Books and publishing in Pakistan
Encyclopedia
The publishing industry in Pakistan is hampered both by a low literacy rate (48%) and the fact that the national language, Urdu, is written in the right-to-left Arabic script unlike the official language, English, which is written left-to-right. Pakistan has had its share of poetry and prose
writers in Urdu
, English and other regional languages. Altaf Hussain Hali, Mohammad Hussain Azad, Shibli Nomani
, Moulvi Nazir Ahmed, and Saadat Hasan Manto
.
In the early eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, poetry was the most popular form in the sub-continent. Mir Anis, Muhammad Hussein Azad, Altaf Hussain Hali, Shibli Nomani
, Abdul Haleem Sharar and Akbar Allah Abadi were some of the writers at this time. Muslim writers worked to impart literary values.
A rich culture of short stories was born after independence and Pakistan saw some of the best prose writers in the era. Saadat Hasan Manto
is a well-known writer, as are Thanda Gosht, Khol Do, Toba Tek Singh, Iss Manjdhar Mein, Mozalle, Babu Gopi Nath.
Realism
became the key word in the decade after independence. Writers explored the realms of social change
and adjustment, human nature, class stratification. Qurat ul Ain Haider, Abdullah Hussein, Mustansir Hussein Tarar, Bano Qudsia, Ibraheem Jalees, Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi, Intizar Hussain, Asad Mohammad Khan, Mansha Yaad, Rashid Amjad, Mohammad Hameed Shahid, Mubeen Mirza, Asif Farrukhi, Muhammad Asim Butt,]] wrote in this genre.
tends to be dominated by poetry. The range of expression achieved in the voluminous library of a few major verse forms, especially the ghazal and nazm, has led to its expansion into other styles of writing, including that of the short story, or afsana. It is today most popular in the countries of India and Pakistan and is finding interest in foreign countries primarily through South Asians.
. One recent name in fiction is that of Saadat Nasreen who published her first collection of short stories last year.
Humour is a popular form of fiction. Shafiq Ur Rehman has contributed to this colorful genre of literature.
Translations of major works of English and other languages into Urdu have begun to appear in the market, which range from popular titles like Shakespeare to present age fiction like Harry Potter
.
.
Poets in the sub-continent and in Pakistan too, have focused on a wide range of topics from social awareness, to politics, to religion and even romance.
Other NGOs are also working on such books for children.
.
is one of the most ancient languages among the regional languages of Pakistan and Sub-continent. The first translation of the Quran was into Sindhi. It has a rich literature ranging from religion, philosophy, medicine, Sociology, Logic, literature, history, politics and culture.
Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, a writer of Sindhi poetry, is widely read and understood by people all over the world. He wrote Shah jo Risalo. Another popular poet is Sachal Sarmast
. Shaikh Ayaz
, Tanweer Abbasi, Ustad Bukhari, Fatah Malik, Ibrahim Munshi, Niaz Hamayooni, Sarwaich Sujawali, Juman Darbadar, Haleem Baghi are the major poets of new era.
Jamal Abro
, Ali Baba
, Tariq Asharaf, Naseem Kharal
, Abdul Qadir Junejo write short stories.
Mohammed Ibrahim Joyo, Atta Mohammed Bhambhro and Aslam Khwaja have translated a number of books in Sindhi. Dr Nabi Bux Baloch has worked on folklore and research on history and culture. Taj Sehrai, Badar Abro, Kaleem Lashari, Ishtiaq Ansari have worked on archaeology and anthropology of Sindh. For more information, go to www.sindhikitab.net, a web portal of languages of Pakistan and India, which is in(RTF). Sindhi Adabi Board
, Sindhi Language Authority
, Institute of Sindhology
, have been involved in publishing many original and translated works into Sindhi. Amongst the works translated is Dry Leaves from Young Egypt by Eastwick in 1973.
All the major Sindhi newspapers have web sites.
Some private publishing companies are Sindhica, Roshni, and New Feilds.
