Punjabi language, alphabets and pronunciation (original) (raw)
Punjabi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken mainly in Punjab Province in Pakistan, and in Punjab state in India. There are also Punjabi speakers in the Kenya, Singapore, UK, Canada, the UAE, the USA, Saudi Arabia and Australia.
The names Punjabi and Punjab come from the Persian words for five (panj - پنج) and water (ab آب), and refers to the five major eastern tributaties of the Indus River that flow through Punjab: the Chenab, Jhelum, Ravi, Sutlej and Beas.
Punjabi at a glance
- Native name: ਪੰਜਾਬੀ / پنجابی [pʌnˈdʒɑːbi]
- Alternative names: Panjabi
- Language family: Indo-European, Indo-Iranian, Indo-Aryan, Central
- Number of speakers: c. 130 million
- Spoken in: India, Pakistan, the UK, USA, UAE, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia
- First written: 16th century
- Writing system: Gurmukhi and Shahmukhi scripts
- Status: official status in the Indian states of Punjab, Chandigarh, Haryana, and Delhi; secondary officially recognized language in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, and West Bengal; and in the Pakistani provinces of Punjab, Azad Kashmir, Islamabad Capital Territory, Rajasthan, and Uttarakhand
Punjabi descended from the Shauraseni language of medieval northern India and became a distinct language during the 11th century. There are two main varieties of Punjabi: Eastern Punjabi and Western Punjabi, each of which has a number of dialects.
Eastern Punjabi is spoken by about 32.6 million people (in 2011), mainly in India in the states of Punjab, Chandigarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Kammu and Kashmir, and Rajasthan. There are also speakers of Eastern Punjabi in Nairobi in Kenya, and in Singapore.
Western Punjabi is spoken by about 92.7 million people (in 2015), mainly in Punjab province in Pakistan, and also in Punjab state and Jammu and Kashmir state in India. It is also known as Lahanda, Lahnda or Lahndi.
In India Punjabi is written with the Gurmukhi (ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ) alphabet, while in Pakistan it is written with a version of the Urdu alphabet known as Shahmukhi (شاہ مکھی). The written standard for Punjabi in both India and Pakistan is known as Majhi (ਮਾਝੀ/ ماجھ), which is named after the Majha region of Punjab.
Punjabi is one of India's 22 official languages and it is the first official language in East Punjab. In Pakistan Punjabi is the second most widely-spoken language but has no official status.
Gurmukhi alphabet (ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ)
The Gurmukhi alphabet developed from the Landa alphabet and was standardised during the 16th century by Guru Angad Dev Ji, the second Sikh guru. The name Gurmukhi means "from the mouth of the Guru" and comes from the Old Punjabi word guramukhī.
Notable Features
- Type of writing system: Abugida / Syllabic Alphabet
- Writing direction: left to right in horizontal lines
- Script family: Proto-Sinaitic, Phoenician, Aramaic, Brāhmī, Gupta, Śāradā/Sharda, Laṇḍā, Gurmukhi
- Used to write: Punjabi
- Consonants have an inherent vowel. Diacritics, which can appear above, below, before or after the consonant they belong to, are used to change the inherent vowel.
- When they appear at the beginning of a syllable, vowels are written as independent letters.
- When certain consonants occur together, special conjunct symbols are used which combine the essential parts of each letter.
- Punjabi is a tonal language with three tones: high falling, low rising and level. The letters ਹ (ha), ਘ (gha), ਝ (jha), ਢ (ḍha), ਧ (dha) and ਭ (bha) have a level tone when at the beginning or a word of syllable, and a high falling tone when elsewhere. The conjuncts ਗ੍ਹ (gha), ਜ੍ਹ (jha), ਡ੍ਹ (ḍha), ਦ੍ਹ (dha) and ਬ੍ਹ (bha) have a level tone when at the beginning or a word of syllable, and a low rising tone when elsewhere.
Other symbols
Numerals
Shahmukhi alphabet (شاہ مکھی)
The Shahmukhi alphabet is a version of the Persian alphabet used to write Punjabi in Pakistan. It is normally written in Nastaʿlīq style and has been used since the 11th century. The name Shahmukhi means "from the King's mouth". The Shahmukhi alphabet currently used was developed in Pakistan in 2016. It is also known as the Punjabi alphabet. The chart below shows the Shahmuki script with Gurmukhi equivalents.
