Punjabi language
| Punjabi | |
|---|---|
| |
'Punjabi' written in Shahmukhi script (top) and Gurmukhi script (bottom) | |
| Pronunciation | [pəɲˈdʒab̆.bi] ⓘ |
| Native to | India Pakistan |
| Region | Punjab |
| Ethnicity | Punjabis |
Native speakers | 150 million (2011–2023) |
Early forms | Prakrit (debated)
|
Standard forms | |
| Dialects |
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Historical | |
| Official status | |
Official language in |
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| Regulated by | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-1 | pa |
| ISO 639-2 | pan |
| ISO 639-3 | pan – inclusive codeIndividual codes: pan – Eastern Punjabipnb – Western Punjabi |
| Glottolog | lahn1241 |
| Linguasphere | 59-AAF-e |
Geographic distribution of Punjabi language in Pakistan and India. | |
| Part of a series on |
| Punjabis |
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Punjab portal |
Punjabi, sometimes spelled Panjabi, is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Punjab region of Pakistan and India. It is one of the most widely spoken native languages in the world, with approximately 150 million native speakers.
Punjabi is the most widely-spoken first language in Pakistan, with 88.9 million native speakers according to the 2023 Pakistani census, and the 11th most widely-spoken in India, with 31.1 million native speakers, according to the 2011 census. It is spoken among a significant overseas diaspora, particularly in Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, and the Gulf states.
In Pakistan, Punjabi is written using the Shahmukhi alphabet, based on the Perso-Arabic script; in India, it is written using the Gurmukhi alphabet, based on the Indic scripts. Punjabi is unusual among the Indo-Aryan languages and the broader Indo-European language family in its usage of lexical tone.