Punjabi language: Difference between revisions

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Revision as of 08:52, 14 November 2016 view sourceUanfala (talk \| contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users65,714 edits Undid revision 749433470 by Peeta Singh (talk) "Northwestern" can mean anything← Previous edit		Revision as of 09:11, 14 November 2016 view source Peeta Singh (talk \| contribs)Extended confirmed users2,352 edits The word has been tagged to Northwestern across the article. Readers can open the tag and understand the context. The term Indo-Aryan is too broad.Next edit →
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	'''Punjabi''' {{IPAc-en\|p\|ʌ\|n\|ˈ\|dʒ\|ɑː\|b\|i}}<ref>Laurie Bauer, 2007, ''The Linguistics Student's Handbook'', Edinburgh</ref> (]: {{lang\|pnb\|{{Nastaliq\|پنجابی}}}} {{transl\|Punjabi\|ALA-LC\|''paṉjābī''}}; ]: {{lang\|pa\|ਪੰਜਾਬੀ}} {{transl\|pa\|''pañjābī''}})<ref name="KachruKachru2008">{{cite book \|last1=Kachru \|first1=Braj B. \|last2=Kachru \|first2=Yamuna \|last3=Sridhar \|first3=S. N. \|title=Language in South Asia \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O2n4sFGDEMYC&pg=PA128 \|accessdate=24 October 2014 \|date=27 March 2008 \|publisher=] \|isbn=978-1-139-46550-2 \|page=128 \|quote=Sikhs often write Punjabi in Gurmukhi, Hindus in Devanagari, and Muslims in Perso-Arabic.}}</ref> is an ] spoken by over 100 million native speakers worldwide, making it the ]<ref name="NE100">{{cite web \|url=http://www.ne.se/spr%C3%A5k/v%C3%A4rldens-100-st%C3%B6rsta-spr%C3%A5k-2010 \|title=Världens 100 största språk 2010 \|work=] \|trans_title= The world's 100 largest languages in 2010 \|year=2010 \|accessdate=12 February 2014 \|language=sv}}</ref><ref name=NE2>{{cite web \|title=What Are The Top 10 Most Spoken Languages In The World? \|url=http://opishposh.com/the-top-10-most-spoken-languages-in-the-world/}}</ref> in the world. It is the native language of the ] who inhabit the historical ] of ] and ]. Among the ] it is unusual in being a ].<ref>{{cite book\|author-last = Bhatia\|author-first = Tej\| date = 1999\| editor-last1 = Lust\| editor-first1 = Barbara\| editor-last2 = Gair\| editor-first2 = James\| title = Lexical Anaphors and Pronouns in Selected South Asian Languages\| chapter = Lexican Anaphors and Pronouns in Punjabi\| page = 637\| publisher = Walter de Gruyter\| isbn = 978-3-11-014388-1}} Other tonal Indo-Aryan languages include ] and ].</ref><ref> {{wayback\|url=http://www.crulp.org/Publication/Crulp_report/CR02_21E.pdf \|date=20150716184244 \|df=y }}{{not in source\|date = November 2016}}</ref><ref>Geeti Sen. ''Crossing Boundaries''. Orient Blackswan, 1997. ISBN 978-81-250-1341-9. Page 132. Quote: "Possibly, Punjabi is the only major South Asian language that has this kind of tonal character. There does seem to have been some speculation among scholars about the possible origin of Punjabi's tone-language character but without any final and convincing answer..."</ref>		'''Punjabi''' {{IPAc-en\|p\|ʌ\|n\|ˈ\|dʒ\|ɑː\|b\|i}}<ref>Laurie Bauer, 2007, ''The Linguistics Student's Handbook'', Edinburgh</ref> (]: {{lang\|pnb\|{{Nastaliq\|پنجابی}}}} {{transl\|Punjabi\|ALA-LC\|''paṉjābī''}}; ]: {{lang\|pa\|ਪੰਜਾਬੀ}} {{transl\|pa\|''pañjābī''}})<ref name="KachruKachru2008">{{cite book \|last1=Kachru \|first1=Braj B. \|last2=Kachru \|first2=Yamuna \|last3=Sridhar \|first3=S. N. \|title=Language in South Asia \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O2n4sFGDEMYC&pg=PA128 \|accessdate=24 October 2014 \|date=27 March 2008 \|publisher=] \|isbn=978-1-139-46550-2 \|page=128 \|quote=Sikhs often write Punjabi in Gurmukhi, Hindus in Devanagari, and Muslims in Perso-Arabic.}}</ref> is an ] language spoken by over 100 million native speakers worldwide, making it the ]<ref name="NE100">{{cite web \|url=http://www.ne.se/spr%C3%A5k/v%C3%A4rldens-100-st%C3%B6rsta-spr%C3%A5k-2010 \|title=Världens 100 största språk 2010 \|work=] \|trans_title= The world's 100 largest languages in 2010 \|year=2010 \|accessdate=12 February 2014 \|language=sv}}</ref><ref name=NE2>{{cite web \|title=What Are The Top 10 Most Spoken Languages In The World? \|url=http://opishposh.com/the-top-10-most-spoken-languages-in-the-world/}}</ref> in the world. It is the native language of the ] who inhabit the historical ] of ] and ]. Among the ] it is unusual in being a ].<ref>{{cite book\|author-last = Bhatia\|author-first = Tej\| date = 1999\| editor-last1 = Lust\| editor-first1 = Barbara\| editor-last2 = Gair\| editor-first2 = James\| title = Lexical Anaphors and Pronouns in Selected South Asian Languages\| chapter = Lexican Anaphors and Pronouns in Punjabi\| page = 637\| publisher = Walter de Gruyter\| isbn = 978-3-11-014388-1}} Other tonal ] languages include ] and ].</ref><ref> {{wayback\|url=http://www.crulp.org/Publication/Crulp_report/CR02_21E.pdf \|date=20150716184244 \|df=y }}{{not in source\|date = November 2016}}</ref><ref>Geeti Sen. ''Crossing Boundaries''. Orient Blackswan, 1997. ISBN 978-81-250-1341-9. Page 132. Quote: "Possibly, Punjabi is the only major South Asian language that has this kind of tonal character. There does seem to have been some speculation among scholars about the possible origin of Punjabi's tone-language character but without any final and convincing answer..."</ref>

