Starter Learning Resources: PUNJABI
READING TIME: 10 minutes
*For introductory to intermediate fluency
SAT SRI AKAL (ਸਤਿ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਅਕਾਲ)! It took me almost 22 years for my parents to tell me why I wasn’t taught my ‘mother tongue’ (or the language of my ethnic background). Growing up it frustrated me that my parents were able to unconsciously switch from English to Punjabi when necessary but I couldn’t. Simply because their parents were immigrants of India coming to the UK between the 1950s to the 1970s their home environment language was Punjabi because my grandparents didn’t have a good grasp of English and my parents picked up English at school instead. So finally my father told me why neither me nor my brother were exposed to speaking it with fluency when we were growing up because I know my parents are more than capable communicating in it. He told me he was pretty much fluent whereas my mother didn’t feel 100% confident in her speaking abilities. Thus I grew up learning English as my ‘first’ language instead. I am unsure of their reason was to help my brother and I mix with the other school kids faster and easier or it was out of their pure laziness.
The easiest thing to do is to create an environment around you where your target language is primarily spoken to pick it up a lot faster. However, my parents worked long shifts so I rarely got to see them and my father’s parents, who we lived with, passed away when I was quite young so I didn’t have that linguistic environment. My parents tried sending me to schools to learn around age 7 or 8 and these are mostly run by local gurdwaras. However, most of the ‘teachers’ there are just filling in their own time and are unqualified, with a syllabus predominantly preaching about the Sikh religion over actually learning the Punjabi language. Even whilst I was there, I only picked up basic lists of vocabulary such as fruits and vegetables, animals, modes of transport etc. When I was forming sentences I’d keep getting red-marked and recorrected without any explanation as to why they had corrected me. There was this expectation that your parents spoke the language at home and so these teachers were building up children’s reading and writing skills rather than all 4 language skills (which include speaking and listening). I constantly got frustrated: why is it so difficult to learn this Indian/Sanskrit language whereas I can pick up European Latin-based languages so quickly at my normal school? Simply put it’s the way I was taught - I can’t just randomly pick up words and sentences and be expected to deal with it because that’s the way it is, which is what you do as an infant. In high school I learned grammar rules: sentence structure, gender rules, verb conjugation etc. Plus there are tonnes of online resources, books and apps to help gain fluency in languages from French, Greek to Japanese. Unfortunately there aren’t many resources which explain these rules for Punjabi.
I was determined that once I finished university one of my main goals during my 20s was to learn Punjabi on my own and to eventually gain fluency. Because without language you do feel a huge disconnect to your heritage and culture. You have limited access to history, music, literature and conversations with friends (including trying to make new ones) and family members. Saying this I did pick up the Punjabi script and I can slightly read and write and make basic conversation so I do have a headstart compared to people wanting to start from scratch. However, I expect most people reading this are people who know basic grammar rules and/or basic daily vocabulary and they are hoping to strengthen their language skills. Therefore I’ve been scowering to find the best free resources on the internet to help me learn. So I’ve decided to share these on this post to help those out in the world who are trying to learn too! Best thing is not to bombard you too much so these are various starter websites which should be sufficient for basic/intermediate fluency accompanied by the Teach Yourself Punjabi Book by Surjit Singh Kalra (which I highly highly recommend you purchasing). Keep watching Punjabi movies and TV programmes which you can find online or on Youtube and try to listen to different genres of Punjabi music. Media consumption is the best way to learn languages quickly because you’re putting your skills to practice.
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RESOURCE 1: STEPHEN GUCCIARDI
LINK: https://www.youtube.com/user/ihaveacomputer/featured
PROS: Originally from Canada, this gentleman went to the Punjab to study the language and he was able to immerse himself in the environment where the language is spoken. He has videos which include why you want to learn punjabi and basic grammar rules including plurals, gender and different cases. Because it is visual/audio form it allows you to understand the language in a speaking/listening context. Also the entire video is written in a script form in the description section below if you prefer to read along to his video; the description also provides extra resources you can look at.
