 13th century. The earliest known patronage of such efforts had come from the Kamata royal court since two of the earliest Assamese poets Harivara Vipra and Hema Saraswati wrote benedictory verses in praise of the Kamata King Durlabh Narayan.

In the 14th century emerged Madhava Kandali, an extremely powerful and sensitive poet on whom was bestowed the patronage of the Barahi King Mahamanikya Kandali rendered the Valmiki Ramayana into most graceful and elegant Assamese verse. It is interesting to note that of all the versions of Valmiki`s great epic into other Indian languages, Madhava Kandali`s was the earliest.

Great Sanskrit scholars, Sankaradeva and Madhavadeva took Assamese language and literature to unprecedented heights of artistic excellence. What is more, the high spiritual and artistic ideals combined with a whole some sense of direction held aloft first by Sankaradeva and then by Madhavadeva, inspired a whole lot of creative writers, both during their lifetimes and after. As a result, Assamese Vaishnavite literature is exceptionally rich in volume, range and flavour. Literature of Shakta affiliation as well as works on various secular subjects also equally developed through the centuries.

Apart from poetry of which Assamese literature possesses many real gems like the Kirtana-ghosha of Sankaradeva and the Namghosha of Madhavadeva, the two fields in which it excels are drama and prose. The plays written by the two Mahapurushas are recognized as the earliest specimens of purely vernacular dramatic literature in the sub-continent. It was as early as the sixteenth century that Vaikunthanath Bhattacharyya, more popularly known as Bhattadeva, rendered the Bhagavata and Gita into such mature prose that evoked spontaneous and unstinted admiration from the most enlightened quarters.

Historical literature is yet another wealth of Assam. This tradition of writing buranji, as history is called in Assamese, is the contribution of the Ahom dynasty. These are chronicles of royal courts and noble families first written in the Tai language and then in Assamese. The Ahoms of Burma who ruled Assam and gradually settled here wrote chronicles called Buranjis (1228 to 1824), a unique collection of prose. A mass of technical literature on astrology, medicine, mathematics, music, dancing and so on based on Sanskrit works was also written. Assamese buranji literature is unique in the whole of India not only because they contain invaluable historical material, but also because they represent an unmatched literary style. In the modern period the political upheavals were felt in the literary scene too.

The history of modern Assamese literature begins with the merger of Assam with British India in 1826. The initial years were difficult, especially with the British making Bengali and not Assamese the language of the schools and courts from 1835 to 1871. This situation however was reversed and Assamese was restored to its rightful position, with the American Baptist Mission taking a lead role. The Mission also brought out the first Assamese newspaper, Orunodoi in 1846. The Mission`s efforts to promote Assamese literature was followed by the nationalistic zeal and single-minded devotion of literary stalwarts like Ananda Ram Dhekial Phukan, Lakshminath Bezbaroa, Padmanath Gohain Barual, Hem Chandra Goswami & Chandra Kanta Agarwala.

The later half of the 19th century witnessed a flood of literary activities, the enthusiasm of which spilled over to the present century. Dictionaries like Hema Chandra Baruwa`s Hema Kosha were written and magazines like Arunodaya Samvad Patra (1846) and Asam Bandhu (1885) were launched. A fresh style of prose based on the spoken language was the order of the day. Anandaram Dhekial Phukan (1829-96) and Gunabhiram Baruwa (1837-95) were the two big daddies of this age.

Short poems and novels, dramas, lyrics and folk poetry pleased the literary circles. A generation of novelists and poets like Rajanikanta Bardalai (1867-1939), Hiteshwar Bezbarua (1871-1931), Chandra Kumar Agarwala (1867-1938), Padmanath Gohain Baruwa (1871-1946), Benudhar Raj Khowa (1872-1935) and their contemporary, Raghunath Chaudhari, wrote profusely in an age of nationalism and social reforms.

Contemporary Assamese literature has a vibrant short-story genre. Some of the best writers are Phul Goswami, Indira Goswami, Harendra Kumar Bhuyan, Arupa Patangia Kalita and Manoj Kumar Goswami. Modern Assamese literature is as the literature in any other major language in India. People like Birendra Kumar Bhattacharyya (also only winner of the coveted Jnanpith Award), Bhabendra Nath Saikia, Syed Abdul Malik, Homen Borgohain, Nava Kanta Baruah, Devkanta Barua, Nirmal Prabha Bordoloi, Nilmani Phikan, Mmoni Raisom Goswami etc. have been recognized as writers of great repute all over the country.

As for the tribal languages, Bodo has developed noticeably in the last few decades, taking into consideration the fact that every tribal language is a rich storehouse of oral folk literature, with myths, legends, tales, songs, proverbs, riddles, lullabies and rhymes.