The Rape of the Urdu Language(from Ancient Pakistan)

[Old School]

People like you are really screwed minded.
Those same people who speak urdu had their own languages as well back when they were in Hindustan. Memons, Gujratis, Punjabis, Hyderabadi people, most of them had their first languages NOT urdu and many even now at home. Urdu is just an english counterpart of Subcontinent, since Akbar’s time.
Your beef for the Urdu language has closed your and some other forumers minds to think realistically with history on mind.
You can go to balochistan and speak in your own mother tongue (punjabi, pashto), and then get response in balochi and while all this, both the parties have no idea what the other is speaking...

Ajeeb...

You are free to speak Urdu or whatever you call it, why forcing people ? English is widely used in the USA but it is not yet the official language there. Excessively proud poor people always like to dominate other through linguistic and cultural hegemony and yet can not manage simple things like sugar, flour and tomatoes. Punjabis will learn only two foreign languages which are Arabic and English. No time for Urdu to overburden ourselves. The brain has a lot more things to take care of.

 

[TMA]

Languages evolve and change, and are constantly influenced by other surrounding languages.

A language that does not change, is a dead language. Latin is a good example of this.

When the Israelis revived Hebrew, they found that they had no Hebrew words for a lot of modern things. So they had to borrow from other languages, primarily from Hebrew's sister language, Arabic. In fact, Arabic was used to

It doesn't necessarily have to be a sister language, but that's besides the point.

Language often evolves from street slang, which (if spoken widely enough) makes it's way to the common dictionary. That slang can come from anywhere, and from any language. It's not something that can actually be stopped.

It can be modified and moulded, as is the case with political correctness. Not saying Pakistan should go down this route but language can be shaped like the countours or meanderings of a river.

It can be modified and moulded, as is the case with political correctness. Not saying Pakistan should go down this route but language can be shaped like the countours or meanderings of a river.

The point is that pakistanis have an inferiority i complex and in order to combat it, they should not mess up their native tongues with mixing the current prestige language but rather develop their own tongues with minimal recourse to the current prestige language. Why do the Chinese officials speak via a translator even though many of them know English and could directly communicate without a translator? Why did the extremists Hindus in Bharat dePersianize Hindu and introduce Sanskrit replacements? Cos they wanted to fight against the inferiority complex that many of them had vis a vis the Muslim cultural superiority in times bygone.
The disease is inferiority complex and one symptom is using phrases from the prestige language which can be adequately described/conjured from the native and historical tongues.
At a slight tangent, why does Imran Khan wear Shalwer Kameez at public engagements? Is is haraam to wear a suit? No. It is his way of fighting against the inferiority complex that colonized people are subject to.

 

[That Guy]

It can be modified and moulded, as is the case with political correctness. Not saying Pakistan should go down this route but language can be shaped like the countours or meanderings of a river.

Eeeeeh, sort of, I guess.

It depends on the general public. The government can certainly influence the way a certain language can and should flow, but it can't control it. languages evolves naturally, and attempts to control them will likely fail. The gov can dictate new words into the vocabulary, which is a difficult test, but removing words is a far FAR harder task.

In order to control a language and dictate its flow, the control needs the ability to add and remove words from the vocabulary of the general public.

 

[Cookie Monster]

The rape of Urdu language ~
How transliteration and "Roman Urdu" have destroyed this language

When languages are not properly protected and taught, the result is this. Behold the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority's "translation" of Islamabad International Airport (see photo).

- International = بین اقوامی (Bainul Aqwami)
- Airport =ہوائی اڈے (Hawai Adda)

Yes, this is actually a real photo. The CAA actually approved this translation. It makes me wonder what the average IQ is of the people running this government department. And this nonsense is not an isolated incident. In 2018, The Citizens Archive of Pakistan inaugurated the "National History Museum" as the "نیشنل ہستورے میوزیم".

- Museum =عجائب گھر (Ajaib Ghar)
- National = قومی (Quami)
- History = تاریخ (Tareekh)

And this is not just about Urdu...all our languages in Pakistan are under threat due to ignorance like this. The lack of ownership of our languages and lack of language laws results in this type of circus, where Anglicisation is allowed to run rampant.

Clearly the planning and constructing of the exhibits at this "National History Museum" were done first in English, and then "translated" into Urdu – and I use the term "translated" very loosely, as you can see in the photos that I've uploaded and highlighted.

