Spread of the Punjabi language
Punjabi is not the official national language in any country, but is an official language in some north-western Indian states and enjoys constitutional protection in India as one of 22 "classical languages". Punjabi is also spoken as a mother tongue by smaller sections of the population in some other countries.Punjabi (native name: ਪੰਜਾਬੀ) has its roots in the Indo-European language family.
The main areas of distribution are in the Indian state of Punjab and the Pakistani province of Punjab.
Historical development
Punjabi is part of the Indo-Iranian subgroup of the Indo-European language family. The language has its roots in the Indo-Iranian tribes who migrated to north-western South Asia around 1500 BC. The earliest form of Punjabi is dated to the 7th century AD, when regional variants developed from Prakrit, a group of medieval Indian languages. From the 10th century onwards, Punjabi developed into a language in its own right. This development was strongly influenced by Islamic culture, particularly by the arrival of the Sufis in the 11th century, which led to a more distinctive poetry and literature.In the Middle Ages, Punjabi was the administrative language of the rulers of Delhi and the surrounding areas. With the British colonization of India in the 19th century and the subsequent partition of British India in 1947, when the Punjab region was divided between India and Pakistan, there were significant social shifts. In India, Punjabi became the official language of the newly founded state of Punjab in 1966.
Today, Punjabi is spoken by around 150 million people worldwide, making it one of the most widely spoken languages in the world. In Pakistan, it is spoken by around 48% of the population, making it the most widely spoken language in the country, although Urdu is the official national language. In India, it is spoken by around 3% of the population. There are also Punjabi-speaking diaspora communities in Canada, the USA, the United Kingdom and Australia.
Different dialects and scripts
The language is divided into two main dialects: Western Punjabi or Lahnda in Pakistan and Eastern Punjabi in India. The writing systems also differ: Gurmukhi is used in India, while Shahmukhi, a variant of the Arabic script, is used in Pakistan. The modern development of the language also includes significant literary contributions that reflect both traditional themes and contemporary social issues.| Country | Region | Official language | Distribution | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pakistan | South Asia | no | 48.0 % | 120,609,000 |
| India | South Asia | no | 2.8 % | 40,626,000 |
| Saudi Arabia | Western Asia | no | 2.2 % | 777,000 |
| Canada | North America | no | 1.4 % | 578,000 |
Unfortunately, misunderstandings often arise. Punjabi is one of 22 languages protected under the Indian Constitution. Most of these protected languages are also official languages in individual regions of the country. However, Punjabi is not an official language of the Republic of India. These are exclusively Hindi and English.
Unless otherwise described in the text, this page is about native speakers — not the total number of speakers. How many people understand or speak Punjabi as a subsequently learned language is not the subject of this page. Countries where native speakers make up only a few thousand, or even a few hundred people, or countries with a percentage well below 1% are unlikely to be listed here.
Official language, national language or lingua franca: explanation of frequently used terms