PESHAWAR: The top internet search engine Google.Com enlists Pashto one of the many world languages. Now any text of the languages available in Google.Com search engine translation mode could be found being translated in Pashto script.

Pashto literary and cultural circles have widely appreciated the step and have termed it a big milestone in the history of Pashto language. Pakhtun readers and scholars were quick to pass comments on social media about inclusion of Pashto in translation mode of Google. Before Pashto, Persian and Urdu had found place on Google.Com translation mode.

Angelina Merisi, an Irish research scholar and expert on Pashto, comments: “UN celebrates, 21st February as the mother tongue day, lets us, Pakhtuns across the globe celebrate Google.Com’s development of enlisting Pashto on its translation facility. This is indeed a landmark achievement for Pashto speaking community worldwide on this auspicious day.”

She requests Pakhtun users to perfect Google.Com Pashto translation by contributing their expertise.

According to researchers, there are more than 400 Pashto websites available on internet working on various aspects of Pashto language and literature. They say that now majority young educated Pakhtuns are able to communicate in Pashto script on social media including internet and mobile phones because of availability of Pashto software.

Pohantoon Adabi Stori, a literary organisation comprising young university graduates in Peshawar, while welcoming the move told this scribe: “Pashto language has scaled new heights after a global top internet search engine Google entered it on its translation mode among others more than 100 spoken and used languages of the world. It will go a long way in giving an unprecedented boost to Pashto and Pakhtun readers.”

Prof Hanif Khalil said that it was up to Pakhtuns to work sincerely for the promotion of their mother tongue at every level. He said that Pakhtun readers had a facility to read and write Pashto script.

Experts say that Google Pashto translation mode was in its initial stages and needed drastic structural changes to make it more useful and comprehensible for people.

Young Pashto poet Ansarullah Ansar hailing from district Shangla remarked that Pashto had become one of three space languages, other two being Russian and English, when an Afghan Pakhtun astronaut Fazl Ahad had spoken in Pashto to his mother from a space shuttle in late 70s.

Published in Dawn, February 22nd, 2016