By Zahida Rehman Jatt

February 21st is celebrated as an international Mother language day across the globe. Good news is that in Pakistan, there is an initiative by some individuals who have organized a festival in Islamabad where there would be various discussions held in order to promote mother languages in Pakistan.

But what about Punjabi language?

A lot has been said and written about the plight of Punjabi language and how it has been continuously ignored and pushed back by its own native speakers i.e. people who inhabit the plains of Punjab. But still, there is no solution in sight.  So, from where the solution to this problem would come?

Obviously, from a realization by Punjabi people that this is their own language and they should not be ashamed of speaking in it in front of public. There is nothing wrong with this beautiful, bold and lyrical language that has a tinge of verdant soil of the land of five rivers, of the dancing rhythms of Bullhay Shah’s poetry, of the love tales of Heers , Sohnis and Sahibas and of the cry of Amrita Pritam in which she evokes the spirit of Waris Shah and asks him to see the plight of his land .

According to an estimate more than 44% people living in Pakistan speak Punjabi language and it is the 10th largest spoken language in the world. But in Pakistan, the issue is the generally believed idea that it is a rustic, brash and peasant’s language, thus unsophisticated and not appropriate to be spoken in a civilized and formal environment like offices, schools and colleges etc.

While this belief has been inculcated in the minds of Punjabi people by the British as well, who promoted Urdu as an official language when they annexed Punjab in 1849 but later on this wrong notion was deliberately used by state-sponsored ideologies. This viewpoint did unimaginable damage to Punjabi language which was gradually transferred to be used just as an informal mode of communication, restricted to villages and totally wiped out of school rooms and text books.

If we compare this to Sindhi language, we see a bold and courageous stance by Sindhi people who never let their language down even in the face of government’s opposition.  So, they proudly speak and write in Sindhi; teach it to their children in schools and most of all take pride on it.

I once asked my senior colleague, ‘do you speak Punjabi in your home?’

He thought for a while and then replied ‘Yes, but only after I had been to Sindh and observed how they respect their language and promote it through every possible means’.

The same also happens everywhere, for example if two Sindhis would meet anywhere they would always speak in Sindhi, but if two Punjabis would meet they would almost always start conversing in Urdu. The reason is a hesitation and a sense of shame that we feel while speaking in Punjabi in front of others.

What if you try to break this barrier?

You would be discouraged and disapproved, will be ridiculed and conventionally termed as ‘Paindoo’ an unrefined and ill-mannered person from a far off Punjabi village. This title is enough to scare everyone off and it seems as if you have started smelling like a cake of cow dung. And yours enthusiasm for speaking in Punjabi would receive a severe blow.

It is needless to say that Punjabi has a treasure trove of literature and poetry that is still celebrated in films, songs and in popular culture. Wherever you may go in Pakistan, you would found people humming Punjabi songs even when they do not exactly understand the lyrics.

We, the people whose mother tongue is Punjabi must take practical efforts to do something in order to preserve our centuries old language.  We must discard this absurd notion of the supposed inferiority of our language that is dying a slow death at our own hands.

So, how can we solve this problem and preserve our language?

There are many solutions that can be used to promote our language at national level. It is said that charity begins at home so first of all we should start respecting our language and giving it the place of honor that it deserves. We should start speaking it in our homes, and teach it to our children.

There can also be a pressure group that should advocate for this cause and try to incorporate it into secondary school education as a compulsory subject like it is done in Sindh.

If we light one candle, its light will spread around and people will follow suit because it is said that it better to light a candle than cursing the darkness.

Happy International Mother Language Day