Re: Sorry, I am born to a Pakistani but cannot read Urdu
Everyone seems to have the impression that if you can read Arabic you should be able to transfer that skill to Urdu, but without the zabar, zair, paish telling me how to pronounce the word I'm lost. I have no sense of where one word begins and where it ends, and Urdu letters change their shape depending on if they are written in the beginning, middle, or end adding to the challenge. I feel like English is more reader friendly.
I am American born and raised, and I can read GEO news headlines and children books because of the fat print, I can read recipes on the back of Shan masala boxes, and I can read cookbooks because I can usually guess unfamiliar words based on what the recipe is for. My other American Pakistani friends can't even do this much. We just didn't have the privilege to learn, and because its not resourceful for us nobody cares for it either.
This exactly! Because I can read Quranic Arabic, I can make out the news headlines...billboards when I go to karachi, and fat print..but I cannot read the newspaper script, novels or anything like that.
My parents never stressed us learning proper reading or writing in Urdu because we had no reason too. My siblings, cousins and I all speak fluently and that was enough. We have no real ties left in Pakistan or India, no inheritance, land, real estate holdings, properties etc, and zero reason to move back and live in either country so there really is no use for the written language for me or my children.
Re: Sorry, I am born to a Pakistani but cannot read Urdu
There are two main reasons why our parents made sure they empowered us with the knowledge of this great language. A) In our family, there's a 'proud' history of women being fooled to sign important land and property documents because they couldn't read or weren't allowed to read the documents. One thoughtless signature, you are robbed of your inheritance and ancestoral land. It almost happened to my mother. B) I have vested personal, political, economic interests in Pakistan - basically I am selfish and opportunist and think knowing bit of Urdu might be handy. Will save me the cost of hiring a translator. C) One day, I'd love to do some humanitarian work in Pakistan. Maybe just do some teaching if my all Machiavellian plans don't work out. Actually, I'm not that bad, I might just go back to Pakistan or become a consitutional analyst/expert - whatever they are called. I'd love to be one those consitutional reformers - if Pakistan or it's democracy survives.
This is quite true actually .. I agree with most of it and to add, I think one of the contributory factors that helped me learn Urdu and Punjabi was my strong wish to remain associated with my roots , plus, being able to communicate with husband's relatives and extended family
Re: Sorry, I am born to a Pakistani but cannot read Urdu
I can totally understand if people not born and bred in Pakistan don't know how to read or write urdu. But I disagree with saying that there is no use in gaining/having that knowledge. Every type of knowledge is useful. And if you already have a lead in learning to speak/write/read a language because it's the language of your parents and roots, then I would grab that opportunity with both hands.
I wish I could speak (write and read) every language that exists.
Re: Sorry, I am born to a Pakistani but cannot read Urdu
Urdu and Arabic are similar, but def not the same. I don’t know how to read Urdu because there aren’t any accent marks, i.e. zubbar, zer, paish, etc… I can read small words like “Baba”, “ammi”, etc, but for longer words, it does take me a while to read/ sound out the word.
I only learned how to read Arabic because I was taking classes to read The Qur’an. Living in The States, there was never a need to read/ learn Urdu, since I don’t see/ use it on a regular basis, if at all.
I can read/ write in Roman Urdu, as long as it’s legible and not purposely written to make my life difficult
Re: Sorry, I am born to a Pakistani but cannot read Urdu
Reha, why do high schools make it mandatory for students to take a foreign language class? It’s not even an “expectation” for schools…it’s treated as a requirement. Why are resumes more attractive if they boast proficiency in more than one language? After all, English is the universal language, so why bother? Hum tab kyun nahi complain karte that my kid is being required to not only speak but also read and write a language that is not even their native/mother tongue…and will be “quizzed” and “tested” and “graded” on it. Then it’s considered cool, right? A source of bragging rights…“My daughter has taken French 5 and speaks just as well as the French themselves, etc etc.” At least Urdu is the language of our parents …so there’d be more of a point in knowing it, no? I’m not advocating that one language is better than another; I brought up the above examples to address the very first question in your post.
