THE use of textbooks for teaching in the classroom has its pros and cons and its advantages and disadvantages are often debated. At a higher level, books can only be recommended rather than mandated because some students tend to see a textbook as the only source of knowledge on that particular subject, many argue.
The use of textbooks for higher education is questionable because it gives students a limited perspective and sometimes only one side of the argument is presented. Also, students might think that collecting information is all there is to learning, the argument goes. On the other hand, those who favour the use of textbooks say textbooks are tailored according to the curricula and a textbook presents in an organised manner all the relevant information otherwise scattered in different sources.
Students sometimes do not have access to the vast body of knowledge or cannot organise it as per requirement of the course. Their argument is that if textbooks are designed to guide students to further reading and append exercises that induce creative thinking and problem-solving, they are excellent tools for teaching even at a higher level.
The reason this argument has crept in is the publication of two Urdu books on linguistics that can be suggested as supplementary reading at higher levels. But the problem with our academic circles is that textbook writing is ridiculed as if writing a textbook is something demeaning. It is a fact that for many professors who wrote books on Urdu literature, the derogatory epithet “darsi naqqaad” (tutoring or lecturing critic) is used. A particular kind of criticism is sometimes labelled as “mudarrisana tanqeed” or pedagogical criticism. No doubt, some so-called critics or writers fully deserve such titles as their works are used for cramming by students and as a result they learn nothing. Such books are adjudged to be the so-called ‘guides’.
But not every book meant to cover an academic study is worthless. The problem is that Urdu books on many topics are not available simply because they have rarely been written. Sciences, both pure and social, are the fields wherein lack of Urdu books is hurting us all.
Ours is a society generally averse to linguistics, the branch of knowledge defined as “the scientific study of language”. Our apathy towards science as a nation may be one of the reasons for this aversion to language science. So when one comes across a new book in Urdu on the subject, it is quite sufficient a reason to be optimistic. And when we see two well-written Urdu books on linguistics published in one calendar year, it is time to celebrate.
Books on linguistics in Urdu are hard to come by. Many of the books written on Urdu linguistics describe either the origin of the Urdu language or the development of Prakrits. Prakrits were the ancient local dialects that are believed to be derived from Sanskrit, which further developed into modern languages, such as Urdu and Hindi. But the development of Prakrits or Urdu is a topic related to historical linguistics. Books on phonetics and sociolinguistics are a rarity in Urdu.
Secondly, most Urdu books on historical linguistics were written decades ago. One of the most comprehensive books on linguistics written in Urdu is Gian Chand Jain’s A’am Lisainyaat, or general linguistics. Though written about three decades ago, it covers a myriad of linguistic topics and many of its arguments are still relevant. The book is an excellent example of writing Urdu textbooks on technical subjects that both teachers and students can benefit from.
Lisaniyaat Ta Samaji Lisaniyaat, or from linguistics to sociolinguistics, is the book just published by Lahore’s Fiction House and it covers different issues related to general linguistics, sociolinguistics, language policy, language planning, Sindhi linguistics and cultural and societal aspects of Sindhi language. Written by Prof Dr Muhammad Qasim Bughio, it discusses modern linguistics, its teaching and planning in a multilingual and multicultural country like ours. The book offers some new vistas that have rarely been discussed in Urdu.
An academic and former chairman of Pakistan Academy of Letters, Bughio Sahib has done his PhD in sociolinguistics form UK and has published a number of works in Urdu, English and Sindhi.
Another new book on linguistics in Urdu is Urdu Lisaniyaat Aur Mustashriqeen. Published a few months ago by Lahore‘s Aks Publications and written by Dr Sajid Javed, the book is divided into two portions: the first one discusses Urdu linguistics in relation to subcontinent’s local linguistic and literary environment. The other portion surveys the orientalists who carried out research on Urdu language, wrote Urdu dictionaries and books on Urdu grammar. Dr Sajid Javed teaches Urdu at Sargodha University.
Both the books can be included in the list of recommended or suggested readings for higher-level studies. But what we really need is a comprehensive textbook of linguistics in Urdu.
Published in Dawn, December 17th, 2019
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