#1 Best Answer To “Is Punjabi Hard To Learn?”

Is Punjabi hard to learn? Is it the question that people ask you the most while learning the Punjabi language? Punjabi is a bit of a tricky language, but learning Punjabi helps you better understand the Punjab region of the World.

In this article, we will know the answer to this question, by learning about some basic aspects of the Punjabi language. 

Is Punjabi Hard To Learn?

Your prior knowledge of North Indian languages determines the level of difficulty you might face in speaking Punjabi. For instance, if you know Hindi, you would be able to pick up Punjabi quickly. Furthermore, when talking about Punjabi and Hindi, Hindi is trickier among the two. So, if you compare both languages, you will see Punjabi emerges as the easier language. So, the difficulty level of the language depends on the nature of your native language.

Punjabi is not among the hardest languages to learn. In fact, many other popular foreign languages are more difficult than Punjabi. Some native English speakers believe that Punjabi is a rude language. But it is not true. Because a language cannot be harsh, the things that sound rude are the tone and attitude of spoken languages. For example, “How are you doing?” sounds in Punjabi as Tusi kivem ho? (ਤੁਸੀ ਕਿਵੇਂ ਹੋ) The tone and language from the example would not sound rude.

7 Factors To Consider

In this section, let us look at seven different factors that might make a learner feel that Punjabi is a difficult language to learn.

1. Different Sentence Structure

In Punjabi, natural language processing is a relatively new field. As a result, there is a shortage of essential resources and equipment for learning Punjabi.

Clauses make up sentences, and the simplest form contains one independent clause. Punjabi sentences have an SOV (Subject Object Verb) structure, unlike English, which has an SVO structure. In Punjabi phrases, the subject comes first, followed by the object, and finally, the verb.

For example, “The girl eats an apple,” translates to Kudi seb khaandi hai (ਕੁੜੀ ਸੇਬ ਖਾਂਦੀ ਹੈ). In the given example, the girl or Kudi (ਕੁੜੀ) is the subject, apple or seb (ਸੇਬ) is the object and “eats” or khaandi hai (ਖਾਂਦੀ ਹੈ) is the verb.

The nominal phrases act as the subject and object in a clause or sentence. Thus, the verb phrases make up the verb element of the clause or sentence. 

2. Slang Terms In Punjabi

Some Punjabi words are not appropriate for all situations. It is similar to slang, which is present in every language. However, the slang in Punjabi is more challenging to accept. The reason for this is that Punjabi slang words can have multiple meanings. As a result, you must understand the significance of the words you use, especially while speaking with the elderly.

Oey (ਹੇ) is a perfect example of everyday slang. It means “Hey!” It’s incredibly unprofessional and informal. As a result, you’ll only be able to use it with your coworkers. The following are some examples of common slang.

English Meanings	Punjabi Phrases	Pronunciation
We do not care.	ਸਾਨੂੰ ਕੀ?	Saanu ki?
Leave it	ਮਿੱਟੀ ਪਾਓ	Mitti paao
Problem	ਸਿਆਪਾ	Siaapa
Difficulty	ਰੌਲਾ	Raulaa
The problem is not good	ਪੰਗਾ	Panga

3. Difficulty In Differentiating The Meaning Of Two Words

Punjabi is a tonal language. Unlike other languages, it is not easy to understand the meaning of two words in the Punjabi language. The tone and pitch of the language are the main reasons that make the language a bit tricky. 

Tone and pitch suggest a difference in meaning between two words. Otherwise, the given two words may sound the same.

Fun fact: The writing of Punjabi is in a variety of scripts. Moreover, Punjabi is also a rare language with two different writing systems.

4. Crazy Tongue Twisters

In contrast to Punjabi and Hindi, many terms in other languages are rather easy to learn. As a result, native English speakers find both languages challenging.

On the other hand, Hindi speakers can learn Punjabi more quickly than English learners. Punjabi is India’s and Pakistan’s most widely spoken language. As a result, people who speak two languages find Punjabi difficult to learn because of its tongue twisters.

People ask you, “Is Punjabi difficult to learn?” for a reason. Punjabi features a lot of tongue twisters that a native English speaker would have a hard time understanding.

Work hard to master the language to pronounce these twisters fluently. Here are some twisted Punjabi sentences.

English	Punjabi phrases	Pronunciation
A box jumps over a ditch Box! Jump over a ditch!	ਡੱਬਾ ਟੱਪੂ ਖਾਲ ਟੱਪੇ, ਟੱਪ ਡੱਬੇ ਟੁਪਵਾਹ	Daba tapu khaala tape, tapa dabe tupavaaha
Raw papadam, baked papadam	ਕੱਚਾ ਪਾਪੜ, ਪੱਕਾ ਪਾਪੜ	Kachcha paapad, pakka paapad
Davinder’s grandmother’s two teeth hurt, the salesmen of Delhi gave the medicine for Davinder’s grandmother’s teeth.	ਦਵਿੰਦਰ ਦੀ ਦਾਦੀ ਦੇ ਦੋ ਦੰਦ ਦੁਖੀ, ਦਿੱਲੀ ਦੇ ਸੇਲਜ਼ਮੈਨ ਨੇ ਦਵਿੰਦਰ ਦੀ ਦਾਦੀ ਦੇ ਦੰਦਾਂ ਲਈ ਦਿੱਤੀ ਦਵਾਈ	Davindar di daadi de do danda dukhe, Dilli di de doctor ne Davindar di daadi de dadaam lai ditti dawai
While standing quietly, he puts on his wooden sandals with a rattle and then tells the news with the tap of his shoes. After telling it to all, he becomes quiet.	ਖੜ੍ਹੇ ਖਰੋਟੇ ਚੁੱਪ ਚੁਪੀਤੇ ਖ਼ਰਖਾ ਕਰਕੇ ਖੜਾਵਾਂ ਪਾਕੇ ਖਰ ਖਰ ਕਰਕੇ ਖ਼ਬਰ ਸੁਨਾਵੇ ਸੁਨ ਸੁਨਾ ਸਬ ਨੂ ਚੁੱਪ ਹੋ ਜਾਵੇ	Khaṛhe kharote chup chupite kharak karke kharaavaam pake kHara khara karake khabar sunaave suna suna saba nu chup ho jaave

5. Difficulty In Reading Punjabi Books

Punjabi literature is a collection of works written in Punjabi. Punjabi acquired written literature later than most other Indian subcontinent regional languages. The early writings of Punjabi by Sikh Guru, Nanak, are in Old Hindi rather than real Punjabi.

