A sadly neglected language in Pakistan..with a great history and a people who have contributed much to Pakistan.
The World Hindko Conference gave the Hindko literati and intellectuals the opportunity to reflect on the ability of the language to survive in the global village
By Raza Rahman Khan
Hindko is one of the regional languages of the NWFP that could not develop in the manner it should have. The vicissitudes of time pushed the language into oblivion, until efforts were made a few years ago to revive the language and thus its literature. The problems with Hindko have been manifold and multifaceted. Languages thrive when literary work is done in them. Unfortunately, in Hindko in the last century or so, no great quantity, let alone quality, of literature has been produced. Ziauddin, who is secretary of the local literary organisation, Gandhara Hindko Board (GHB), informed me that there are only 100-150 books of Hindko available.
This situation of the Hindko language has alarming ramifications. Because of the lack of books, avid literary aficionados, or for that matter more casual Hindkovan readers, all have reason for turning away from the language.
Of late there have been some efforts by certain literary-cum-social circles to promote the language. In this regard Gandhara Hindko Board has published some 14 books. But there has been no great quantitative and qualitative improvement in Hindko literature of the kind that might be desired. Ziauddin says the reason for the paucity of Hindko literature has been the lack of official support and the ineffectiveness of the non-governmental literary and social organisations.
Nevertheless, events like international conferences on Hindko may prove important in sensitising the Hindkovans to the state of their language. Of late, GHB, taking the lead on this front organised the World Hindko Conference in Peshawar. Peshawar, being the city in which the largest number of Pakhtoons in the world live, has been hosting the World Pakhtu Conference every second year for quite some time now.
The greatest achievement of the Hindko Conference was that it gave the Hindko literati and intellectuals the opportunity to reflect on the ability of the language to survive in the global village, and the cultural imperialism that accompanies it.
The Conference came up with some very good resolutions for the promotion of the language. The establishment of a Hindko Academy in Peshawar University on the pattern of the Pashto Academy is indeed a well-considered demand, provided the institution manages to become a hub of Hindko literature and literary figures.
Hindko has been a household language of the Hindkovans, but otherwise it has never been a medium for community gatherings or cultural associations. For such occasions the Hindko speakers often opt for Urdu. “It was way back in the 1970s that Hindkovans started shying away from speaking their language, and thus inflicted a colossal loss on the language and its literature”, says noted writer Zahoor Ahman Awan, who is also chairman of the Gandhara Hindko Board. Any language develops only if the day to day business of the people is conducted in it. For this neglect, the Hindkovans can blame no one but themselves. “Yes, the attitude of the Hindkovans towards their language has been the main stumbling block in its development”, agrees Ziauddin.
Although Hindko is widely believed to be a derivative dialect of Punjabi that came to the Pakhtoon lands only after the Sikh occupation of the Frontier in the 1830’s, Dr. Zahoor Ahmad Awan is of the view that the language is 5000 years old. Tracing the history of Peshawar, which is the main centre of Hindko language, Dr Awan contends that in a city which is so old, some language had to be spoken before the Sikhs, and that was no other than Hindko. “However, the problem is that we lost all literature which had been produced in the language.”
Dr Zahoor Awan is perhaps quite right in saying that “If a language has force, any kind of literature, whether political or purely literary, can dovetail into it, and can allure people to read it”. But keeping in view the listless attitude of most Hindkovans, save some literary and social figures, an improvement in the quality and quantity of its literature seems the main option for its survival. It falls to the leading lights of Hindko culture and language movements, most of whom are wealthy businessmen of Peshawar, to contribute financially to these efforts.
Dr Awam and his GHB schema for the promotion of Hindko language has three levels: to create awareness among the Hindkovans about their language; to give them a platform for debate and dialogue; and to establish an academy for Hindko’s promotion.
“The promotion of Hindko could be greatly served if highbrow literature from languages like Pashto, Urdu, Persian and English is translated into Hindko”, said Dr Awan.
Against the backdrop of the media revolution and the contemporary trends of demassification, which bring with them media for specialised audiences with specific linguistic, cultural, ideological or infotainment interests, Hindko luminaries must try to get as much media space and time as possible. At this particular moment the establishment of a Hindko TV channel seems a far cry. The media could serve as appropriate conduits for the promotion of Hindko. Their shared experience could also eliminate the cultural differences between different pockets of Hindko speakers in areas like Peshawar, Hazara and Kohat, leading to the emergence of a standard Hindko dialect and written language.
yaaay