If the planners of this museum do not know how to translate “National History Museum” into Urdu, then what else can you entrust them with? Throughout the museum you see absolutely mind numbing Urdu translations. It almost seems as if someone took the exhibit descriptions and used “Google Translator” to automatically translate them from English to Urdu. In some cases, the Urdu translations were actually LITERALLY transliterated from English.

Furthermore, the people of Punjab funded this museum, so where is Punjabi (Shahmukhi) language for your exhibit descriptions? Are regional languages inferior and not relevant? Also, you refer to yourselves as a “national” museum, so shouldn’t our other regional languages also be present? Where is Sindhi? Pashto? Baluchi etc.?

Even our urban neighbourhoods haven't been spared. Traditionally they have always been named to reflect our culture or history - places like Gulberg, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Nazimabad, Anarkali, Lyari, Faizabad etc. All these places have culture, history and soul about them. Nowadays however, places like "Paragon City", "Eden Avenue", "Ideal Garden Housing Scheme", "DHA City", "Bahria Town", "Arian City", "Top City" seem to be the norm. Does this not seem problematic? "Bahria Town" is not actually a town, it's a private company named "Bahria Town Private Limited". Why are company names replacing the names of villages and localities which have stood for over 500 years?

For many of you, this might not be a big deal, but for me and anyone who loves history, this is a tragedy in the making and it needs to stop. When LDA was formed, an emphasis was made to keep these names alive. It is for this reason why Lahore has so much character to it...for example, places like:

- Anarkali
- Badami Bagh
- Gawalmandi
- Daroghawala
- Shahdara
- Mughulpura
- Ichra
- Mazang
- Baghbanpura
- Thokar Niaz Baig
- Kot Lakhpat
- Babu Sabu
- etc....

When Lahore expanded east of Canal Road and towards Thokar in the 1970s, new housing subdivisions were constructed and given names by the LDA to reflect the local culture, such as:

- Gulberg
- Samanabad
- Gulshan-e-Ravi
- Gulshan-e-Iqbal
- Ghaziabad
- Nabipura
- Batapur
- Sabzazar
- etc...

The most interesting is Batapur. When the Bata Shoe Factory opened in east Lahore, the company also constructed a new housing estate adjacent to the factory. Instead of giving it a soulless name like "Bata Employees Cooperative Housing Society" or "Bata City" or "Bata Town", they named it Batapur...a name that is still used today. This was not only a smart marketing move, but it also respected the local culture and language.

Then the 1980s arrived...and it was during this period that Lahore began changing its naming philosophy. Instead of respecting the local culture, Anglo names were given to new housing developments, such as:

- Faisal Town
- Garden Town
- Muslim Town
- Model Town
- Johar Town
- Firdous Colony
- Islamia Park
- New Garden Town

These names have no soul to them whatsoever. Despite the fact Urdu and Punjabi words already exist, the Anglo terms were adopted. For example, the word for TOWN in Urdu and Punjabi would be any of the following:

- Abad (آباد)
- Abadi (آبادی)
- Pur (پور)
- Pura (پورہ)
- Mahalla (محله)

In Urdu, there is no word for colony as this was adopted from English. However, Urdu (as is the case for all other Pakistani languages) has traditionally always borrowed from Persian, and it should have applied in this case. The term for "colony" or "town" in Persian is Shahrak (شهرک). For example, Tehran's "Qarb Town" is referred to as "Shahrak-e Gharb". Similar names could have easily applied to places like:

- Faisal Town as Shahrak-e-Faisal (شهرک فیصل)
- Garden Town as Shahrak-e-Bagh (شهرک باغ)
- Johar Town as Shahrak-e-Johar (شهرک جوہر)
- Firdous Colony as Shahrak-e-Firdous (شهرک فردوس)

Then words like "Park" and "New" were introduced, despite the fact these terms already had an Urdu and Punjabi equivalent.

- Park is Bagh (باغ)
- New is Naya (نیا) or Nei (نئی)

Why "town", "colony", "park" and "new" were introduced by LDA is unknown. But this is the LDA we're talking about...they're not the smartest bunch of people.

And this practice of English transliteration into Urdu even more apparent when you start reading road signs.

- Road = سڑک (Sarak)
- Highway = شاہراہ (Shahrah)
- Street or Boulevard = خیابان (Khayban)
- Expressway = بزرگراه (Bazargarah)
- Motorway = موٹروے (Since no Urdu word exists, acceptable to adopt English variant).

Or start reading signs for common places or appliances.