	Punjabi is the most widely spoken language in Pakistan,<ref>{{cite web \|url=http://www.census.gov.pk/MotherTongue.htm \|title=Pakistan Census \|publisher=Census.gov.pk \|accessdate=2014-01-04}}</ref> the seventh-most widely spoken in India,<ref name="by religion">. Censusindia.gov.in. Retrieved 2012-01-18.</ref> and the third-most spoken native language in the ]. Punjabi is the fourth-most spoken language in the ]<ref>{{cite web \|title=2011 Census: Main language (detailed), local authorities in England and Wales \|url=http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/2011-census/key-statistics-and-quick-statistics-for-wards-and-output-areas-in-england-and-wales/rft-qs204ew.xls \|publisher=ONS \|accessdate=27 April 2013 \|format=XLS}}</ref> and third-most spoken native language (after ] and ]) in ].<ref>, Census Profile – Province/Territory</ref><ref>, ]: Topic-based tabulations\|Detailed Mother Tongue (103), Knowledge of Official Languages</ref> The language also has a significant presence in the ], ], ], and ]. Punjabi's cultural language link in the Indian Subcontinent is vast due to ] with many songs partially or fully sung in Punjabi.<ref name="fijitimes.com">. Fijitimes.com (2013-01-08). Retrieved 2013-07-12.</ref><ref name="articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com">. ''The Times of India''. (2012-07-20). Retrieved 2013-07-12.</ref><ref name="timescrest.com">. Times Crest (2012-05-05). Retrieved 2013-07-12.</ref>		Punjabi is the most widely spoken language in Pakistan,<ref>{{cite web \|url=http://www.census.gov.pk/MotherTongue.htm \|title=Pakistan Census \|publisher=Census.gov.pk \|accessdate=2014-01-04}}</ref> the seventh-most widely spoken in India,<ref name="by religion">. Censusindia.gov.in. Retrieved 2012-01-18.</ref> and the third-most spoken native language in the ]. Punjabi is the fourth-most spoken language in the ]<ref>{{cite web \|title=2011 Census: Main language (detailed), local authorities in England and Wales \|url=http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/2011-census/key-statistics-and-quick-statistics-for-wards-and-output-areas-in-england-and-wales/rft-qs204ew.xls \|publisher=ONS \|accessdate=27 April 2013 \|format=XLS}}</ref> and third-most spoken native language (after ] and ]) in ].<ref>, Census Profile – Province/Territory</ref><ref>, ]: Topic-based tabulations\|Detailed Mother Tongue (103), Knowledge of Official Languages</ref> The language also has a significant presence in the ], ], ], and ]. Punjabi's cultural language link in the Indian Subcontinent is vast due to ] with many songs partially or fully sung in Punjabi.<ref name="fijitimes.com">. Fijitimes.com (2013-01-08). Retrieved 2013-07-12.</ref><ref name="articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com">. ''The Times of India''. (2012-07-20). Retrieved 2013-07-12.</ref><ref name="timescrest.com">. Times Crest (2012-05-05). Retrieved 2013-07-12.</ref>
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	== History ==		== History ==
	{{Main article\|History of the Punjabi language}}		{{Main article\|History of the Punjabi language}}
	Punjabi is an Indo-~~aryan~~ language. It is considered to be a direct descendant of ], through Sauraseni Prakrit and Śauraseni Apabhraṃśa (Sanskrit:अपभ्रंश; corruption or corrupted speech). It has been influenced by ], ], ], ] and ]. Punjabi emerged as an Apabhramsha, a degenerated form of Prakrit, in the 7th century A.D. and became stable by the 10th century.<ref>''India's culture through the ages'' by Mohan Lal Vidyarthi. Published by Tapeshwari Sahitya Mandir, 1952. Page 148: "From the apabhramsha of Sauraseni are derived Punjabi, Western Hindi, Rajasthani and Gujerati {{sic}}..."</ref><ref>National Communication and Language Policy in India By Baldev Raj Nayar. Published by F. A. Praeger, 1969. Page 35. "...Sauraseni Aprabhramsa from which have emerged the modern Western Hindi and Punjabi."</ref><ref>. "This Middle Indic language originated in ], and was the main language used in drama in Northern India in the mediaeval era. Two of its descendants are Hindi and Punjabi."</ref>		Punjabi is an ] language. It is considered to be a direct descendant of ], through Sauraseni Prakrit and Śauraseni Apabhraṃśa (Sanskrit:अपभ्रंश; corruption or corrupted speech). It has been influenced by ], ], ], ] and ]. Punjabi emerged as an Apabhramsha, a degenerated form of Prakrit, in the 7th century A.D. and became stable by the 10th century.<ref>''India's culture through the ages'' by Mohan Lal Vidyarthi. Published by Tapeshwari Sahitya Mandir, 1952. Page 148: "From the apabhramsha of Sauraseni are derived Punjabi, Western Hindi, Rajasthani and Gujerati {{sic}}..."</ref><ref>National Communication and Language Policy in India By Baldev Raj Nayar. Published by F. A. Praeger, 1969. Page 35. "...Sauraseni Aprabhramsa from which have emerged the modern Western Hindi and Punjabi."</ref><ref>. "This Middle Indic language originated in ], and was the main language used in drama in Northern India in the mediaeval era. Two of its descendants are Hindi and Punjabi."</ref>
	By the 10th century, many ] poets were associated with earlier Punjabi works. Arabic and Persian influence in the historical Punjab region began with the late first millennium ]. Persian language was introduced in the subcontinent a few centuries later by various Persianized Central Asian ] and ] dynasties including that of ]. ] of ] is generally recognised as the first major poet of the Punjabi language.<ref name=sikh> sikh-heritage.co.uk.</ref> Roughly from the 11th century to 19th century, many great Sufi saints and poets preached in the Punjabi language. ] is considered one of the greatest ] poets. Punjabi ] poetry developed under ] (1538–1599), ] (1628–1691), Shah Sharaf (1640–1724), Ali Haider (1690–1785), ] (son of ], whom Ali Haider had given great tribute) and ] (1680–1757).]		By the 10th century, many ] poets were associated with earlier Punjabi works. Arabic and Persian influence in the historical Punjab region began with the late first millennium ]. Persian language was introduced in the subcontinent a few centuries later by various Persianized Central Asian ] and ] dynasties including that of ]. ] of ] is generally recognised as the first major poet of the Punjabi language.<ref name=sikh> sikh-heritage.co.uk.</ref> Roughly from the 11th century to 19th century, many great Sufi saints and poets preached in the Punjabi language. ] is considered one of the greatest ] poets. Punjabi ] poetry developed under ] (1538–1599), ] (1628–1691), Shah Sharaf (1640–1724), Ali Haider (1690–1785), ] (son of ], whom Ali Haider had given great tribute) and ] (1680–1757).]