Notable Features
- Type of writing system: alphabet
- Writing direction: right to left in horizontal lines
- Script family: Proto-Sinaitic, Phoenician, Aramaic, Nabataean, Arabic, Perso-Arabic, Shamukhi
- Used to write: Punjabi
- The sounds ñ [ɲ], ng [ŋ] and ṇ [ɳ] are all written with ں (nun ghunna). In initial and medial positions they are written with ن.
- ے (bari ye) is only found in the final position, when writing the sounds e [e] or ai [æ], and in initial and medial positions, it takes the form of ي.
- Short vowels are written with: َ a [ə], ُ u [ʊ], ِ i [ɪ]
The chart below shows the Shahmuki script with Gurmukhi equivalents
Information about the Shahmukhi / Punjabi alphabet (in Punjabi)
Sample text in Eastern Punjabi (Gurmukhi alphabet)
Transliteration
Sārā manukhī parivāra āpaṇī mahimā, śāna atē hakāṁ dē pakhōṁ janama tōṁ hī āzāda hai atē sutē sidha sārē lōka barābara hana. Unhāṁ sabhanā nū taraka atē zamīra dī saugāta milī hō'ī hai atē unhāṁ nū bharātarībhāva dī bhāvanā rakhadi'āṁ āpasa vica vicaraṇā cāhīdā hai.
A recording of this text by Asha of Punjabi Hindi Online.com
Sample text in Western Punjabi (Shahmukhi alphabet)
Transliteration
Sārē inasān āzād tē haqūq tē azat dē lihāz nāl barābar paidā hudē nēṅ. Uh aql samajh tē cagē mazdē dī pachān tē ahisās rakhadē nē ēs vāsatē unhāṅ nūṅ ak dūjē nāl bhā'ī cārē vālā slōk kranā cāhī dā ē.
Translation
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)
Some information provided by Rana Zubair, a student and writer from Sahiwal district of Punjab in Pakistan.
Information about Punjabi (in English) | Information about Punjabi (in Punjabi) | Phrases | Numbers | Tower of Babel | Learning materials
Links
Information about Punjabi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punjabi_language
http://languages.iloveindia.com/punjabi.html
http://www.punjabonline.com
https://www.ethnologue.com/language/pan
https://www.ethnologue.com/language/pnb
Information about Gurmukhi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gurmukh%C4%AB_alphabet
http://www.sikhs.org/gurmukhi.htm
http://www.gurbanifiles.org/gurmukhi/
Information about Shahmukhi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shahmukh%C4%AB_script
http://www.apnaorg.com/shahmukhi/
http://www.apnaorg.com/books/hazarasingh/
Online Punjabi lessons and other learning resources
http://www.learnpunjabi.org/intro1.asp
http://www.youtube.com/user/hardeepsingh83
http://www.rajkaregakhalsa.net/lesson1.htm
http://www.learnpunjabi.org
http://grosse.is-a-geek.com/billie/
http://www.ukindia.com/zpun01.htm
http://www.apnaorg.com/shahmukhi/
Learn Punjabi and Hindi Online
http://punjabihindionline.com/
Online collections of Punjabi phrases
http://www.phrasebase.com/archive2/punjabi/common-punjabi-phrases.html
http://wikitravel.org/en/Punjabi_phrasebook
http://www.outsourcingtranslation.com/resources/phrases/punjabi-sentences.php
http://www.mylanguages.org/punjabi_phrases.php
http://www.languageshome.com/English-Punjabi.htm
Online Punjabi dictionaries
http://www.advancedcentrepunjabi.org/pedic/default.aspx
http://www.punjabonline.com
Free Gurmukhi fonts
http://www.sikh-history.com/sikhhist/download.html
http://members.aol.com/hspannu/punjabi.html