In addition, the Janam-Sakhi, is a 16th-century biography of Guru Nanak written by his lifelong companion Bhai Bala. It is the first text that has its identification as Punjabi.

Punjabi is somehow easy to speak, but it is the most difficult language when it comes to writing and reading. The sentence structure, vocabulary, and tone of the language sometimes create reading problems for native Punjabi speakers. 

In this modern time, people prefer to use technology over books. However, some people still prefer books, but the writing style of Punjabi creates a problem. Thus, you have to master the Punjabi language to read a book without any hurdles. 

6. Punjabi Typesetting Is Difficult To Master

Punjabi typesetting is challenging to master. It takes more than just translating text from one language to another to translate Punjabi documents. It’s more difficult to substitute one text for another in Punjabi because it employs a non-Roman script. 

The Shahmukhi and Gurmukhi scripts, for example, require more vertical space than Latin text. Thus, you may need to adjust the arrangement to make the final pages appealing and easy to read.

Punjabi fonts can often be difficult to read. The characters may change if you go from one Punjabi font to another. It results in inaccurate or nonsense translations. That is why, before typesetting in Punjabi, it is important to study Punjabi like a native speaker.

7. Punjabi Offers Dual Writing Scripts

Punjabi is written in India using the Gurmukhi script, especially connected with Sikhs. That script belongs to the Indic family of scripts and offers writing from left to right. However, Punjabi differs greatly from the Devanagari used to express Hindi in an organization. 

In Pakistan, the Urdu script, written from right to left, is present to write Punjabi. The script is now known as Shahmukhi. As a result, Punjabi is now one of the few languages presented in two distinct scripts.

If you plan to travel to India or Pakistan, you should learn the Punjabi language. Many native Punjabi speakers cannot understand your language, so you should learn the language of native people. This is true for any foreign language country you visit. You can visit The Different Languages blog which provides translation of different words in 100+ languages to help you during your travels.

Language learning is difficult only in the beginning process. However, when you start speaking Punjabi, you will find Punjabi a piece of cake. With sufficient practice, you can learn Punjabi easily. Tell people that Punjabi is not difficult before they ask you, “Is Punjabi hard to learn?” Some practices that will help you learn Punjabi efficiently are below. 

• Learn Punjabi by watching Punjabi movies.
• Punjabi is Pakistan’s most widely spoken language. As a result, by practicing with native speakers, you can learn this native language. 
• You can also learn to speak Punjabi by listening to Punjabi music. It is one of the best practices to learn a language. 
• Another way to learn this Indo-Aryan language is by watching the Punjabi language learning YouTube channel.

The Popular Languages Of India And Pakistan 

The Indian subcontinent presently is divided into Punjab in India and Pakistan. Because of division, Punjabi offers different tones.

In Pakistani Punjab, Punjabi is a dying language. This is because Punjabi people often feel embarrassed speaking the Punjabi language.

But this is not the case in Indian Punjab. Indian Punjabis feel proud speaking the Punjabi language. Moreover, the language has official status in the Punjab region of India. Hindi speakers also learn Punjabi and engage themselves in the Punjabi learning process. Because of its popularity, it is the most spoken language in India. 

So, by knowing the language’s popularity, you should also aim to learn it. And skip the question that makes you feel that your desired learning skill is difficult. The most popular question that lowers your confidence is, “Is Punjabi hard to learn?”

How Do You Say Hard In Punjabi?

In Punjabi, the word “hard” is known as sakhat (ਸਖ਼ਤ) or kathor (ਕਠੋਰ).

Frequently Asked Questions: Is Punjabi Hard To Learn?

Is Punjabi The Hardest Language To Learn?

No, Punjabi is not the hardest language to learn. But its difficulty varies by individual. Native speakers of related languages like Hindi might find it easier. What people might consider challenging are its scripts – Gurmukhi in India and Shahmukhi in Pakistan. It’s tonal nature might also deter some language enthusiasts. That’s why motivation and exposure are key factors in determining ease of learning.

Is Hindi Or Punjabi Easier?

Hindi is generally easier to learn than Punjabi for most learners due to its widespread use, extensive learning resources, and simpler phonetic structure. Punjabi’s tonal nature and script (Gurmukhi) can pose additional challenges. However, ease of learning depends on individual background and linguistic exposure.

Can I Learn Punjabi In 30 Days?

Learning Punjabi in 30 days is ambitious but possible to achieve basic conversational skills. Focus on essential vocabulary, common phrases, and everyday expressions. Immersive practices, such as listening to Punjabi music, watching films, and conversing with native speakers, can accelerate learning.

However, achieving fluency or mastering the script (Gurmukhi) within this timeframe is unlikely. Consistent practice and dedication are crucial. Setting realistic goals and using language-learning apps can also help in making significant progress.

Explore More Punjabi

Liked this article? You can read similar articles on language learning on Ling’s Punjabi blog. Articles like Punjabi words and phrases and Punjabi sentence structure are good places to start with your Punjabi learning journey.