Pakistani English

Pakistani English
RegionPakistan
Native speakers
108 million (2022)[1]
Early forms
Latin (English alphabet)
Unified English Braille
Official status
Official language in
 Pakistan
Language codes
ISO 639-1en
ISO 639-2eng
ISO 639-3eng
Glottologpaki1244
IETFen-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.

  1. ^ Pakistan in Eberhard, David M.; Simons, Gary F.; Fennig, Charles D., eds. (2022). Ethnologue: Languages of the World (25th ed.). Dallas, Texas: SIL International.
  2. ^ "Tongue-in-cheek: Not in my backside". Dawn. 21 February 2010. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  3. ^ "English as lingua franca: A linguistic imperialism?". Dawn. 14 July 2013. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  4. ^ McArthur, Tom, 1998. "Pakistani English." in Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. Retrieved 6 June 2009.
  5. ^ "Pakistan - People | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 13 April 2023. With the exception of this educated elite, English is spoken fluently by only a small percentage of the population.
  6. ^ Mariam, Durrani (2012). "Banishing Colonial Specters: Language Ideology and Education Policy in Pakistan". University of Pennsylvania.
  7. ^ Hashmi, Alamgir (1987) [1978]. Preface. Pakistani Literature: The Contemporary English Writers. New York / Islamabad: World University Service / Gulmohar Press.

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