Online Punjabi Radio
http://www.namdhari.faithweb.com/radio.htm
http://www.panjabradio.co.uk
Online Punjabi news
http://www.onlinepunjabinews.com
http://www.punjabi-newspapers.com
http://www.punjabinewspunjab.com
http://www.punjnews.com
Punjabilok - Punjabi news, history, language, etc
http://www.punjabilok.com/
Indo-Aryan languages
Awadhi,Assamese,Bagri,Bengali, Bhili,Bishnupriya Manipuri,Braj,Chakma, Chhattisgarhi,Chittagonian,Desiya,Dhatki,Dhivehi,Dhundari,Fiji Hindi, Gawar Bati,Gujarati,Hajong,Halbi,Haryanvi, Hindi, Hindko,Kannauji,Khandeshi, Konkani, Kotia, Kumaoni,Kutchi, Lambadi,Marathi, Marwari, Mewari,Modi, Nimadi, Noakhailla,Odia,Parkari Koli,Punjabi,Rajasthani,Rajbanshi,Rangpuri,Rohingya,Saraiki,Sarnámi Hindustani, Sindhi,Sinhala,Sourashtra,Sugali,Sylheti,Tanchangya,Urdu
Abugidas / Syllabic alphabets
Ahom,Aima,Arleng,Badagu,Badlit,Basahan,Balinese,Balti-A,Balti-B,Batak,Baybayin,Bengali,Bhaiksuki,Bhujimol,Bilang-bilang,Bima,Blackfoot,Brahmi,Buhid,Burmese,Carrier,Chakma,Cham,Cree,Dehong Dai,Devanagari,Dham Lipi,Dhankari / Sirmauri,Ditema,Dives Akuru,Dogra,Ethiopic,Evēla Akuru,Fox,Fraser,Gond,Goykanadi,Grantha,Gujarati,Gunjala Gondi,Gupta,Gurmukhi,Halbi Lipi,Hanifi,Hanuno'o,Hočąk,Ibalnan,Incung,Inuktitut,Jaunsari Takri,Javanese,Kaithi,Kadamba,Kamarupi,Kannada,Kawi,Kharosthi,Khema,Khe Prih,Khmer,Khojki,Khudabadi,Kirat Rai,Kōchi,Komering,Kulitan,Kurukh Banna,Lampung,Lanna,Lao,Lepcha,Limbu,Lontara/Makasar,Lota Ende,Magar Akkha,Mahajani,Malayalam,Meitei (Modern),Manpuri (Old),Marchen,Meetei Yelhou Mayek,Meroïtic,Masarm Gondi,Modi,Mon,Mongolian Horizontal Square Script,Multani,Nandinagari,Newa,New Tai Lue,Ojibwe,Odia,Ogan,Pahawh Hmong,Pallava,Phags-pa,Purva Licchavi,Qiang / Rma,Ranjana,Rejang (Kaganga),Sasak,Savara,Satera Jontal,Shan,Sharda,Sheek Bakrii Saphaloo,Siddham,Sinhala,Sorang Sompeng,Sourashtra,Soyombo,Sukhothai,Sundanese,Syloti Nagri,Tagbanwa,Takri,Tamil,Tanchangya (Ka-Pat),Tani,Thaana,Telugu,Thai,Tibetan,Tigalari,Tikamuli,Tocharian,Tolong Siki,Vatteluttu,Warang Citi
Languages written with the Arabic script
Adamaua Fulfulde,Afrikaans,Arabic (Algerian),Arabic (Bedawi),Arabic (Chadian),Arabic (Egyptian),Arabic (Gulf),Arabic (Hassaniya),Arabic (Hejazi), Arabic (Lebanese),Arabic (Libyan),Arabic (Modern Standard),Arabic (Moroccan),Arabic (Najdi),Arabic (Sudanese),Arabic (Syrian),Arabic (Tunisian),Arwi,Äynu,Azeri,Balanta-Ganja,Balti,Baluchi,Beja,Belarusian,Bosnian,Brahui,Chagatai,Chechen,Chittagonian,Comorian,Crimean Tatar,Dargwa, Dari,Dhatki,Dogri,Domari,Gawar Bati,Gawri,Gilaki,Hausa,Hazaragi,Hindko,Indus Kohistani,Kabyle,Kalkoti,Karakalpak,Kashmiri,Kazakh,Khowar,Khorasani Turkic,Khwarezmian,Konkani,Kumzari,Kurdish,Kyrgyz,Lezgi, Lop,Luri,Maguindanao,Malay,Malay (Terengganu),Mandinka,Marwari,Mazandarani,Mogholi,Morisco,Mozarabic,Munji,Noakhailla,Nubi,Ormuri,Palula,Parkari Koli,Pashto,Persian/Farsi,Punjabi,Qashqai,Rajasthani,Rohingya,Salar,Saraiki,Sawi,Serer,Shabaki,Shina,Shughni,Sindhi,Somali,Soninke,Tatar,Tausūg,Tawallammat Tamajaq,Tayart Tamajeq,Ternate,Torwali,Turkish,Urdu,Uyghur,Uzbek,Wakhi,Wanetsi,Wolof,Xiao'erjing,Yidgha
Languages written with the Gurmukhi alphabet
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