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	The major dialects of Punjabi include Majhi, Doabi, Malwai, Powadhi, Pothohari, and Multani. The dialects in the ] ], including ] and ], are considered as dialects of Punjabi by many linguists but as distinct languages by others.<ref name="FarinaMir2010">{{cite book \|author=Farina Mir \|title=The Social Space of Language: Vernacular Culture in British Colonial Punjab \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EUPc5pDWKikC&pg=PA49 \|year=2010 \|publisher=University of California Press \|isbn=978-0-520-26269-0 \|page=49}}</ref>		The major dialects of Punjabi include Majhi, Doabi, Malwai, Powadhi, Pothohari, and Multani. The dialects in the ] ], including ] and ], are considered as dialects of Punjabi by many linguists but as distinct languages by others.<ref name="FarinaMir2010">{{cite book \|author=Farina Mir \|title=The Social Space of Language: Vernacular Culture in British Colonial Punjab \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EUPc5pDWKikC&pg=PA49 \|year=2010 \|publisher=University of California Press \|isbn=978-0-520-26269-0 \|page=49}}</ref>

	In Indo-Aryan dialectology generally, the presence of transitional dialects creates problems in assigning some dialects to one or another "language".<ref>Masica 1991:25</ref><ref>Burling 1970:chapter on India</ref> However, over the last century there has usually been little disagreement when it comes to defining the core region of the Punjabi language. The British linguist ] came to the conclusion that a group of dialects known collectively as "western Punjabi" spoken north and west of the Punjab heartland, in the Indus valley itself and on the lower reaches of the other four tributaries (excluding the Beas River), in fact constituted a language distinct from Punjabi. He named this group of dialects "]" in a volume of the Language Survey of India (LSI) published in 1919.<ref name="Shackle 1970:240">Shackle 1970:240</ref> He grouped as "southern Lahnda" the dialects that are now recognized as Saraiki. In the National Census of Pakistan (1981) Saraiki and Hindko (previously categorized as "Western Punjabi"), got the status of separate languages,<ref name="Michael2003">{{cite book \|author1=Michael Edward Brown \|author2=Sumit Ganguly \|title=Fighting Words: Language Policy and Ethnic Relations in Asia \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fcoDezu1ABoC&pg=PA68 \|year=2003 \|publisher=MIT Press \|isbn=978-0-262-52333-2 \|pages=68–}}</ref> which explains the decrease in the percentage of Punjabi speakers.		In ] dialectology generally, the presence of transitional dialects creates problems in assigning some dialects to one or another "language".<ref>Masica 1991:25</ref><ref>Burling 1970:chapter on India</ref> However, over the last century there has usually been little disagreement when it comes to defining the core region of the Punjabi language. The British linguist ] came to the conclusion that a group of dialects known collectively as "western Punjabi" spoken north and west of the Punjab heartland, in the Indus valley itself and on the lower reaches of the other four tributaries (excluding the Beas River), in fact constituted a language distinct from Punjabi. He named this group of dialects "]" in a volume of the Language Survey of India (LSI) published in 1919.<ref name="Shackle 1970:240">Shackle 1970:240</ref> He grouped as "southern Lahnda" the dialects that are now recognized as Saraiki. In the National Census of Pakistan (1981) Saraiki and Hindko (previously categorized as "Western Punjabi"), got the status of separate languages,<ref name="Michael2003">{{cite book \|author1=Michael Edward Brown \|author2=Sumit Ganguly \|title=Fighting Words: Language Policy and Ethnic Relations in Asia \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fcoDezu1ABoC&pg=PA68 \|year=2003 \|publisher=MIT Press \|isbn=978-0-262-52333-2 \|pages=68–}}</ref> which explains the decrease in the percentage of Punjabi speakers.

