LANGUAGE, POWER, AND RESISTANCE: A HISTORICAL ANALYSIS OF URDU-ENGLISH CONTROVERSY AND PUNJABI LANGUAGE MARGINALIZATION

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to shed light on the continuous fight for linguistic recognition of Punjabi and to disclose the social, political, and economic ramifications of this exclusion from official realms. This research delves into the power dynamics that have always existed in relation to language in Pakistan, specifically looking at how Punjabi has been marginalized in the context of the Urdu-English debate. Examined how language policies maintain colonial hierarchies is guided by Michel Foucault's perspective on knowledge and power. Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) is a powerful paradigm for understanding power dynamics in language, as this research showed. Educators, activists, and Punjabi speakers were surveyed using focus groups, document analysis, and semi-structured interviews as part of the study's qualitative research technique. Used thematic analysis that we were able to extract overarching themes including resistance tactics, language policy effects, and marginalization experiences. The study's key findings reveal Pakistan's complicated power, resistance, and language dynamics. This study illuminates the British colonial history of favoring English and Urdu over local languages like Punjabi. Urdu and English still represent position and power in formal institutions, resulting in historical inequalities.  By providing a voice for marginalized communities, this study contributes to our understanding of the politics of the Pakistani language. Politicians seeking to promote variety and preserve endangered languages may find this information useful.