Local Languages of Pakistan

Pakistan is a country where there are different languages spoken. Language indicates the heritage and identity on people. Around 300 languages and dialects are spoken in Pakistan today, is what philologists say.

The official language of Pakistan was Persian for many years before. But, during the non-muslim and before the British came Urdu language was developed.

Pakistan has different languages like Urdu, Balochi, Sindhi, Pashto, Punjabi and English.

Urdu being the national language of Pakistan. It is a combination of Arabic, Persian and other local languages. It has a Arabic script and is very much like Hindi.
Sindhi is spoken in the Sind province. Around 35 million Pakistanis speak this language. It is an Indo-Aryan language. It has an Arabic script. This language has 16 vowels and 46 consonant phonemes. It also has separate 4 implosives.
Pashto is spoken in the North West Frontier Province. It is also called Pashto, pathani, pushtoo etc. it is basically an Iranian language. Pashtuns who stay in Pakistan use this language.
Punjabi is spoken in the Punjab province. It is an indo-European language and so also has a Indo-Iranian family.
Balochi is spoken in the Baluchistan province that is in western Pakistan. This is an Iranian language. It is one among the nine Pakistan’s official languages. It is much like Kurdish, an Iranian language.
Saraiki is spoken in the south Punjab province, which is in central Pakistan. It is also know as Multani. About 13 million people speak this language in Pakistan.
English is the official language of Pakistan. This is so as to communicate with other nations around the world.

Pakistan is rich with culture and heritage. It has different languages and so also there are various poets who have made these languages look more popular and have shaped them well. There are many poems, to Qawallis, Gazals etc.

Pakistan’s poetry is very nice and good. Ghalib and Iqbal are one among the 2 greatest poets in Urdu. Faiz Ahmad Faiz has written about socialist spirit. Saadat Hasan Manto has written many short stories. Most of these poets have written in Urdu. Though other Pakistani languages have also been used by many poets. Amir Khusro wrote qawallis in Farsi. Deewan-e-Ghalib had his works in Urdu. Ghazals in Urdu were found by him.
These great poets have made Pakistan’s culture grow by their poetry. They have excellent work to be named under them.

Pakistan has one among the best ghazal singers. With great voice and diction. One among them is Ghulam Ali Khan. They also have the famous, Abiba Parveen, Amanat Ali, A Nayyar, Begum Akhtar, and so on. Pakistan also has Sufi poetry and music. One among the most popular in this category is Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.

We saw that Pakistan has various languages spoken in different provinces. It is rich in culture and heritage. Different poets have made these languages look better than before thus giving it a new look and dimension.

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