	=== Standard dialect ===		=== Standard dialect ===

Revision as of 09:11, 14 November 2016

‹ The template Infobox language is being considered for merging. ›

Punjabi
ਪੰਜਾਬੀ • پنجابی
The word "Punjabi" written in Shahmukhi (Nast'aliq style), Gurmukhi
Native to	Punjab region
Native speakers	100 million, including Lahnda variants (2010)
Language family	Indo-European Indo-Iranian Indo-Aryan Northwestern Punjabi
Standard forms	Majhi Hindko Saraiki
Dialects	See Punjabi dialects
Writing system	Perso-Arabic (Shahmukhi alphabet) Gurmukhi Punjabi Braille
Official status
Official language in	Pakistan Punjab (Provincial) India Punjab (Primary official) Delhi (Secondary official) Haryana (Secondary official)
Language codes
ISO 639-1	`none pa – Eastern Punjabi`
ISO 639-2	`none` Individual codes: `lah` – Lahnda `pan` – Eastern Punjabi
ISO 639-3	`lah` – inclusive code Individual codes: `lah` – Lahnda `pnb` – Western Punjabi `hno` – Northern Hindko `hnd` – Southern Hindko `jat` – Jakati `xhe` – Khetrani `phr` – Pahari-Potwari `pgg` – Pangwali `skr` – Saraiki `pan` – Eastern Punjabi
Glottolog	`lahn1241` Lahnda `east2727` Eastern Punjabic
Linguasphere	`59-AAF-e`
Areas (red) where Punjabi is the native language, compared to all Indo-Aryan languages (dark grey)
This article contains IPA phonetic symbols. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Unicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see Help:IPA.

Punjabi /pʌnˈdʒɑːbi/ (Shahmukhi: پنجابی Error: {{Transliteration}}: unrecognized language / script code: Punjabi (help); Gurmukhi: ਪੰਜਾਬੀ pañjābī) is an Northwestern language spoken by over 100 million native speakers worldwide, making it the 10th most widely spoken language (2015) in the world. It is the native language of the Punjabi people who inhabit the historical Punjab region of Pakistan and India. Among the Indo-European languages it is unusual in being a tonal language.

Punjabi is the most widely spoken language in Pakistan, the seventh-most widely spoken in India, and the third-most spoken native language in the Indian Subcontinent. Punjabi is the fourth-most spoken language in the United Kingdom and third-most spoken native language (after English and French) in Canada. The language also has a significant presence in the United Arab Emirates, United States, Saudi Arabia, and Australia. Punjabi's cultural language link in the Indian Subcontinent is vast due to Bollywood with many songs partially or fully sung in Punjabi.

History

Main article: History of the Punjabi language

Punjabi is an Northwestern language. It is considered to be a direct descendant of Sanskrit, through Sauraseni Prakrit and Śauraseni Apabhraṃśa (Sanskrit:अपभ्रंश; corruption or corrupted speech). It has been influenced by Turkic languages, Persian, Arabic, Portuguese and English. Punjabi emerged as an Apabhramsha, a degenerated form of Prakrit, in the 7th century A.D. and became stable by the 10th century.

By the 10th century, many Nath poets were associated with earlier Punjabi works. Arabic and Persian influence in the historical Punjab region began with the late first millennium Muslim conquests on the Indian subcontinent. Persian language was introduced in the subcontinent a few centuries later by various Persianized Central Asian Turkic and Afghan dynasties including that of Mahmud of Ghazni. Fariduddin Ganjshakar of Pak Pattan is generally recognised as the first major poet of the Punjabi language. Roughly from the 11th century to 19th century, many great Sufi saints and poets preached in the Punjabi language. Bulle Shah is considered one of the greatest Sufi poets. Punjabi Sufi poetry developed under Shah Hussain (1538–1599), Sultan Bahu (1628–1691), Shah Sharaf (1640–1724), Ali Haider (1690–1785), Saleh Muhammad Safoori (son of Hazrat Mai Safoora Qadiriyya, whom Ali Haider had given great tribute) and Bulleh Shah (1680–1757).

File:Punjab-Pak-Sufi Poets.jpg

Sufi poets have enriched Punjabi literature

The Sikh religion originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region and Punjabi is the predominant language spoken by Sikhs. Most portions of the Guru Granth Sahib use the Punjabi language written in Gurmukhi, though Punjabi is not the only language used in Sikh scriptures.

The Janamsakhis, stories on the life and legend of Guru Nanak (1469–1539), are early examples of Punjabi prose literature. Guru Nanak himself composed Punjabi verse incorporating vocabulary from Sanskrit, Arabic, Persian, and other Indic languages as characteristic of the Gurbani tradition.

