Despite being a diverse cultural society, we are unable to preserve & promote various mother languages of our country
KANDHKOT: International Mother Language day was observed on February 21, which carried a message around the world of promoting and preserving mother languages. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation has, too, emphasised using mother languages as the medium of instruction for quality education.
Over 70 native mother languages are spoken in Pakistan, besides Urdu and English, few of which are considered endangered languages. Urdu, being the most popular language, is spoken only by seven per cent of citizens as their mother language.
Despite being a beautifully diverse cultural society, we are unable to preserve, protect and promote the various mother languages of our country. Recently, the Karachi and Lahore Literature Festivals, too, ignored indigenous languages, apparent from the sessions and book stalls. One thinks that if mega festivals like the KLF and the LLF chose to focus only on literary works in Urdu and English; it’s only revealing to the world that Pakistani literature chooses to ignore its other languages. There are literary works in Sindhi, Balochi, Punjabi, Pashto, Seraiki and many other languages. So, it becomes a dire need to write and read and showcase our indigenous languages and their literary works to protect and promote them and revive them as effective ways of communicating and instructing, too, before it’s too late.
Historical examples like Sanskrit, Latin, Hebrew and Aramaic exist, which are considered among the sacred languages, but unfortunately they have become extinct. The coming generations will not forgive us if we left for them what were once mother languages, only to be read in the pages of history.
Raja Ali Raza
Published in The Express Tribune, February 29th, 2016.
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