CONS: There are a limited number of videos on his channel which will only give you a basic introduction to learning the language. However, consider this a good stepping stone.
RESOURCE 2: THE LANGUAGE GULPER
LINK: http://languagesgulper.com/eng/Punjabi.html
PROS: This is a great resource for anybody who wants an overview about the language’s origin, classification, varieties, orthography. Introductory information such as the Punjabi alphabet, descriptions about syntax and verbs is provided.
CONS: The website is dedicated to introduction to languages that are not very popular and are distinct. Therefore the scope of information is extremely limited.
RESOURCE 3: MY LANGUAGES
LINK: http://mylanguages.org/learn_punjabi.php
PROS: Developed by the Research Centre for Punjabi Language Technology, Punjabi University in Patiala, this website describes in good detail (including explanations) about the script, punctuation (auxiliary signs) and tones in Punjabi. I would start off using this website to learn how to read and write the alphabet because it allows you to start writing words and sentences quite soon. Rules for grammar, sentences and vocabulary are explained in good detail. There are also quizzes on this website to test your language ability.
CONS: There is a limited amount of vocabulary on this website and you may need to use other websites to fill in gaps in vocabulary lists. The quizzes can seem very simple and childish at times.
RESOURCE 4: LEARN PUNJABI
LINK: http://www.learnpunjabi.org/intro1.asp#consonants
PROS: There are a lot of vocabulary lists on this website.
CONS: There are grammar sections on this website. Examples are given but explanations as to why the examples are written the way they are is limited.
RESOURCE 5: MEMRISE
LINK: https://www.memrise.com/course/328230/learn-basic-punjabi-2/6/?action=next
PROS: Great introduction to grammar and vocabulary lists.
CONS: Limited information.
RESOURCE 6: OVERVIEW OF PUNJABI GRAMMAR
LINK: http://punjabi.aglsoft.com/punjabi/learngrammar/?show=introduction
PROS: This is an excellent resource for grammar buffs who do not want to fork out money for books just yet. There are examples given for every grammar rule (which the native speaker would not probably know). There is also a Punjabi Grammar Checker which you can use.
CONS: You would be expected to know how to read the Gurmukhi script already. Also there is only one example (sometimes two) for each grammar rule. To understand these grammar rules more you need to read more Punjabi in general to put these rules into practice. Also the website is primarily for grammar rules and there is limited information on vocabulary. Be careful with the grammar checker because it is free and they are not 100% accurate.
RESOURCE 7: WIKIBOOKS PUNJABI
LINK: https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Punjabi
PROS: There is a plethora of information on grammar rules, vocabulary etc. There is a detailed description of the differences in the Punjabi scripts too (Muharni/Gurmukhi/Shahmukhi).
CONS: Since it is wikibooks anybody on the internet can edit the information as they like. Therefore it is difficult to trust the source and its validity. Do not use this website alone, use it in conjunction with other websites to verify the information you are learning is correct.
RECOURSE 8: LEARN 101
LINK: http://learn101.org/punjabi.php
PROS: The vocabulary lists include audio snippets for words and sentences so that you can hear how the word(s) should sound when spoken.
CONS: There is limited information on grammar and forming sentences. Also different regions around the world speaking Punjabi will have different pronunciations of words so the audio snippets are only a neutral form of the language.
RESOURCE 9: DAILY PUNJABI TIMES
LINK: http://www.dailypunjabtimes.com/ਵੈਲੇਨਟਾਈਨ-ਡੇ-ਤੇ-ਪੁਲਿਸ-ਨੇ
PROS: It is putting all of your reading and writing skills into practice. You can see how the language is used on a daily basis and you get up to date information about the Punjab. Also you can pick up different writer’s language styles whether it is formal or informal.
CONS: You will find this difficult to understand but once you have mastered learning the alphabet and you can read and write words and basic sentences, be persistent and consistent and the articles will begin to make sense and come to you naturally.