Punjabi Sufi poetry also influenced other Punjabi literary traditions particularly the Punjabi Qissa, a genre of romantic tragedy which also derived inspiration from Indic, Persian and Quranic sources. The qissa of Heer Ranjha by Waris Shah (1706–1798) is among the most popular of Punjabi qissas. Other popular stories include Sohni Mahiwal by Fazal Shah, Mirza Sahiban by Hafiz Barkhudar (1658–1707), Sassui Punnhun by Hashim Shah (1735?–1843?), and Qissa Puran Bhagat by Qadaryar (1802–1892).

Modern Punjabi

Standard Punjabi

However Punjabi is spoken in many dialects in an area from Islamabad to Delhi. The Majhi dialect has been adopted as standard Punjabi in Pakistan and India for education,media etc. The Majhi (in Shahmukhi ماجھی، in Gurumukhi ਮਾਝੀ) dialect originating from the Majha region of the Punjab. Majha region consists central districts of Pakistani Punjab and in India around Amritsar and Gurdaspur regions, known. The two most important cities in this area are Lahore and Amritsar.
In India technical words in Standard Punjabi is loaned from Sanskrit like other major Indian languages, but it generously uses Aabic, Persian, and English words also in official language.In this sense Punjabi is different fom Hindi, Bangla and Gujrati languages,where emphasis is given only words from Sanskrit language.In India, Punjabi is written in the Gurumukhī in offices, schools media.Gurumukhi is considered Standard script for Punjabi, though it is often unofficially written in the Devanagari or Latin scripts due to influence from Hindi and English, India's two primary official languages at the Union-level.
In Pakistan, Punjabi is generally written using the Shahmukhī script, created from a modification of the Persian Nastaʿlīq script. In Pakistan, Punjabi loans technical words from Persian and Arabic languages like Urdu.

Official status

In India, Punjabi is one of the 22 scheduled languages of India. It is the first official language of the Indian State of Punjab.Punjabi has also second official status in Delhi along with Urdu, Haryana. In Pakistan, no regional ethnic language has been granted official status at the national level, and as such Punjabi is not an official language at the national level, even though it is the most spoken language in Pakistan after Urdu. It is, however, the official provincial language of Punjab, Pakistan, the second largest and the most populous province of Pakistan as well as in Islamabad Capital Territory. The only two official national languages in Pakistan are Urdu and English, which are considered the lingua francas of Pakistan.

Punjabi in modern culture

Punjabi is becoming more acceptable among Punjabis in modern media and communications. Punjabi has always been an integral part of Indian cinema. A large number of Hindi movies now incorporate Punjabi vocabulary in music and dialogue. Punjabi pop and folk songs are very popular both in India and Pakistan at the national level. The number of students opting for Punjabi literature has increased in Pakistani Punjab. Punjabi cinema in India has also seen a revival and more and more Punjabi movies are being produced. In India, the number of students opting for Punjabi Literature as optional subject in IAS examinations has increased along with the success rate of the students. Punjabi music is very popular today throughout the world.

Dialects and related languages

Main article: Punjabi dialects

The major dialects of Punjabi include Majhi, Doabi, Malwai, Powadhi, Pothohari, and Multani. The dialects in the Lahnda dialect continuum, including Saraiki and Hindko, are considered as dialects of Punjabi by many linguists but as distinct languages by others.

In Northwestern dialectology generally, the presence of transitional dialects creates problems in assigning some dialects to one or another "language". However, over the last century there has usually been little disagreement when it comes to defining the core region of the Punjabi language. The British linguist George Abraham Grierson came to the conclusion that a group of dialects known collectively as "western Punjabi" spoken north and west of the Punjab heartland, in the Indus valley itself and on the lower reaches of the other four tributaries (excluding the Beas River), in fact constituted a language distinct from Punjabi. He named this group of dialects "Lahnda" in a volume of the Language Survey of India (LSI) published in 1919. He grouped as "southern Lahnda" the dialects that are now recognized as Saraiki. In the National Census of Pakistan (1981) Saraiki and Hindko (previously categorized as "Western Punjabi"), got the status of separate languages, which explains the decrease in the percentage of Punjabi speakers.

Standard dialect

The Majhi dialect spoken around Amritsar and Lahore is Punjabi's prestige dialect. Majhi is spoken in the heart of Punjab in the region of Majha, which spans Lahore, Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Kasur, Tarn Taran, Faisalabad, Nankana Sahib, Pathankot, Okara, Pakpattan, Sahiwal, Narowal, Sheikhupura, Sialkot, Chiniot, Gujranwala and Gujrat districts. Majhi retains the nasal consonants /ŋ/ and /ɲ/, which have been superseded elsewhere by non-nasals /ɡ/ and /d͡ʒ/ respectively. The Majhi (and Lahnda) spoken in Pakistan is more Persianized in vocabulary, and the usage of the sounds /z/, /x/ and /ɣ/ is more common.