School = مدرسہ (Madrassa)
Nursery = پودا گھر (Poda Ghar)

Fridge = سرد خانہ (Sahrd Khana)
Freezer = برف خانہ (Barf Khana)
Oven = تندور (Tandoor)
Microwave = مائکروویو (No translation...acceptable to adopt from inventive language of origin)
Vacuum cleaner = برقی جھاڑو (Barki Jahroo)

SIM = This is an acronym. The sound "SYM" is adopted by every language. سیم (Urdu & Persian), Shimu (Japanese), Simka (Chinese)

What are we telling the world when we disrespect our own languages? It tells the world we are a dead nation. When university is pronounced as "you nee vastee", you are essentially defining yourselves as an ignorant nation.

University = جامعہ not یونیورسٹی

What needs to be done:
1. Enforce strict language laws - government of Pakistan should ensure that Urdu translations are proper and is written in Nastaliq script.

2. Promote regional languages - provincial governments should enforce regional languages and ensure they are taught in schools.

3. Promote Pakistan as a trilingual nation. Every Pakistani student should be taught mother tongue + Urdu + English.

4. Issue severe fines against companies, media houses and publications which do not promote trilingualism or use Roman Urdu.

Source-Ancient Pakistan

I agree to an extent...for things like museums and airports and stuff...but "Barqi Jharoo" for vacuum cleaner
...that's a bit much.

 

[TMA]

Eeeeeh, sort of, I guess.

It depends on the general public. The government can certainly influence the way a certain language can and should flow, but it can't control it. languages evolves naturally, and attempts to control them will likely fail. The gov can dictate new words into the vocabulary, which is a difficult test, but removing words is a far FAR harder task.

In order to control a language and dictate its flow, the control needs the ability to add and remove words from the vocabulary of the general public.

It is not about dictatorial control but fatherly guidance. Hence my analogy of shapijg a river - one cammot "control" it for long but shape it is much better. Look at what Iran did in the early 20th Century. They convened conferences and sought persian replacements for western techincal/ scientific vocabulary. Of course it was never 100% but it was something. And initially those words sounded queer but over time they were naturalized.

I agree to an extent...for things like museums and airports and stuff...but "Barqi Jharoo" for vacuum cleaner
...that's a bit much.

Why? It sounds strange at first but if you use over time it will become natural...

 

[That Guy]

It is not about dictatorial control but fatherly guidance. Look at what Iran did in the early 20th Century. They convened conferences and sought persian replacements for western techincal/ scientific vocabulary. Of course it was never 100% but it was something. And initially those words sounded queer but over time they were naturalized.


Why? It sounds strange at first but if you use over time it will become natural...

Which leads into another big issue, time and effort. How much time and effort are you willing to put in. A government would need to start with the children, but that would require that there are enough children going to school in the first place, which is something Pakistan has always struggled with. Then you have to train enough teachers, which requires a lot of effort and state resources.

Over all, it would take generations, and an unknown about of wealth to make it happen, with zero percent guarantee that it would work.

Still, you do bring up a good point, it doesn't have to be 100%.

Personally, (and this is just me fantasizing) I've always thought that Pakistan should come up with a brand new unifying language, which incorporates all the languages of Pakistan, but with a brand new set of alphabets...but again, that's fantasy levels.

 

[Cookie Monster]

It is not about dictatorial control but fatherly guidance. Hence my analogy of shapijg a river - one cammot "control" it for long but shape it is much better. Look at what Iran did in the early 20th Century. They convened conferences and sought persian replacements for western techincal/ scientific vocabulary. Of course it was never 100% but it was something. And initially those words sounded queer but over time they were naturalized.


Why? It sounds strange at first but if you use over time it will become natural...

By that reasoning...why does the article list "motorway" as an acceptable word? Gotta keep it consistent...either allow English words for which Urdu has no equivalents...or come up with the equivalents in Urdu not allowing any foreign language words.

 

[denel]

It is not about dictatorial control but fatherly guidance. Hence my analogy of shapijg a river - one cammot "control" it for long but shape it is much better. Look at what Iran did in the early 20th Century. They convened conferences and sought persian replacements for western techincal/ scientific vocabulary. Of course it was never 100% but it was something. And initially those words sounded queer but over time they were naturalized.


Why? It sounds strange at first but if you use over time it will become natural...

100% correct; the same for other languages - French, Japanese and spanish. But it seems Urdu has been bastardised to the point of no returning following the footsteps of Hindi - Hinglish....

 

[TMA]

100% correct; the same for other languages - French, Japanese and spanish. But it seems Urdu has been bastardised to the point of no returning following the footsteps of Hindi - Hinglish....

People are guardians of a language and unfortunately the Pakistani nation is suffering from a collective inferiority complex.