why was urdu language chosen as the national language in 1947?
Answers
Because other majority languages were very regional in nature. Choosing a regional language as national language would have been disastrous for an already weak Pakistan by giving rise to communal and regional tensions.
Urdu, on the other hand, had a well developed reputation of being a language of Muslims and was already being widely used as mode of communication between different groups of Muslims. It was only natural that Urdu was chosen as national language of newly minted Muslim country.
Even today, you need only one language to live in any part of Pakistan and that language is Urdu. If you, as a Pakistani, meet another Pakistani who doesn’t speak your regional language, you are not going to act like a foreigner around that person, instead you’ll just speak Urdu and you two will get along just fine.
This is what I have done my entire life. Never had a problem in communication with any other Pakistani.
Answer:
One of the reasons why Urdu became the national language in Pakistan is its long history. It was widely used in Mughal period and dates back as far as the sultans of Delhi. In its early stages it was used by the Muslim armies and became widely spoken and understood in many parts of the sub-continent. So it was natural that such a well-known and established language would be chosen.
Another reason for Urdu being chosen was its high status. Some of the finest early poets such as Amir Khusrou wrote in Urdu and Sir Syed Ahmad Khan’s school at Aligarh became a centre for Urdu study. Many religious books, including the Quran, were translated into Urdu. So it was considered an important language with a rich literary tradition.
Perhaps the major reason for Urdu being chosen was the fact that it was so closely associated with the Pakistan Movement. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan supported it and the Muslim league was formed not only to defend Muslim interests, but also to protect Urdu. The Quaid-e-Azam was particularly keen to promote Urdu as he saw it was it as a unifying force. Since Pakistan was a new country, it was very appropriate to pick a language which had played a part in unifying Muslims.