English	Gurmukhi based (Indian)	Shahmukhi based (Pakistan)
President	ਰਾਸ਼ਟਰਪਤੀ (rāśaṭarapatī)	صدرا ملمکت ( Error: {{Transliteration}}: unrecognized language / script code: Punjabi (help))
Article	ਲੇਖ (lēkh)	مظمون ( Error: {{Transliteration}}: unrecognized language / script code: Punjabi (help))
Prime Minister	ਪ੍ਰਧਾਨ ਮੰਤਰੀ (pradhān matarī)	وزیرا اعظم ( Error: {{Transliteration}}: unrecognized language / script code: Punjabi (help))
Family	ਪਰਵਾਰ/ਟੱਬਰ (parvār/ṭabar)	تابڑ/خاندان ( Error: {{Transliteration}}: unrecognized language / script code: Punjabi (help))
Philosophy	ਦਰਸ਼ਨ (darśan)	فلسفہ ( Error: {{Transliteration}}: unrecognized language / script code: Punjabi (help))
Capital	ਰਾਜਧਾਨੀ (rājdhānī)	راجدغانڑ/دارال حکومت ( Error: {{Transliteration}}: unrecognized language / script code: Punjabi (help))
Viewer	ਦਰਸ਼ਕ (darśak)	ناظرین ( Error: {{Transliteration}}: unrecognized language / script code: Punjabi (help))

Etymology

The word Punjabi is derived from the word Panj-āb, Persian for "Five Waters", referring to the five major eastern tributaries of the Indus River. Panj is cognate with Sanskrit pañca and Greek pente "five", and "āb" is cognate with the Av- of Avon. The historical Punjab region, now divided between India and Pakistan, is defined physiographically by the Indus River and these five tributaries. One of the five, the Beas River, is a tributary of another, the Sutlej.

In India, Punjabi is written in Gurmukhī, a standardized script. The word Gurmukhi translates into 'from the Guru's mouth'. In Pakistan, the Shahmukhī script, meaning "from the King's mouth", based on the Persian abjad is used.

Geographic distribution

Pakistan

File:Punjabadmin.jpg

Administrative divisions of Punjab Pakistan

**Census history of Punjabi speakers in Pakistan**
Year	Population of Pakistan	Percentage	Punjabi speakers
1951	33,740,167	57.08%	22,632,905
1961	42,880,378	56.39%	28,468,282
1972	65,309,340	56.11%	43,176,004
1981	84,253,644	48.17%	40,584,980
1998	132,352,279	44.15%	58,433,431

**Provinces of Pakistan by Punjabi speakers (2008)**
Rank	Division	Punjabi speakers	Percentage
–	Pakistan	106,335,300	60% (inc Saraiki and Hindko dialects)
1	Punjab	70,671,704	75.23%
2	Sindh	4,592,261	10%
3	Islamabad Capital Territory	1,343,625	71.66%
4	Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	7,396,085	21%
5	Balochistan	318,745	2.52%

India

Punjabi is spoken as a native language, second language, or third language by about 30 million people in India. Punjabi is the official language of the Indian states of Punjab, Haryana and Delhi. Some of its major urban centres in northern India are Ambala, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Chandigarh, Jalandhar, and Delhi.

**Census history of Punjabi speakers in India**
Year	Population of India	Punjabi speakers in India	Percentage
1971	548,159,652	14,108,443	2.57%
1981	665,287,849	19,611,199	2.95%
1991	838,583,988	23,378,744	2.79%
2001	1,028,610,328	29,102,477	2.83%

Punjabi diaspora

Main article: Punjabi diaspora

Punjabi is also spoken as a minority language in several other countries where Punjabi people have emigrated in large numbers, such as the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, where it is the fourth-most-commonly used language, and Canada, where it is the third-most-spoken language.

There were 76 million Punjabi speakers in Pakistan in 2008, 33 million in India in 2011, 1.3 million in the UK in 2000, 368,000 in Canada in 2006, and smaller numbers in other countries.

Phonology

**Vowels**
	Front	Central	Back
Close	i(ː) ਈ		u(ː) ਊ
Near-close	ɪ ਇ		ʊ ਉ
Close-mid	e(ː) ਏ		o(ː) ਓ
Mid		ə ਅ
Open-mid	ɛ(ː) ਐ		ɔ(ː) ਔ
Open		a(ː) ਆ

The long vowels (the vowels with ) also have nasal analogues.

**Consonants**
		Labial	Dental/ Alveolar	Retroflex	Palatal	Velar	Glottal
Nasal		m ਮ	n ਨ	ɳ ਣ	ɲ ਞ	ŋ ਙ
Stop/ Affricate	tenuis	p ਪ	t̪ ਤ	ʈ ਟ	t͡ʃ ਚ	k ਕ
	aspirated	pʰ ਫ	t̪ʰ ਥ	ʈʰ ਠ	t͡ʃʰ ਛ	kʰ ਖ
	voiced	b ਬ	d̪ ਦ	ɖ ਡ	d͡ʒ ਜ	ɡ ਗ
Fricative	voiceless	f ਫ਼	s ਸ		ʃ ਸ਼	(x ਖ਼)
Fricative	voiced		z ਜ਼			(ɣ ਗ਼)
Flap			ɾ ਰ	ɽ ੜ
Approximant		ʋ ਵ	l ਲ	ɻ ਲ਼	j ਯ		ɦ ਹ

Tone

Punjabi has three phonemically distinct tones that developed from the lost murmured (or "voiced aspirate") series of consonants. Phonetically the tones are rising or rising-falling contours and they can span over one syllable or two, but phonemically they can be distinguished as high, mid, and low.

A historical murmured consonant (voiced aspirate consonant) in word initial position became tenuis and left a low tone on the two syllables following it: ghoṛā "horse". A stem-final murmured consonant became modally voiced and left a high tone on the two syllables preceding it: māgh "October". A stem-medial murmured consonant which appeared after a short vowel and before a long vowel became modally voiced and left a low tone on the two syllables following it: maghāuṇā "to have something lit". Other syllables have mid tone.

