5 Reasons To

Improve Your Urdu

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So… you’re probably thinking… why Urdu?

Most of us who were born here with parents of Pakistani

or Indian descent just never fully learned to begin with.

Why Urdu?

Our parents were busy making sure we were able to live

comfortably. They also wanted to make sure we could

adapt in this “foreign” environment.

Even so, why learn Urdu?

English is the most important language in these lands.

We don’t really need to know Urdu. Why bother?

Allow me to show you why this language is worth learning...

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Reason #1 Back Home Bonding

Keeping the Family Ties

"If for no other reason, just making

sure you can communicate with your

family back home is a good reason

to keep your Urdu up to par."

Most of us have been to the homeland at least once or twice.

In any case, it's really embarrassing whenever you're speaking

and people are laughing because your accent is off, and

you're using all the wrong words.

It's even more embarrassing to have to tell one of your family

members that you can't understand what they're saying in front

of the rest of your family.

If for no other reason, just making sure you can communicate

with your family back home is a good reason to keep your

Urdu up to par.

It'll make it easier for you when you need to call up someone to

catch up with the latest family news or if you need them to buy

and air mail you something on the cheap from the homeland.

Plus, if you end up getting married to someone from back

home, it wouldn't hurt to know Urdu so you could better

communicate with them.

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Reason #2 The Best Words in the Best Order

Rich Poetic Tradition

"Urdu poetry is so rich and vast,

that even American President

Barack Obama is a fan!

Ever wonder how Bollywood can churn out hundreds of movies a

year that all follow a very similar love story plot? Hint: It's not the

special effects or the riveting stories.

It's the music. And not the instrumental part of the music, because

we all know that the same drum beat is used in practically every

song. It's the words they use.

Our culture has a penchant for beautiful words. For example, if

you told a girl here that you "are determined to obliterate yourself

and be annihilated by her love1" she would probably refer you to

a psychiatrist, yet for some reason these same words are decid-

edly romantic when said in Urdu.

Urdu is one of the few languages that has an esteemed poetic

tradition. Urdu poetry is so rich and vast, that even American

President Barack Obama is a fan2!

The works of Pakistani poets such as Allama Iqbal were credited

to have inspired the creation of Pakistan, as well as many other

movements. The poetic tradition is still alive in India and Pakistan,

as poets still travel around and perform in various places.

1 - http://bollywhat.com/lyrics/fana_lyr.html#1

2 - http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0609/24055.html

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Reason #3 2 for 1 Package Deal!

Urdu and Hindi, Sister Languages

“The flexibility granted by this sim-

ple fact can make you seem like a

really international person (and it

looks good on resumes too!).“

It's no secret that Urdu and Hindi are very similar.

If you can speak one, you can speak a good deal of the other.

Having that link between Urdu and Hindi really helps seeing as

how they are the main languages of Pakistan and India, respec-

tively.

If you're in a super market and an auntie approaches you to ask

you a question, it doesn't matter what part of South Asia she's

from if you know either of these 2 languages.

The flexibility granted by this simple fact can make you seem like

a really international person (and it looks good on resumes too!).

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Reason #4 Getting Down to Business A Language with Tremendous Business Value

“Even if you don't plan on doing in-

ternational work, Urdu is a tremen-

dous asset in your skill set. Transla-

tors and Interpreters can make up to

$40 an hour for contract work. “

Speaking of resumes, the Urdu language can lead to many differ-

ent business opportunities.

Not only does it pad your resume, but it is an essential language

in international work.

India is the 2nd most populous country in the world, and Pakistan

the 6th. These two countries alone count for a vast portion of the

textile trade in the world. If you plan on dealing in any sort of

clothing business, this can be a very valuable skill to have.

Also, if you or your company want to outsource any grunt work or

IT work, India is a great place to do so. Knowing Urdu can also

help when you're dealing with one of these outsourcing firms.

They may speak English, but it helps to be able to explain some-

thing in the native language to fill any communication gaps.

Even if you don't plan on doing international work, Urdu is a tre-

mendous asset in your skill set. Translators and Interpreters can

make up to $40 an hour for contract work. Seeing as how most of

us already have a little bit of Urdu experience, refining it can help

to make a little money on the side.

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Reason #5 Save Our Culture!

Loss of Language is Loss of Culture Nothing makes a culture more unique than its language. No matter how well a translator tries to

match what is being said in one language to another, there is always something lost in the process.

We feel that something is lost in translation. Language is a direct reflection of a culture, in all

aspects. A language contains within it the values of a culture, as well as the traits that distinguish

them from others. We can see this just by paying attention to what words we say when certain

people are around, or even just the way we say them. In Indo-Pak culture, we use less slang in the

presence of elders, and we speak in a slower manner so as to show them respect. Not only are

these aspects of our language, but they reflect the values that

are ingrained within us through our culture.

Languages even go so far as to affect the way we perceive

things3. This shows just how important a language is in the

overall scheme of culture. When missionaries from Europe

arrived in America, one of the main methods that they used to "Americanize" them was

to forbid them from speaking in any language other than English. Now I’m not saying the

situation of Urdu speaking people living overseas is as dire and oppressive. We're given

the freedom to speak in whatever language we want to, so as long as it doesn't interfere

with how we function in society. The point I’m trying to make is this: If we don't preserve and protect our use of Urdu, then it's

only a matter of time until we lose our culture completely. Even with the worldwide shift toward English, nothing else can en-

compass the intricacies and finer details of Indo-Pak culture than the

language itself.

If we won't learn and maintain the Urdu language, who will?

3- http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/boroditsky09/boroditsky09_index.html

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How? A Few Practical Tips

So what can you and I do to improve our Urdu?

1. Try speaking only in Urdu when dealing with aunties and uncles. Sure you're bound

to mess up, but you can be sure that you'll be corrected and you may even get an Urdu

lesson or two.

2. Listen to the news in Urdu on the Radio or even on YouTube. Try picking out familiar

words and look at the video get clues about what is being covered. I recommend BBC

Urdu (http://www.youtube.com/user/BBCUrdu)

3. Watch an Urdu dubbed children's movie. It seems childish, but it can help you pick up vocabulary. I recommend

watching Urdu or Hindi dubbed Disney classics, since most of us have seen them and can understand what's going on.

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