Jeseri (also known as Jesri or Dweep Bhasha) is a language derived from old Malayalam^{[citation needed]}, spoken in the Union Territory of Lakshadweep in India. It is closely related to Malayalam. It is spoken on the islands of Chetlat, Bitra, Kiltan, Kadmath, Amini, Kavarathi, Androth, Agathi, and Kalpeni, in the archipelago of Lakshadweep. Each of these islands has its own dialect. It is hard for a speaker of Malayalam to understand Jeseri, more so, in the case of the idiom spoken by the older people.

The phonology of Jeseri is similar to that of Malayalam, but there are certain notable differences.

The vowels are the same as in Malayalam: a, e, i, o, u - in short and long forms, and a short neutral vowel u.

Very often, the initial short vowels, especially 'u', fall away in Jeseri, compared to Malayalam. For example: rangi (Mal. urangi) - slept, lakka (Mal. ulakka) - pestle.

In some words, the vowels also differ. For example: minne (Mal. munne) - before.

As for the consonants, they are almost as in Malayalam: Labials: p, b, m, f, v Dentals: th, dh, n, s, dzh (borrowed from Arabic) Alveolars: t, d, n, l, r, r(slightly palatal) Retroflexes: t, d, n, l Palatals: ch, j, nj, sh, y Velars: k, g, ng, kh Glottal: h