Saraiki Books
a large number books printed in Saraiki language
is the closest to Urdu and the most colorful. Many singers have adopted Punjabi to add ‘spice’ to their songs. This have contributed tremendously to the genre of Punjabi poetry. Punjabi literature however, was not as developed as the Sindhi literature. The roots of Punjabi prose can safely be traced back to Baba Nanak’s Janam Sakhis, but the lack of attention paid to the medium hampered its growth.
The literary scene was dominated by Urdu even until the 50s and no one paid a second thought to a group of people publishing Punjabi books and taking out a magazine. The Punjabi language publishing world has expanded, however. Last year the Lehran Adabi Board published a book Lehran Behran, which is a collection of critical articles on Punjabi language and literature.
Fazlur Rahim Marwat)
Pashto literature developed within the Pashto struggle for freedom from what they saw as oppression by the ruling class, and this was clearly reflected in their writings. Pashto writing has moved towards objectivism to subjectivism. The quality of books has also improved considerably.
Prose
Prose is the most typical form of written language, applying ordinary grammatical structure and natural flow of speech rather than rhythmic structure...
writers in Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
, English and other regional languages. Altaf Hussain Hali, Mohammad Hussain Azad, Shibli Nomani
Shibli Nomani
Allamah Shibli Nomani was a respected scholar of Islam from Indian subcontinent during British Raj. He was born at Bindwal in Azamgarh district of present-day Uttar Pradesh. He is known for the founding the Shibli National College in 1883 and the Darul Mussanifin in Azamgarh...
, Moulvi Nazir Ahmed, and Saadat Hasan Manto
Saadat Hasan Manto
Saadat Hassan Manto was a short story writer of the Urdu language. He is best known for his short stories, 'Bu' , 'Khol Do' , 'Thanda Gosht' , and his magnum opus, 'Toba Tek Singh'....
.
Pre-independence era
Pakistan shared a literary and cultural heritage with India for hundreds of years, so separating out the two groups of literature is difficult. The first book in Urdu was published in the early seventeenth century in this region.In the early eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, poetry was the most popular form in the sub-continent. Mir Anis, Muhammad Hussein Azad, Altaf Hussain Hali, Shibli Nomani
Shibli Nomani
Allamah Shibli Nomani was a respected scholar of Islam from Indian subcontinent during British Raj. He was born at Bindwal in Azamgarh district of present-day Uttar Pradesh. He is known for the founding the Shibli National College in 1883 and the Darul Mussanifin in Azamgarh...
, Abdul Haleem Sharar and Akbar Allah Abadi were some of the writers at this time. Muslim writers worked to impart literary values.
Post-independence era
The riots and the communal tension at the time of independence of Pakistan (1947) gave birth to a new genre of fiction in the region. A large number of prose writers and short story writers took upon the task of writing about the politics of religion. This genre of fiction became to be known as Tales of the Riots, representing the human suffering at the time.A rich culture of short stories was born after independence and Pakistan saw some of the best prose writers in the era. Saadat Hasan Manto
Saadat Hasan Manto
Saadat Hassan Manto was a short story writer of the Urdu language. He is best known for his short stories, 'Bu' , 'Khol Do' , 'Thanda Gosht' , and his magnum opus, 'Toba Tek Singh'....
is a well-known writer, as are Thanda Gosht, Khol Do, Toba Tek Singh, Iss Manjdhar Mein, Mozalle, Babu Gopi Nath.
Realism
Literary realism
Literary realism most often refers to the trend, beginning with certain works of nineteenth-century French literature and extending to late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century authors in various countries, towards depictions of contemporary life and society "as they were." In the spirit of...
became the key word in the decade after independence. Writers explored the realms of social change
Social change
Social change refers to an alteration in the social order of a society. It may refer to the notion of social progress or sociocultural evolution, the philosophical idea that society moves forward by dialectical or evolutionary means. It may refer to a paradigmatic change in the socio-economic...
and adjustment, human nature, class stratification. Qurat ul Ain Haider, Abdullah Hussein, Mustansir Hussein Tarar, Bano Qudsia, Ibraheem Jalees, Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi, Intizar Hussain, Asad Mohammad Khan, Mansha Yaad, Rashid Amjad, Mohammad Hameed Shahid, Mubeen Mirza, Asif Farrukhi, Muhammad Asim Butt,]] wrote in this genre.
