Prospects of Pashto Language Policy and Planning in Pakistan
A Historical Analysis
Abstract
As an outcome of European Colonialism, the modern nation state tends to categorize languages of people on the larger spectrum that keep elite language [s] in the center and discard the wretched language [s] to the periphery. This paper offers a perspective of the voyage of Pashto language in the power corridors of language policy and planning in Pakistan. The position and condition of Pashto Language gathers a great weight of political economy and discourse on identity in Pakistan. The study of colonial and post-colonial approaches to Pashto as language of the most troublesome people on the greater fault line of 19th and 20th century great game and cold war respectively show that it has been contained and there are some historical developments in the post-colonial era of Pakistan in which Pashto amongst other native languages is provided space in the educational paradigms at primary levels.
This paper tends to through light on Language planning which consists of language’s status planning, corpus development and acquisition. Endeavors for imparting Pashto language as part of educational practices after 18th constitutional amendment has been discussed at levels of KPK and Baluchistan.
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