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Is Saraiki a language
Or a dialect of Punjabi?

An analysis of Saraiki as language

Submitted to:

Pro. Athar Munir

English Department
Institute of Southern Punjab
Multan.

Submitted by:

Sohail Imran Khan

M.Phil English (2020-2022)
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Saraiki and Punjabi are two main regional languages of Punjabi. Both have co-
existed for hundreds of years. Both languages have their individual rich culture,
linguistic temperament and have devoted native speakers. However, they both are
part of linguistic debate as well. Many linguists , including some prominent
Punjabi linguists, refuse to acknowledge the status of Punjabi as language and
stress that it is a dialect of Punjabi language. This has given birth to many heated
debates among scholars about the identity of Saraiki & Punjabi as language. In this
paper, we’ll try to find out if Saraiki is really a dialect of Punjabi language or does
it fit the criteria to be acknowledged as a language . Let’s begin with a brief
introduction of Saraiki language.

There are 26 million people in Pakistan who consider Saraiki as their native
language. These Saraiki people live in southern region of Punjab (also known as
Saraiki belt), South Khyber Pakhtunkhaa and bordering areas of Northern Sindh &
Eastern Punjab. Saraiki is also spoken in some areas of India. According to 2001
census, there are 68000 native speakers of Saraiki in India. Saraiki is spoken in
many different dialects. The noteworthy dialects are as under:

Saraiki; the language of northern border of Sindh

Bahawalpuri/Riasti; the dialect spoken in the Bahawalpur region.
Derewali; the dialect spoken in Dera Ghazi Khan and Dera Ismael Khan.
Muzaffargahi; the dialect spoken around MuzaffarGarh
Hindko; spoken Peshawar and its surroundings.
Multani; the language spoken around Multan.
Uchi; the language spoken at Uch.
Jhangvi; the language of Mianwali and Jhang districts.
Shahpuri; the language of Shahpur districts.

Some linguists argue that word ‘’Saraiki” for the above mentioned dialects was
adopted by regional political and social leaders in 1960s to promote Saraiki
national cause and to develop the language into a standard written language.
However this theory has been debunked by
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SO what exactly is the criterion for a language to be an “independent language” ?

the answer to this question has kept many language scholars on their toes. The
classification of a language and a dialect is difficult task because there is no set
criterion for such a classification. Maldonado García explains this phenomenon in
the following manner:

It seems simple to differentiate between a language and a dialect. However,

although the definition of language seems to be clear and every dictionary of the
world contains it, in practical terms when facing the dilemma of whether a
particular linguistic system is a language or a dialect, these definitions are blurry
from a scientific point of view and sociolinguistic and political pressures may play
a role in many cases (Maldonado García, 2015).

However, many linguistic like Maldonado García have established a criterion for
differentiation between a language and a dialect. To check if Saraiki fits the bill,
let’s do an analysis of Saraiki language against this linguistics criteria by
Maldonado García.

1. The linguistic system should present a high degree of leveling. That is a

large number of speakers spread over one or more geographical areas. The
language community should present language coherence.

Saraiki language perfectly qualifies for this criteria. It has over 26 million native
speakers in Pakistan. It is also the native language of majority of population of
specific geographical location I.e South Punjab.

2. It presents an elevated differentiation degree.

While many languages in Pakistan specially the ones that belong to Indo Aryan
family of languages i.e Sindhi, Saraiki & Punjabi share many semantic
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characteristic, there is elevated differentiation degree between them. Here is an

example of an English sentence translated into Sindhi, Saraiki & Punjabi.

3. The linguistic system has thrived over others of the same origin which have
not presented the same level of success remaining without some of the same
factors that make the former successful, such as same leveling degree, lack of
formal rules, etc.

While Saraiki has thrived over many other regional languages of South Punjab
including Mewati, Dogri, Balochi (in Border areas of south Punjab) etc. In South
Punjab, a good number of Saraiki speakers are the Baloch who migrated from
Balochistan hundreds of years ago. The new generations of these Saraki Baloch
people have assimilated themselves in Saraiki culture and speak Saraiki as their
first language. Saraiki language may have not prevailed over many other languages
I,e Punjabi but it has more to do with politics and distribution of resources than the
linguistics character of the language itself.

4. The language enjoys a high level of prestige. For example; it is a national

language, an official language, a language of the United Nations or any other
international organization, etc.
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The Saraiki language isn’t official language or among national languages of

Pakistan but then again, it has more to do with the politics of this region. There are
only two national languages in Pakistan.There is legit movement for decimation of
a separate province for the ears where Saraiki is spoken. If this gets through,
Saraiki will be a provincial language . So then again, if Saraiki isn’t a national or
provincial / regional language, it has nothing to do with the “credentials” of Saraiki
as language.

5. The linguistic system presents written manifestations as well as grammar,

rules of orthography, phonetics, syntax, etc.

Though Saraiki has basic grammar rules and written manifestations, yet it has no
proper phonetics , grammar and syntax system

6. The linguistic system is utilized as a medium of instruction.

Saraiki is taught as subject at college and university level. There are department for
Saraiki languages in two main universities of the region I.e Islamia University
Bahawalpur and BZU, Multan.

7. The linguistic system is spread through television channels, newspapers,

radio and other media manifestations in society such as the internet, etc.

There are various local Television channels that broadcast in Saraiki I.e Rohi TV.
There are hundreds of regional Saraiki newspapers. Many Saraiki FM radio
channels reach out to the people of this region through air-waves. This is despite
the fact that Saraiki language and this region has been neglected by governments,
both in Centre and province. The resilient Saraiki language has not only sustained
itself but has also grown, despite being neglected by “Takht e Lahore.”
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8. The linguistic system presents a vast literary tradition of which is vehicle

and includes many forms of literary expression such as prose, poetry, etc.

Saraiki has a rich literary tradition. It is the language of Khawaja Ghulam Farid. It
has produced radical revolutionary poet like Shakir Shuja Abadi, who is no less
than Habib Jalib in stature.

It’s important to note that a linguist María Isabel Maldonado García, who is
Spanish national and head of Institute of Languages, University of the Punjab,
Pakistan has written a paper Saraiki: Language or Dialect inh which she has tried
to maintain that Saraiki fails all criterion of language set by Maldonado García. A
reading of her paper makes it clear that the ridiculous calculations are either due to
her biased and look-down-upon approach to Saraiki culture and language or she
wrote the paper while sitting in comfy writing room, without going into the field
and without getting her basic concepts about Saraiki language. For example, she
rejects Ethnologue and Glottolog,’s classification of Saraiki as language claiming
that their research is not based on evidences but she herself has not provided a
shred of linguistic evidence in support of her claim of Saraiki being a dialect ,
except her own assumptions about Saraiki.

Conclusion:

Results of above criterion test clearly indicate that Saraiki meets most of the
criteria to be classified as language. There may be many shortcomings in Saraiki
that hurt its character as language. But this must not be forgotten that it’s the
language of an unprivileged region that is home to “lesser sons of God”