The beginning
Urdu literatureUrdu literature
Urdu literature has a long and colorful history that is inextricably tied to the development of that very language, Urdu, in which it is written...
tends to be dominated by poetry. The range of expression achieved in the voluminous library of a few major verse forms, especially the ghazal and nazm, has led to its expansion into other styles of writing, including that of the short story, or afsana. It is today most popular in the countries of India and Pakistan and is finding interest in foreign countries primarily through South Asians.
Fiction
Urdu fiction does date back to prior to pre-independence times when pioneers like Mirza Haadi Ruswa wrote Umrao Jan Ada. These writers wrote not only to entertain but to educate the masses and to revive the culture in the Indo-Pak at a time when the society was greatly overshadowed by British valuesBritishness
Britishness is the state or quality of being British, or of embodying British characteristics, and is used to refer to that which binds and distinguishes the British people and forms the basis of their unity and identity, or else to explain expressions of British culture—such as habits, behaviours...
. One recent name in fiction is that of Saadat Nasreen who published her first collection of short stories last year.
Humour is a popular form of fiction. Shafiq Ur Rehman has contributed to this colorful genre of literature.
Translations of major works of English and other languages into Urdu have begun to appear in the market, which range from popular titles like Shakespeare to present age fiction like Harry Potter
Harry Potter
Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
.
Poetry
Poetry is one of the richest and oldest forms of Urdu literature and Ghalib, Mir Allama Iqbal and others had already created a name for themselves before independence. More recently there have been notable poets like Faiz Ahmed FaizFaiz Ahmed Faiz
Faiz Ahmad Faiz was a Pakistani intellectual, poet, and one of the most famous poets of the Urdu language. He was a member of the Anjuman Tarraqi Pasand Mussanafin-e-Hind and an avowed Marxist. In 1962, he was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize by the Soviet Union...
.
Poets in the sub-continent and in Pakistan too, have focused on a wide range of topics from social awareness, to politics, to religion and even romance.
Children’s literature
A colorful bookshelf full of books is an ideal part of any child’s library. Urdu offers a range of books for children from folk tales to poetry to novels and short stories. Recently there has been a trend of writing awareness books of children on issues like health, the environment, and even child abuse. These have received wide appreciation due to their content and good quality printing with illustrations. One popular series is the Mina series initiated by UNICEF.Other NGOs are also working on such books for children.
Saraiki
A large number books are printed in the Saraiki languageSaraiki language
Saraiki , transliterated as Sirāikī and sometimes spelled Seraiki and Saraiki, is a standardized written language of Pakistan belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages. It is a language spoken in the heart of Pakistan...
.
Sindhi
SindhiSindhi language
Sindhi is the language of the Sindh region of Pakistan that is spoken by the Sindhi people. In India, it is among 22 constitutionally recognized languages, where Sindhis are a sizeable minority. It is spoken by 53,410,910 people in Pakistan, according to the national government's Statistics Division...
is one of the most ancient languages among the regional languages of Pakistan and Sub-continent. The first translation of the Quran was into Sindhi. It has a rich literature ranging from religion, philosophy, medicine, Sociology, Logic, literature, history, politics and culture.
Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, a writer of Sindhi poetry, is widely read and understood by people all over the world. He wrote Shah jo Risalo. Another popular poet is Sachal Sarmast
Sachal Sarmast
Sachal Sarmast was a Sufi poet from Sindh during the Kalhora era. He was born in daraza near Ranipur, Sindh. His real name was Abdul Wahab and "Sachal" was his nickname. He also used it in his own poetry. Sachu means truthful in Sindhi while Sarmast means mystic in Sindhi and Urdu...
. Shaikh Ayaz
Shaikh Ayaz
Shaikh Ayaz was one of the great Sindhi poets of Pakistan. He was born in Shikarpur Sindh. By profession he was a lawyer but he also served as the vice chancellor of Sindh University. His poetry brought new trends into Sindhi literature....