Grammar

Main article: Punjabi grammar

The grammar of the Punjabi language concerns the word order, case marking, verb conjugation, and other morphological and syntactic structures of the Punjabi language. The main article discusses the grammar of Modern Standard Punjabi as defined by the sources cited therein.

Writing systems

Main articles: Shahmukhī alphabet, Gurmukhī alphabet, and Punjabi braille

Shahmukhi alphabet
ا ب پ ت ٹ ث ج چ ح خ د ڈ ذ ر ڑ ز ژ س ش ص ض ط ظ ع غ ف ق ک گ ل ࣇ م ن ݨ (ں) و ه (ھ) ء ی ے
Extended Perso-Arabic script
History Transliteration Diacritics Hamza Numerals Numeration
v t e

There are two ways to write Punjabi: Gurmukhi and Shahmukhi. The word Gurmukhi translates into "Guru's mouth", and Shahmukhi means "from the King's mouth".

In the Punjab province of Pakistan, the script used is Shahmukhi and differs from the Urdu alphabet in having four additional letters. In the Indian states of Punjab, Haryana and Delhi and other parts of India, the Gurmukhī script is generally used for writing Punjabi.

Sample text

This sample text was taken from the Punjabi Misplaced Pages article on Lahore.

Gurmukhi:

ਲਹੌਰ ਪਾਕਿਸਤਾਨੀ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਦੀ ਰਾਜਧਾਨੀ ਹੈ । ਲੋਕ ਗਿਣਤੀ ਦੇ ਨਾਲ ਕਰਾਚੀ ਤੋਂ ਬਾਅਦ ਲਹੌਰ ਦੂਜਾ ਸਭ ਤੋਂ ਵੱਡਾ ਸ਼ਹਿਰ ਹੈ । ਲਹੌਰ ਪਾਕਿਸਤਾਨ ਦਾ ਸਿਆਸੀ, ਰਹਤਲੀ ਤੇ ਪੜ੍ਹਾਈ ਦਾ ਗੜ੍ਹ ਹੈ ਅਤੇ ਇਸ ਲਈ ਇਹਨੂੰ ਪਾਕਿਸਤਾਨ ਦਾ ਦਿਲ ਵੀ ਕਿਹਾ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ । ਲਹੌਰ ਦਰਿਆ-ਏ-ਰਾਵੀ ਦੇ ਕੰਢੇ ਤੇ ਵਸਦਾ ਹੈ । ਤੇ ਇਸਦੀ ਲੋਕ ਗਿਣਤੀ ਇੱਕ ਕਰੋੜ ਦੇ ਨੇੜੇ ਹੈ ।

Shahmukhi:

لاهور پاکستانی پنجاب دا دارالحکومت اے۔ لوک گنتی دے نال کراچی توں بعد لاهور دوجا سبھ توں وڈا شہر اے۔ لاهور پاکستان دا سیاسی، رہتلی تے پڑھائی دا گڑھ اے تے اس لئی ایھنوں پاکستان دا دل وی کیھا جاندا اے۔ لاهور دریاۓ راوی دے کنڈھے تے وسدا ۔ اے اسدی لوک گنتی اک کروڑ دے نیڑے اے ۔

Transliteration: lahaur pākistānī panjāb dī rājdā̀ni ài. lok giṇtī de nāḷ karācī tõ bāad lahaur dūjā sáb tõ vaḍḍā šáir ài. lahor pākistān dā siāsī, rátalī te paṛā̀ī dā gáṛ ài te is laī ínū̃ pākistān dā dil vī kihā jāndā ài. lahaur dariāe rāvī de kaṇḍè te vasdā ài. te isdī lok giṇtī ikk karoṛ de neṛe ài.

Translation: Lahore is the capital city of the Pakistani Punjab. After a number of people from Karachi, Lahore is the second largest city. Lahore is Pakistan's political stronghold and education capital and so it is also the heart of Pakistan. Lahore lies on the bank of the Ravi River. And, its population is close to ten million people.

IPA:

Gallery

Book about Punjabi in Shahmukhi
Guru Granth Sahib in Gurmukhi Guru Granth Sahib in Gurmukhi
Punjabi Gurmukhi Script
Punjabi Shahmukhi script
Bhulay Shah Poetry in Punjabi (Shahmukhi script)
Munir niazi Poetry in Punjabi (Shahmukhi script)
Gurmukhi alphabet

