Urdu

URD

national

Alternate Names: Bihari

Dialects: Intelligible with Hindi, but formal vocabulary borrowed from Arabic and Persian. Dakhini dialect of Urdu , in India has fewer Persian and Arabic loans than Urdu. Rekhta is a form of Urdu used in poetry.

Genealogy:

Indo-European
Indo-Iranian
Indo-Aryan
Central zone
Western Hindi
Hindustani

Demographics: 10,000,000 in Pakistan (1998 census). Population total all countries: 63,948,800. L2 users: 94,000,000 in Pakistan (1999).

Language Use: All domains. All ages.

Language Development: Taught in primary and secondary schools. Fully developed. Bible: 1843–1998.

Spoken In: Pakistan

Writing System: Arabic (Nastaliq), Braille

Nation of Origin: Pakistan

Other Comments: Muslim (Sunni).