Language though not purely natural seems to be natural like eating and breathing in the normal course of things. But if we look at history it’s not that simple. Language always functions in a certain historical context that invariably carries within it elements other than linguistic ones emanating from political, cultural, social and economic dimensions.

Diversity of languages is a potent source of human enrichment as well as a trigger for social conflicts. Migrations and invasions are what has shaped human civilisation. Consequences of these factors have inescapably been language wars prompted by unequal relations between different linguistic groups. When they come together a spectacular display of difference is witnessed in the form of speech; they speak different languages. Thus language becomes an instrument of identity and power or lack of it.

In our homeland the issue of language became seriously contentious when British colonialists occupied it in the wake of Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s death. They introduced modern institutions but committed an unforgivable cultural violence against Punjab by imposing on it two foreign languages; Urdu and English in mid-19th century whose effect we are still reeling from.

Abid Ameeq’s book Punjab vich Zaban da Maslapublished by Suchet Kitab Ghar posthumously deals precisely with this lingering language issue. He was a remarkable poet, fearlessly independent-minded intellectual, art connoisseur and greatly provocative conservationist. He wasn’t prolific. He published just two collections of his poems in what looks like a blend of Sariaki and central Punjabi but he used to call it ‘the literary language of the Punjab’. Sadly, he wrote much less than he could. He was perhaps more fascinated by the mysteries of oral traditions reliant on the nuances of uttered word. But Abid at the same time was extremely choosy; He would endlessly converse on myriad topics with people he felt comfortable with. With his anti-authority views he could not trust all those who came his way. Betrayed by some of his early friends, he was imprisoned, tortured and later transferred to a college in the boondocks along with his colleague Salahuddin Haidar.

His small book comprises the articles he wrote on the issue of language over a period of time and were published in a literary journal during his life time. Editor and writer Maqsood Saqib collected the articles and gave them the shape of a book. He deserves credit for this timely act.

Some of the main points Abid makes on the language conundrum in the Punjab are: 1, as a result of a conflict between two human groups the victor imposes directly and indirectly its language on the vanquished. If the vanquished acquiesce to the linguistic and cultural dictates of the victor, they cannot be absolved of the act of destruction of its own language. He quotes Iran’s historical resistance against the foreign languages. It refused to accept Greek language and script after Alexander’s victory over Iran. Later it resisted Arabic despite being conquered by Arabs. After 120 years it grudgingly accepted Arabic script due to religious needs of their new faith. Why did we fail to stop the colonial onslaught of Urdu and English, he raises the question? 2, Dialects are living organisms as they are spoken in day today life. A language is actually a mélange of dialects. The greater the number of dialects, the richer the language. Language is fed by its dialects. 3, Different dialects of the Punjab are used as an argument against accepting Punjab’s language as official language and medium of public instruction. Richness is projected as impoverishment and diversity as chaos. 4, War of dialects in the Punjab is aided and patronised by a powerful segments of establishment. It’s a situation of all against all. Promoters of each dialect claim that it be accepted as a language. The result is hatred for other dialects and chances of any dialect getting official recognition gets dimmer and dimmer. 5, As a consequence of colonial and post-colonial intrusion, and modern means of communication and transportation, people are constantly migrating to different regions of Punjab in search of better life which leads to frequent interaction between different dialects making them less parochial.

In no region of the Punjab people speak the same dialect. One finds a mix of dialects everywhere. Such a cultural transformation has led the people to discover commonalities and historical bond that underpin their diverse dialects creating a linguistic bonhomie. 6, Abid quotes Hegel who, in his words, asserts that German language has richer tradition of poetry and philosophy because (a) German has lot of double entendre (b) Often each word with a slight variation gives multiple meanings (c) German language or poetry or philosophy has no specific region as its centre as it is spread all across Germany. (d) Germans have got rid of parochialism bred by dialects. Punjab’s literary language and literature visibly display such features but they are grossly misinterpreted with an insidious intent to deny people their language and rich literary heritage. (e) Behind all the shenanigans in the name of rights of dialects lurks the dirty hand of powers that be which want a phony monolithic literary and cultural landscape in the interest of so-called national unity.

Unity can’t be built on the debris of historical riches and cultural heritage of the Punjab. Of all the historical assets the people’s language has the paramount importance as it’s their tool of thinking and encapsulates their evolution and worldview. He suggests that instead of igniting wars between our dialects, let us forge a common front to restore the rights of Punjab’s language - based on its various dialects - which already has 1,000-year old glorious history from Baba Farid to Khawaja Farid backed by ancient Harappa civilisation.

Abid Ameeq uses conversational tones with great effect and is subtly polemical, even satirical at times to the delight of readers. His style is profoundly simple. Don’t miss this book if you want to know something real about the politics of language and culture in the Punjab in a historical perspective. — soofi01@hotmail.com

Published in Dawn, April 17th, 2023