"Pakistan's Hindi" written in both Urdu and Hindi.
Modern Standard Hindi is mutually intelligible with Urdu, the national and official language of Pakistan. Both are standard registers of the Hindustani language.[1][2] As a result of linguistic and cultural similarities, Hindi has had notable influences in Pakistan and is taught as an academic subject in some institutions; before the partition of colonial India, Hindi was taught at major universities in the provinces that came to form Pakistan.[3] While Hindi and Urdu both have a predominantly Indic (Indo-Aryan) base, Hindi uses more Sanskrit (old Indic) words in its educated vocabulary while Urdu incorporates more Arabic, Persian, and a few Turkic (all non-Indic) words for the same. Most poetry, ghazals, qawalis & lyrics use many Urdu words.
Urdu was long associated with the Muslims of the subcontinent by virtue of its historical development and the Urdu movement. During the Pakistan Movement, it was given preference over Hindi as their lingua franca and thus achieved official status in Pakistan.[10]
Academic study
Hindi has drawn increasing focus as an academic subject.[8] There is a growing trend of Hindi experts and the availability of texts in Pakistan.[8] Many Hindi instructors migrated from India, or were educated at Indian universities.[5]
The Department of Hindi at the National University of Modern Languages (NUML) in Islamabad was established in 1973. It became the first university department in Pakistan to provide certificates, diplomas, language courses, Masters and PhD degrees in Hindi,[11] including the country's first Hindi MPhil degree.[12][13] It has provided instruction to Pakistani as well as foreign students.[11][5]
The Hindi Department at the University of the Punjab in Lahore has roots going back to the establishment of the Oriental College; however, it wasn't until 1983 that accredited courses were started. The department awards both undergraduate and postgraduate Hindi courses.[14] At the University of Punjab's Centre for South Asian Studies, Hindi is a mandatory subject for those pursuing an MPhil in regional languages.[8]
As a result of Bollywood films, Indian soap opera viewership and cable television in Pakistan, Hindi has had a notable cultural influence.[8][16] Several Hindi words have entered the casual Pakistani lexicon, such as vishwas ("trust"),[17]ashirvad ("blessing"), charcha ("talk"), pati-patni ("husband-wife"), bina ("without"), shanti ("peace"), sambandh ("relations") and other popular phrases.[18][19][5] The advent of internet and social media has accelerated such exchanges.[20][5]
The screening of Hindi films in Pakistani cinemas, which was restricted for nearly four decades, has resumed over the last few years.[21][22] Much of the dialogues, themes and script-writing used in Hindi films are influenced by Urdu, therefore capturing familiarity with Pakistani audiences.[23] Furthermore, several actors in the Hindi film industry have roots in present Pakistan.[24]Hindi music from Bollywood remains popular and shares similarities with Pakistani music. This has enabled several Indian artists to contribute to Pakistani film soundtracks and vice versa.[25]
Research in Sahiwal found that over 60% of children in Pakistan watch Hindi-language cartoons, being "very much fond of watching Hindi cartoon series named: Chota Bheem – originally Hindi cartoons & Doraemon – Japanese Cartoons but Dubbed in Hindi."[26] The study found that students widely used what the researchers considered to be uniquely Hindi words over uniquely Urdu words in their spoken language with the following results: Bloom Field Hall School (58%), Beacon House School (55%), DPS Sahiwal (65%), The Educators Sahiwal (80%), The Spirit School Sahiwal (70%), Allied School Sahiwal (72%).[26]
Some commentators view these tendencies as an example of globalisation and soft power, while others have described it as a silent cultural invasion or a reignition of the Hindi-Urdu controversy.[18][17][27][28] In January 2017, the Punjab provincial assembly passed a resolution demanding a ban on television cartoons containing Hindi dubbing, and called for their replacement with Urdu.[29] For some Pakistanis, knowing Hindi provides an opportunity to follow Hindi media and develop a cultural understanding of neighboring India, while for others it is an individual interest.[8] In 2015, an Urdu–Hindi cookbook described as the "first of its kind" was published in Pakistan.[30] At Lahore's Information Technology University, the Data Science Lab created an application called the Urdu-Hindi Dictionary which translates words written in Roman transliteration to their selected language.[31]
At the Wagah border crossing in Lahore, signboards contain Hindi markings alongside Urdu/Shahmukhi and English to facilitate Indian travelers.[33] The Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation operates a Hindi radio service.[34]
^ abcdeSinha, R.K. (14 September 2016). "The charm of Hindi in Pakistan". The Pioneer. Retrieved 16 May 2017. ...For the last many years, a large number of Chinese are taking lessons in Hindi in Pakistan. Not only the Chinese, many officials of Islamic countries, including the United Arab Emirates, too are learning Hindi in Pakistan. That Pakistan is emerging as a seat of Hindi learning and teaching is a revelation.
^ abAziz, Hulba; Shah, Syed Kazim (2017). "The Effect of Hindi Animated Cartoons Causing the Language Change in Pakistani Children – A Socio-Cultural Approach of Ideology". Journal of the Punjab University Historical Society. 30 (2): 60, 62–63.
^Ezdi, Asif (3 September 2012). "A silent invasion". The News. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
^Ghanashyam, Aniket (10 July 2003). "An Indian Student In Pakistan". Outlook India. Retrieved 22 September 2015. There was a Hindi school in the Indian High Commission so that when the children come back to India they won't have too much trouble communicating with the people here.
