Himachali Pahadi Scrit
The Takri alphabet is a Brahmic alphabet related to the Sharada, Landa and Gurmukhi alphabets, descended from the Devāśeṣa alphabet, which developed from the Sharada alphabet in the 14th century. The Takri alphabet emerged as a distinct script during the 16th century.
Takri was as an official script in parts of north and northwest India from the 17th century until the mid-20th century. A version of Takri was the official script of Chamba State, which is now part of Himachal Pradesh, and was used to write Chambeali. In Jammu and Kashmir a version of Takri known as Dogra Akkhar was used to write Dogri. It was offically adopted in the 1860s, and was replaced by Devanagari in 1944.
Takri was also used on postage stamps and postmarks; for translations of Sanskrit texts into Dogri; for official records, letters and decrees; in inscriptions; for translations of Christian religous texts into Chambeali; on Pahari paintings. It has also been used to write the Gaddi, Jaunsari, Kashtwari, Kulvi and Mandeali Dialects
Other names for Takri include Takari, Takkari Tankri and Ṭākarī. The origins of the name are uncertain: one theory is that it is derived from ‘ṭaṅkā (coin). Another theory suggests that the name is connected to ṭakka, the old landed class of Punjab, or that it is the alphabet of the Ṭakkas.
Since Takri fell out of use, efforts have been made to revive it for Dogri Kishtwari and Kulvi in the states of Jammu, Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh, where the local government has set up a programme to train Takri specialists in association with the Indira Gandhi National Open University.
There is considerable regional variation in the Takri alphabet with each state or region have its own version. The version below is are mainly Chambeali versions.
Pahari. Pahari dialect is widely spoken in Himachal. In Himachal, the dialect changes every few miles.The Pahari spoken in one area can be different from other. Pahari languages were mostly written in Tankri script. This script differs slightly from area to area like Bushahr ,Chamba,Kangra,Mandi,Kullu etc all have their own style of grammar. Today there are very few people who can read and write Tankri. This is one of the dying scripts in India. Most of the ancient Himalayan literature ,technology and sciences were written in this language.
young generation in Himachal is not very much interested in Pahari Dialect. Please pardon me I am generalizing this for the whole state but I can say this is almost true about Shimla and upper Himachal area. When I was in school I was also discouraged from speaking Pahari as it was considered as the symbol of people living in villages. We were encouraged to speak Hindi and English instead of Pahari. Learning and speaking English has become status symbol these days.Most of my friends today don’t speak Pahari at home (myself included). Our dining table conversations are in English or Hindi and not our local dialects.English has become the primary language in all private schools across the state. Today I see most parents encouraging their children to speak either in English or Hindi rather than Pahari. I have seen kids having inferiority complex speaking Pahari.Do you think our future generations will enjoy the essence of Pahari if the same trend continues ?
One of the major reasons why a dialect dies is simply because people stop speaking it.When a language becomes extinct, it takes with itself an entire culture. Himachal is known for its rich culture and Heritage and I think Pahari language has major contribution in its unique culture and traditions.A language is a culture’s pride and we should teach the same to our children.
We should encourage use of Pahari at home. We should encourage our children to listen to Pahari folk songs , dance , cultural activities. Above all we should tell our children to feel proud of their native language.
Langauge : Himachali / Pahari
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