Shahmukhi facts for kids

Shahmukhi (Punjabi: شاہ مُکھی, Gurmukhi: ਸ਼ਾਹਮੁਖੀ, lit. 'from the mouth of the Shah') is a special way of writing the Punjabi language. It comes from the Perso-Arabic alphabet, which means it's based on the Arabic writing system.

Shahmukhi started being used for Punjabi Sufi writings around the 12th century. It is usually written in a beautiful style called Nastaʿlīq calligraphy, which is also used for Urdu. Today, Shahmukhi is the main way Punjabi is written in Pakistani Punjab.

Punjabi can be written in two main ways. Shahmukhi is one, and the other is Gurmukhi, which is used in Indian Punjab. Shahmukhi is written from right to left, like Arabic, while Gurmukhi is written from left to right. Shahmukhi is also used to write Pahari–Pothwari in some parts of Pakistan.

History of Shahmukhi

The Shahmukhi alphabet was first used by Muslim Sufi poets in Punjab in the 12th century. They used it to write the Punjabi language. Over time, it became the common writing style for Muslims in the Pakistani province of Punjab. This happened especially after the Partition of India, when British India was divided into India and Pakistan.

At the same time, the Hindu and Sikh people in what is now Punjab, India started using the Gurmukhi script for Punjabi. The name 'Shahmukhi' is quite new. It was created to be similar to 'Gurmukhi'.

However, Punjabi has been written using the Perso-Arabic script since the 12th century. During the time of the Mughal Empire, Punjabi Muslims learned Persian to take part in Mughal society. They learned Persian by reading Punjabi written in the Persian alphabet. This was a new idea at the time. It was one of the first times Punjabi was formally written and standardized. Before this, Punjabi was mostly a spoken language, not taught in schools. Some people believe that Punjabi Muslims did not prefer the Gurmukhi script because it was strongly linked to the Sikh religion.

How Shahmukhi Works

Shahmukhi script is a changed version of the Arabic script. It is very similar to the Urdu alphabet. If you can read Urdu, you can usually read Shahmukhi easily. Shahmukhi sometimes includes a few extra letters to show sounds that are unique to Punjabi. For writing the Saraiki language, an even more extended Shahmukhi is used. This version has four extra letters for special sounds called implosive consonants.

Special Marks for Sounds

Like Urdu, Shahmukhi uses small marks called diacritics. These marks help show short vowel sounds. They are usually understood and not always written, just like in the original Arabic script.

• Zabar (◌َ‎): Makes an "a" sound, like in "about".
• Zer (◌ِ‎): Makes an "i" sound, like in "sit".
• Pesh (◌ُ‎): Makes a "u" sound, like in "put".
• Noon Gunna (◌٘‎): Shows a nasal vowel sound, like the "n" in "sing".
• Tashdeed (◌ّ‎): Doubles a consonant sound, making it longer.

Some other marks are used for words borrowed from Arabic, like 'Khari Zabar' (◌ٰ) and 'Zabar Tanwīn' (◌ً). There is also 'Hamza' (◌ٔ), which helps connect two vowel sounds.

Consonants in Shahmukhi

Shahmukhi has many consonant letters. Each letter can look different depending on where it is in a word: at the beginning, middle, or end. Some letters also have an "isolated" form when they stand alone.

Here are some examples of Shahmukhi consonants:

• الف (alif) - for 'a' or silent
• بے (bē) - for 'b'
• پے (pē) - for 'p'
• تے (tē) - for 't'
• ٹے (ṭē) - for 'ṭ' (a harder 't' sound)
• جيم (jīma) - for 'j'
• چے (cē) - for 'ch'
• دال (dāla) - for 'd'
• ڈال (ḍāla) - for 'ḍ' (a harder 'd' sound)
• رے (rē) - for 'r'
• ڑے (ṛē) - for 'ṛ' (a harder 'r' sound)
• سین (sīna) - for 's'
• شین (shīna) - for 'sh'
• کاف (kāfa) - for 'k'
• گاف (gāfa) - for 'g'
• لام (lāma) - for 'l'
• میم (mīma) - for 'm'
• نون (nūna) - for 'n'
• واؤ (vāoa) - for 'v', 'u', 'o'
• نکی ہے (nikkī hē) - for 'h'
• چھوٹی يے (choṭī yē) - for 'y', 'i'
• وڈّی يے (waḍḍi yē) - for 'e' or 'ae'

Some letters, like ں, ھ, or ے, are never found at the beginning of a Punjabi word. Words starting with ڑ are very rare.

Combined Sounds (Aspirates)

Shahmukhi uses two letters together to make certain sounds, especially "aspirated" sounds. This means a puff of air comes out when you say them. For example, بھ makes a "bh" sound, and پھ makes a "ph" sound.

Some common combined sounds include:

• بھ (bh) - as in بھاری
• پھ (ph) - as in پھل
• تھ (th) - as in تھم
• جھ (jh) - as in جھاڑی
• چھ (ch) - as in چھوکرا
• دھ (dh) - as in دھوبی
• کھ (kh) - as in کھولنا
• گھ (gh) - as in گھبراہٹ

Also, the letters ل and لؕ join with ا to form special combined letters like لا.

Differences from Persian and Urdu

Shahmukhi has more letters than the Urdu alphabet. This is because it needs to show sounds that are in Punjabi but not in Urdu. For example, Shahmukhi has special letters for sounds like /ʈ/ (a hard 't'), /ɖ/ (a hard 'd'), and /ɽ/ (a hard 'r'). It also has a special letter for nasal vowels (ں) and for the 'e' sound (ے).

A unique letter called do-cashmi-he (ھ) is used to show aspirated sounds. This letter is often part of the combined sounds mentioned earlier. Shahmukhi also has two very rare letters, ࣇ for /ɭ/ and ݨ for /ɳ/, which are not found in Urdu.

Shahmukhi Software

Right now, there isn't a specific software made just for Shahmukhi. People usually use Urdu software to write in Shahmukhi. However, Urdu software doesn't always have all the characters needed for Punjabi sounds. For example, the character ـݨـ has been used in Punjabi writings since the 12th century, but it's not always available in Urdu software.

Gallery

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  An example of poetry in Shahmukhi by Bulleh Shah, a famous Sufi poet.

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  Another example of poetry by Bulleh Shah in Shahmukhi.

See also

In Spanish: Shahmují para niños

• Gurmukhī alphabet
• Saraiki alphabet