There are various aspects that make up a culture such as traditions, cuisine, clothing, etc. Language is among them and I believe it’s the most important one because it not only provides the most information about a culture, but it also preserves it. What about Desis who have extended family in Pakistan that may not be fluent in English…should they avoid speaking to one another? Will Urdu not come into use then? If our parents speak to us in Urdu or even just amongst themselves in Urdu…are we not “dealing” with the language on a daily basis then? Cuz you’re not totally and completely far removed from Urdu as your post is making it seem. Also, the way that a certain phrase is perceived in English may be perceived in an entirely different manner in Urdu or another language. There have been a couple of times when I’ve said something in English…which my mom understood…but when converted to Urdu…it carried a different tone for her than the one I intended. So, it’s good to have an understanding of the dynamics and nuances of your native language.
I believe it’s more important to be able to speak/comprehend Urdu than it us to read and write it…but I still wouldn’t dismiss the latter skills as useless as they only strengthen the grasp of the language.
Re: Sorry, I am born to a Pakistani but cannot read Urdu
Yes, even those living in Pakistan have to expose/teach the language/s to their children. So I doubt anyone on here or otherwise expects it to be a genetic inheritance…hardy har har.
Re: Sorry, I am born to a Pakistani but cannot read Urdu
I was born and raised outside of Pak. I can read the qur'an (though not understand it) and I can speak both urdu and panjabi fluently. But can only read urdu with immense difficulty.
I've been asked numerous times how I can read the qur'an but not urdu...and I wish people would think about it before asking that question... because if you think about it you would realize that the reason is very obvious: the quran includes the short vowels (zer, zabr, peysh etc), whereas there is generally no effort to include the short vowels in anything that has urdu script on it and that is why i can read the qur'an but not urdu...
I can converse in both urdu and panjabi, I look like a pakistani and I am very close to my cultural values though I maybe a bit westernized (whatever the heck that means) ... so what if I am not proficient in reading and writing? Does that make me any less of a pakistani?
Do I wish I knew how to read/write in urdu? Not particularly, I have a stronger desire to learn enough arabic that I can actually understand the qur'an.
Re: Sorry, I am born to a Pakistani but cannot read Urdu
RV - I am not saying it isn't useful.
Its a great asset to have and can only benefit the individual much like **any **language he/she learns. Personally, I think living in the US, you should be learning Spanish.
I don't believe its ridiculous though if someone doesn't know it. I don't think it takes away from an American Pakistani if they don't speak/read/write Urdu at all.
So what if they don't know Urdu? Its like me going to Pakistan and wondering why people don't speak perfect English. They're also exposed to it in the school systems.
Re: Sorry, I am born to a Pakistani but cannot read Urdu
Yes, you called knowing Urdu an asset toward the end of your post, but before doing so you sort of dismissed its acquisition by saying that you do not “need” it or “deal” with it. I disagree because I believe that you are exposed to it “often enough” in life with…your parents…relatives…maybe elders among family friends…maybe your clients at some point in the past or future…media (music, movies, etc)…on GS, etc etc. So, there is a use or need for it. As for the high school example…I brought it up because you found the “expectation” to be strange…and that’s why I asked what you thought of schools expecting/requiring foreign language credits? Now Spanish is very prevalent in the US…more so than the other options offered such as French, German, etc. If that’s strange…then Urdu to phir bhi is a native tongue. And many of us here were “born into” Urdu as well if it was spoken at all in the home.
Re: Sorry, I am born to a Pakistani but cannot read Urdu
Think about language nostalgia:
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**People who are born to Pakistani families and not being able to read Urdu cannot read what their parents once wrote in Urdu including their letters, diaries or whatever.
Re: Sorry, I am born to a Pakistani but cannot read Urdu
Urdu wasn't even relevent in Pakistan. They installed Urdu as a native language because they feared that bengali might surpass the language on the total of Pakistan East/West. Only about 3% of Pakistanis spoke proper Urdu, most were mixed people. I think English should've been the national language like India. Then it should've been taught to every corner of Pakistan.
