LANGUAGE SHIFT AND MAINTENANCE: THE CASE STUDY OF HINDKO COMMUNITY IN PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN

Abstract

The current position paper examines the linguistic scenario of Hindko (the second major language after Pashto in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province) in Peshawar and the social mechanism which poses a challenge to the sustainability of Hindko on a broader scale. It deals with language attitude and language shift from Hindko to other languages due to social, economic and political factors. This study uses a quantitative research approach since the primary data source came from the survey conducted through a questionnaire. A 23 item questionnaire was administered to 75 participants using the strategy of stratified random sampling to collect data on language use, its choice and attitude towards it. The age limit was specified into two groups, i.e. 16-25 and 26-40, and the number of participants from both the groups consisted of 40 and 35, respectively. The rationale behind the age limit specification was to observe the trend of language shift between different age groups by comparison and contrast. The study results show that a considerable number of young participants tend to shift from Hindko to other dominant languages in the community due to social mobility issues
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