Punjabi tops Pakistan’s languages as Census 2023 reveals trends

ISLAMABAD: Punjabi tops the list of languages spoken in Pakistan, with 37 percent of the population using it as a mode of communication, according to the latest population census results released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

Pashto ranks as the second most widely spoken language, followed by Sindhi in third place. Urdu is spoken by nine percent of the population, with the highest proportion of Urdu speakers residing in Sindh, followed by the federal capital, Islamabad.

The Census 2023 results indicate that nationally, around 9.25 percent of people speak Urdu, compared to 7.08 percent in 2017.

The highest proportion of Urdu speakers is in Sindh, followed by Islamabad, where 15.72 percent of the population uses it as their primary language. Punjabi remains the most commonly spoken language, with 36.98 percent of the population using it. In Punjab, Punjabi is dominant, spoken by 67 percent of the population, followed by Islamabad at 50 percent.

In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pashto is the predominant language, spoken by 81 percent of the population, followed by Hindko at 9.39 percent. In Sindh, Sindhi is the most spoken language, used by 60 percent of the population, followed by Urdu at 22.30 percent.

In Balochistan, Balochi is the main language, spoken by 39.91 percent of the population, followed by Pashto at 34.30 percent. In Islamabad, a mix of Urdu, Punjabi and Pashto is commonly used.