Notes

"Punjabi". languagesgulper.com. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
"Census of India: Abstract of speakers' strength of languages and mother tongues –2001".
"Världens 100 största språk 2010" (The World's 100 Largest Languages in 2010), in Nationalencyklopedin
Laurie Bauer, 2007, The Linguistics Student's Handbook, Edinburgh
Kachru, Braj B.; Kachru, Yamuna; Sridhar, S. N. (27 March 2008). Language in South Asia. Cambridge University Press. p. 128. ISBN 978-1-139-46550-2. Retrieved 24 October 2014. Sikhs often write Punjabi in Gurmukhi, Hindus in Devanagari, and Muslims in Perso-Arabic.
"Världens 100 största språk 2010". Nationalencyklopedin (in Swedish). 2010. Retrieved 12 February 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
"What Are The Top 10 Most Spoken Languages In The World?".
Bhatia, Tej (1999). "Lexican Anaphors and Pronouns in Punjabi". In Lust, Barbara; Gair, James (eds.). Lexical Anaphors and Pronouns in Selected South Asian Languages. Walter de Gruyter. p. 637. ISBN 978-3-11-014388-1. Other tonal Northwestern languages include Lahnda and Western Pahari.
Phonemic Inventory of Punjabi Archived 2015-07-16 at the Wayback Machine
Geeti Sen. Crossing Boundaries. Orient Blackswan, 1997. ISBN 978-81-250-1341-9. Page 132. Quote: "Possibly, Punjabi is the only major South Asian language that has this kind of tonal character. There does seem to have been some speculation among scholars about the possible origin of Punjabi's tone-language character but without any final and convincing answer..."
"Pakistan Census". Census.gov.pk. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
Census of India, 2001: population of Punjab by religion. Censusindia.gov.in. Retrieved 2012-01-18.
"2011 Census: Main language (detailed), local authorities in England and Wales" (XLS). ONS. Retrieved 27 April 2013.
, Census Profile – Province/Territory
, 2006 Census of Canada: Topic-based tabulations|Detailed Mother Tongue (103), Knowledge of Official Languages
‘Punjabification’ of Bollywood music – Fiji Times Online. Fijitimes.com (2013-01-08). Retrieved 2013-07-12.
Punjabi culture a part of Bollywood, says Suniel Shetty – Times Of India. The Times of India. (2012-07-20). Retrieved 2013-07-12.
Punjab gatecrashes Bollywood | Culture. Times Crest (2012-05-05). Retrieved 2013-07-12.
India's culture through the ages by Mohan Lal Vidyarthi. Published by Tapeshwari Sahitya Mandir, 1952. Page 148: "From the apabhramsha of Sauraseni are derived Punjabi, Western Hindi, Rajasthani and Gujerati [sic]..."
National Communication and Language Policy in India By Baldev Raj Nayar. Published by F. A. Praeger, 1969. Page 35. "...Sauraseni Aprabhramsa from which have emerged the modern Western Hindi and Punjabi."
The Sauraseni Prākrit Language. "This Middle Indic language originated in Mathura, and was the main language used in drama in Northern India in the mediaeval era. Two of its descendants are Hindi and Punjabi."
Shiv Kumar Batalvi sikh-heritage.co.uk.
Melvin Ember; Carol R. Ember; Ian A. Skoggard, eds. (2005). Encyclopedia of Diasporas: Immigrant and Refugee Cultures Around the World. Springer. p. 1077. ISBN 978-0-306-48321-9.
"Balle balle! Punjabi music is flavour of Bollywood". 9 March 2011. Retrieved 9 March 2011.
Farina Mir (2010). The Social Space of Language: Vernacular Culture in British Colonial Punjab. University of California Press. p. 49. ISBN 978-0-520-26269-0.
Masica 1991:25
Burling 1970:chapter on India
Shackle 1970:240
Michael Edward Brown; Sumit Ganguly (2003). Fighting Words: Language Policy and Ethnic Relations in Asia. MIT Press. pp. 68–. ISBN 978-0-262-52333-2.
^ Khalsa, Sukhmandir. "Introduction to Gurmukhi". About.com. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
^ Saini, Tejinder, Lehal Gurpreet, and Kalra Virinder (2008). Shahmukhi to Gurmukhi Transliteration System. p. 177.
http://www.statpak.gov.pk/depts/pco/index.html
"Growth of Scheduled Languages-1971, 1981, 1991 and 2001". Census of India. Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
Cite error: The named reference 2011 Census was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
"Punjabi is 4th most spoken language in Canada". The Times of India. 14 February 2008.
Pakistan 1998 census – Population by mother tongue
"Indian Census". Censusindia.gov.in. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
McDonnell, John (7 March 2000). "Punjabi Community". Parliamentary Business: Commons Debates. UK Parliament. p. Column 142WH. Retrieved 15 July 2012.
"Population by mother tongue in Canada". 0.statcan.gc.ca. 13 February 2013. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
Masica (1991:97)
Harjeet Singh Gill, "The Gurmukhi Script", p. 397. In Daniels and Bright, The World's Writing Systems. 1996.
^ "Punjabi". University of California, Los Angeles. Retrieved 30 July 2013.

References

Grierson, George A. 1904–1928. Grierson's Linguistic Survey of India. Calcutta.
Masica, Colin. 1991. The Indo-Aryan languages. Cambridge Univ. Press.

External links

v t e Punjabi language topics
Grammar Gurmukhi script Shahmukhi script Punjabi Braille Dialects Literature Punjabi nationalism Punjabiyat Writers Poets

Languages of India

Official
languages

Union-level

8th schedule to the
Constitution of India

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Over 1 million speakers	Awadhi Bagheli Bagri Bajjika Bhili Bundeli Dhundhari Garhwali Gondi Harauti Haryanvi Kangri Khandeshi Kumaoni Lambadi Malvi Marwari Mewari Nimadi Rajasthani Surjapuri Tulu Wagdi Varhadi
100,000 – 1 million speakers	Adi Angami Ao Badaga Dimasa Halbi Karbi Khotta Kodava Kolami Konyak Korku Koya Kui Kuvi Ladakhi Lotha Malto Mising Nishi Phom Rabha Sema Sora Tangkhul Thadou

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