In today's world, Northern Pashto has become a topic of great relevance and interest to many people in different fields. Whether in the scientific, cultural, social or personal sphere, Northern Pashto has generated a significant impact on the way we approach different aspects of daily life. Its influence extends globally, and its importance continues to constantly grow. In this article, we will explore in detail the role of Northern Pashto in our current society, examining its implications and repercussions in various contexts.
Northern Pashto | |
---|---|
Native to | Pakistan, Afghanistan |
Ethnicity | Pashtun |
Speakers | L1: 23 million (2017)[1] L2: 1.4 million (2022)[1] |
Pashto alphabet | |
Official status | |
Regulated by | Pashto Academy of Pakistan[2] |
Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 | pbu |
Glottolog | nort2646 |
![]() |
Part of a series on |
Pashto language |
---|
Writing systems |
Dialects |
Language regulation |
Academy of Sciences of Afghanistan Pashto Academy |
Native to |
Northern Pashto (Pashto: شمالي پښتو) is a standard variety of the Pashto language spoken in the northern and central parts of the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and central-eastern Afghanistan, comprising the Northwestern and Northeastern dialects of Pashto.[3]
Northeastern Pashto,[4] is spoken primarily in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan.
Yusufzai/Yusapzai Pashto is the most-spoken subdialect[5] in the Northeastern Dialect.
Comparison:
Dialects[6] | ښ | ږ | څ | ځ | ژ |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
North Eastern (e.g. Yusapzai) | |||||
North Western (e.g Jalalabad) | |||||
North Western (e.g. Wardak) |
Even within the Yusapzai dialect; regional lexical variation is noted; as pointed out by Dr. Muhammad Ali Kaleem:[7]
Meaning | Mardan | Swat |
---|---|---|
Ring | ګتمه
gʊ́tma |
ګوتۍ
gwə́təi or Guta |
Spinach | ساګ
sāg |
سابه
sābə́ |
Cup | پيالۍ
pyālə́i |
پياله
pyālá |
Puppy | کوتری
kutré or Spey |
کوکری
kukré |
Even with regions there can be minor differences in pronunciation. Example:
Malakand District
|
Malakand District
|
Standard Pashto | Meaning |
---|---|---|---|
فپه
fpa |
ښپه
xpa |
پښه
px̌a, pxa, pša, pṣ̌a |
foot |
The North Western is spoken in the east and northeast Afghanistan.[8]
There is regional difference in North Western Pashto in pronunciation of words:[9]
Meaning | Wardak | Jalalabad | Bati Kot | |
---|---|---|---|---|
دوی | they | deɪ | ˈduwi | ˈduwi |
راکړه | give | ˈrɑka | ˈrɑka | ˈrɑkɽa |
پوهېدل | to know | pijeˈdəl | pojeˈdəl | pojidəl |
شپږ | six | ʃpaʝ | ʃpag | ʃpiʒ |
وريځ | cloud | wərˈjed͡z | wrez | wəˈred͡z |
ښځه | woman | ˈçəd͡za | ˈxəza | |
اوبه | water | oˈbə | uˈbə | oˈbə |