Punjabi language

Panjabi
ਪੰਜਾਬੀ پنجابی‎
'Punjabi' written in Shahmukhi (top) and Gurmukhi (bottom) scripts
Pronunciation	/pʌnˈdʒɑːbi/
Native to	Panjab
Ethnicity	Panjabis
Native speakers	113 million (2017)[1]
Language family	Indo-European Indo-Iranian Indo-Aryan Northwestern Panjabi
Standard forms	Majhi dialect
Dialects	See Punjabi dialects
Writing system	Gurmukhi Perso-Arabic (Shahmukhi) Punjabi Braille Laṇḍā (historical)
Official status
Official language in	Pakistan (provincial language of Punjab) [1]  India (Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh) (official)
Language codes
ISO 639-1	pa
ISO 639-2	pan
ISO 639-3	Either: pan – Chardi Punjabi pnb – Lehndi Punjabi
Glottolog	panj1256  Punjabi
Linguasphere	59-AAF-e
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Punjabi edition of Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Punjabi is an Indo-Aryan language. It is native to Punjab region of Indian Subcontinent, which includes Pakistani province of Punjab and Indian state of Punjab. It is the first language of about 113 million people in the world^[2] and is the 9th most spoken language in the world. It is also spoken in Haryana, Himachal Pradesh states of India and in capital Delhi. It is spoken by the largest ethnic group in Pakistan at 36%.^[3]

Punjabi developed from the ancient language of Prakrit developed simultaneously with Sanskrit.

Punjabi is written in two different scripts, called Gurmukhī and Shahmukhī. Punjabi is the main language spoken by the Sikhs.^[4] Most parts of the Guru Granth Sahib use the Punjabi language written in Gurmukhī, though Punjabi is not the only language used in Sikh scriptures. The Janamsakhis, stories on the life and legend of Guru Nanak (1469–1539), are early examples of Punjabi literature.

1. ↑ "Pakistan Census". Census.gov.pk. Archived from the original on 12 September 2011. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
2. ↑ "World", The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 2023-11-29, retrieved 2023-12-05
3. ↑ "Pakistan Census". Archived from the original on 2011-09-12. Retrieved 2017-12-05.
4. ↑ Melvin Ember, Carol R. Ember, Ian A. Skoggard, ed. (2005). Encyclopedia of Diasporas: Immigrant and Refugee Cultures Around the World. Springer. p. 1077. ISBN 978-0-306-48321-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: editors list (link)