, Tanweer Abbasi, Ustad Bukhari, Fatah Malik, Ibrahim Munshi, Niaz Hamayooni, Sarwaich Sujawali, Juman Darbadar, Haleem Baghi are the major poets of new era.
Jamal Abro
Jamal Abro
Jamaluddin Abro, , also known as Jamal Abro was a Sindhi writer. He was born in May 1924 at Sangi, a small village in Mehar Taluka, then part of Dadu District.-Life:...
, Ali Baba
Ali Baba
Ali Baba is a fictional character from medieval Arabic literature. He is described in the adventure tale of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves...
, Tariq Asharaf, Naseem Kharal
Naseem Kharal
Naseem Ahmed Kharal was a famous Sindhi short story writer. He was born on June 29, 1939, in Taluka Gambat, Khairpur District.-Personal life:His father's name was Abdul Kareem Kharal...
, Abdul Qadir Junejo write short stories.
Mohammed Ibrahim Joyo, Atta Mohammed Bhambhro and Aslam Khwaja have translated a number of books in Sindhi. Dr Nabi Bux Baloch has worked on folklore and research on history and culture. Taj Sehrai, Badar Abro, Kaleem Lashari, Ishtiaq Ansari have worked on archaeology and anthropology of Sindh. For more information, go to www.sindhikitab.net, a web portal of languages of Pakistan and India, which is in(RTF). Sindhi Adabi Board
Sindhi Adabi Board
Sindhi Adabi Board is a government sponsored institution in Pakistan for the promotion of Sindhi literature. It was established in 1955 in Jamshoro, Sindh. It is under the Education Department of the Government of Sindh.-Activities:...
, Sindhi Language Authority
Sindhi Language Authority
Sindhi Language Authority is an autonomous body under the administrative control of the Department of Culture, Tourism and Youth Affairs of the Government of Sindh province in Pakistan. There is a Board of Governors to frame the policies for achieving the aims and objectives of Authority and...
, Institute of Sindhology
Institute of Sindhology
Institute of Sindhology is one of the major resource on history of Sindh. It was the first research institution of its discipline that brought Sindhology to the forefront of international research. Sindhology is referred to as the knowledge about Sindh...
, have been involved in publishing many original and translated works into Sindhi. Amongst the works translated is Dry Leaves from Young Egypt by Eastwick in 1973.
All the major Sindhi newspapers have web sites.
Some private publishing companies are Sindhica, Roshni, and New Feilds.
Saraiki Books
a large number books printed in Saraiki language
Punjabi
Among Pakistan’s several regional languages, PunjabiPunjabi language
Punjabi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by inhabitants of the historical Punjab region . For Sikhs, the Punjabi language stands as the official language in which all ceremonies take place. In Pakistan, Punjabi is the most widely spoken language...
is the closest to Urdu and the most colorful. Many singers have adopted Punjabi to add ‘spice’ to their songs. This have contributed tremendously to the genre of Punjabi poetry. Punjabi literature however, was not as developed as the Sindhi literature. The roots of Punjabi prose can safely be traced back to Baba Nanak’s Janam Sakhis, but the lack of attention paid to the medium hampered its growth.
The literary scene was dominated by Urdu even until the 50s and no one paid a second thought to a group of people publishing Punjabi books and taking out a magazine. The Punjabi language publishing world has expanded, however. Last year the Lehran Adabi Board published a book Lehran Behran, which is a collection of critical articles on Punjabi language and literature.
Pashto
Early Pashto writers, after independence, were ‘passive nationalists, progressive nationalists, radical nationalists and Marxists. Except the passive nationalists, almost all of them were politically motivated.’ (ref; Pashto Literature – A Quest for IdentityFazlur Rahim Marwat)
Pashto literature developed within the Pashto struggle for freedom from what they saw as oppression by the ruling class, and this was clearly reflected in their writings. Pashto writing has moved towards objectivism to subjectivism. The quality of books has also improved considerably.