Language, Identity and the State in Pakistan, 1947-48

Abstract

The question of language and identity has been a very contentious issue in Pakistan since its inception. As the creation of Pakistan was predicated on a single 'Muslim nation,' it was easily assumed that this nation would be monolithic and especially only have one common language, which was deemed to be Urdu. However, while Urdu was the lingua franca of the Muslim elite in northern India, in large parts of Muslim India it was almost an alien language. Therefore, the meshing of a religious identity with that of a national identity quickly became a major problem in Pakistan as soon as it was created. Focusing on the first year after its creation, this paper assesses the inception of the language issue in Pakistan in 1947-48. Taking the debate on language in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan in February 1948, and the subsequent views of the founder and first Governor General of the country, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, during his March 1948 tour of East Bengal, this paper exhibits the fraught nature of the debate on language in Pakistan. It clearly shows how a very small issue was blown out of proportion, setting the stage for the grounding of a language rights movement which created unease and resentment in large parts of the country, ultimately leading to its vivisection in 1971.