When we look at the evolution and development of languages, we invariably find that a language flourishes and thrives when it is patronised by crème de la crème of its speakers and the state. Elite provides social prestige to a language and the state infuses it with a sense of power, real and imagined. Prestige and power are unmistakable signs of a language that has social and state backing.

In history, the most powerful and widespread languages had inextricably been linked with the rise and fall of empires they were emblem of. Aramaic, Greek, Sanskrit, Latin, Pahlavi and Arabic all represented the glory and power of the empires its elite speakers built at different points of time. They lost their enviable status when the empires which employed them for expressing their hegemony withered away. But on the other hand, it is also true that innumerable languages, dialects and patios used by people have survived the vicissitudes of time. What they call “natural languages” in Sanskrit die hard simply because of the fact that they are “natural” i.e. naturally spoken by common men and women as they are deeply rooted in the common ethos of the soil. They don’t scare you with any subliminal messages of power. Rather they embrace you with their charm of simplicity and spontaneity, a hallmark of peoples’ cultures. Our own mother language, contemporary Punjabi, is one such language that has not only survived but flourished till mid-19th century despite all the hostility of the state and ruling elite, local and foreign, for specific historical reasons born of exploitative power structure that carried inbuilt bias against the resilient culture of our people.

Advent of colonialism in Punjab in the mid-19th century was “the unkindest cut of all” in the sphere of indigenous culture and language. The Punjabi language especially bore the brunt of what our elders called the “White rule” [Gora Raj] which suppressed it in an unprecedented manner. Though it was not court language but it was taught in the traditional educational institutions affiliated with Muslim mosque, Hindu temple and Sikh gurdwara. It was also employed by poets, writers and literati for creative and literary expression. But in the new schools introduced by the colonizers two foreign languages [English and Urdu] were imposed as medium of instruction: English for the upper class and Urdu for lower strata. English reflected the colonial power and Urdu was made to serve a sort of bridge between the rulers and the ruled. “Munshi class” [clerical staff] who accompanied the invading British officers from Uttar Pradesh (UP) influenced their decision of not allowing Punjabi to be taught in the European type of schools. Apart from political consideration, in the words of great linguist and scholar Dr GW Leitner, the first principal of Government College of Lahore, it was “Hindustani prejudice” against Punjabi that won the day. Punjab’s writers and activists struggled against this policy after emergence of Pakistan as an independent state but one only saw slow improvement in the situation.

Punjab Institute of Language and Culture (Pilac) was set up, though belatedly, by Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, the then chief minister of the Punjab, in 2004 for “patronage, promotion and development of language, art and culture and the matters connected therewith”. When Shahbaz Sharif took over as the chief minister, it was feared, that Pilac might be closed down because the Sharifs, till then, had shown little love for their mother language and people’s culture. But mercifully Pilac was tolerated and in a way kept functional. The good news is that there has been a visibly gradual change in the Punjab government’s policy towards language/s and culture since last year. The credit for this welcome change goes to the chief minister and his government. Raja Jahangir Anwar, secretary Ministry of Information and Culture, and Dr Sughra Sadaf, director general of Pilac, also won laurels for advocating the case of language and culture, and persuading the government to cough up generous funds for this cultural body mandated to represent Punjab’s cultural spectrum.

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With funds in the kitty, Dr Sughra and her team chalked out a series of ambitious cultural and literary programmes. Premises of Pilac these days seem to be awash with events involving hundreds of writers and artists, and thousands of people. It organised music evenings, poetry recitals, folk dances and Vesakhi festival (a traditional harvest festival). This week saw grand finale. One was delighted to see the young and old, the junior and senior from all over Punjab gathered under one roof. Scores of new awards and prizes have been instituted which would help promote literary and cultural activities across the province. Recipients of Pride of Punjab Award, included luminaries such as Munnu Bhai, Mustafa Qureshi, Anwar Masood, Aslam Kamal, Shakir Shujabadi, Fakhar Zaman, Arif Lohar, Syed Afzal Hayder and Pakistan Punjabi Adbi Board for their literary and cultural services. A number of books in diverse genres published last year got Shafqat Tanvir Mirza Award. A positive development was the initiation of cash awards for young position holders who did their masters in Punjabi and Seraiki last year from the Punjab University, Sargodha University, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, and Islamia University of Bahawalpur. It was a good omen for our changing linguistic and cultural landscape that Minister of Information and Culture Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman represented the Punjab government on the occasion.