| Bhalesi | |
| States: | India |
| Region: | Bhalessa region of Jammu |
| Coordinates: | 33.03°N 75.9°W |
| Pushpin Map: | India Jammu and Kashmir#India |
| Familycolor: | Indo-European |
| Fam2: | Indo-Iranian |
| Fam3: | Indo-Aryan |
| Fam4: | Western Pahari |
| Fam5: | Bhadarwahi |
| Isoexception: | dialect |
| Glotto: | bhal1244 |
| Glottorefname: | Bhalesi |
Bhalesi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Bhalessa region of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is a member of the Bhadarwahi group of dialects under the Western Pahari subgroup.
The region is locally known as Bhalessa (with variants like Bhalesh), or as Bhal, and from these terms derive the local names for the dialect: pronounced as //ˈbʱɑli// and pronounced as //bʱəˈleiʃi// (with variants pronounced as //bʱəˈleʃi//, pronounced as //bʱəˈlesi//). The region mostly takes up two adjacent mountain valleys, with the main settlements being Kahra, Gandoh, Kilhotran, Jakyas, Bhatyas, and Juggasar. The neighbouring languages are Chinali, Pangwali and Chambeali to the south-east, Padri to the north-east, Kishtwari to the north-west, Sarazi to the west, and Bhadarwahi to the south.
Features that distinguish Bhalesi from the other Bhadarwahi dialects include the preponderence of diphthongs, and the dropping of pronounced as //l// between vowels (e.g. Bhalesi pronounced as //kɑo// vs. Bhadarwahi pronounced as //kɑlo// 'black').
An unusual feature is found in one of the patterns for the formation of the plural of feminine nouns, adjectives and participles. While some forms add a suffix (pronounced as //bʱi// 'a small bee' -> pronounced as //bʱiɑ̃// 'small bees'), others will undergo apophony: the final and initial vowels are raised, for example: