Pakistani English | |
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Region | Pakistan |
Native speakers | 108 million (2022)[1] |
Early forms | |
Latin (English alphabet) Unified English Braille | |
Official status | |
Official language in | Pakistan |
Language codes | |
ISO 639-1 | en |
ISO 639-2 | eng |
ISO 639-3 | eng |
Glottolog | paki1244 |
IETF | en-PK |
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Pakistani English (Paklish, Pinglish, PakEng, en-PK[2][3]) is a group of English-language varieties spoken in Pakistan and among the Pakistani diaspora.[4] English is the primary language used by the government of Pakistan, alongside Urdu, on the national level. While being spoken natively by only a small percentage of the population,[5] it is the primary language used in education, commerce, administration, and the legal and judicial systems.[6]
It was first recognised as a distinct variety of South Asian English and designated in the 1970s and 1980s.[7] Pakistani English, similar and related to Indian English, is slightly different from other varieties of English in respect to vocabulary, syntax, accent, spellings of some words and other features.
With the exception of this educated elite, English is spoken fluently by only a small percentage of the population.