Alternate Names: Pakhto, Pashtu, Pushto, Yousafzai Pashto, Yusufzai Pashto
Dialects: Eastern Afghan Pashto, Ningraharian Pashto, Northeastern Pashto. Much similarity with Northwestern Pashto in Afghanistan. Subdialects of Northeastern Pashto are Kohat (Khatak), Yusufzai (Peshawar), Afridi, Shinwari, Mohmand, Shilmani. Lexical similarity: 80% between Northeastern and Southwestern Pashto. A member of macrolanguage Pushto ,.
Genealogy:
Demographics: 18,700,000 in Pakistan (2013 SIL). Population total all countries: 20,540,000. Ethnic population: Possibly 49,600,000 Pashto in all countries.
Language Use: Rich literary tradition. The Powinda are a nomadic Pashto-speaking group. Used as L2 by Gawar-Bati [gwt], Palula [phl].
Language Development: Literacy rate in L2: Low. Taught in primary schools. Poetry. Magazines. Newspapers. New media. Radio programs. Films. TV. Videos. Dictionary. Grammar. Bible: 1895.
Writing System: Arabic (Nastaliq), Arabic (Naskh)
Nation of Origin: Pakistan
Other Comments: Muslim (Sunni), Muslim (Shi’a).