Intro and

greetings:

Dua: Assalam u Alaikum and a very good

morning I am Dua binte Samar.

Maryam: And I am Maryam Hassan…

Dua: Today Grade 9 Cambridge has prepared an entertaining and enlightening morning
assembly for you.
Maryam: The month of August is about to end but the need to celebrate our homeland’s
independence and show patriotism towards it never does!
Dua: True: There are so many ways we can show our love and respect for our country. And
one of the ways is to respect its culture and heritage. In today’s assembly you will discover
the treasure trove of golden facts about the magnificent heritage of our blessed homeland,
guaranteed to be of excellent value to you.
Maryam Hassan: And now, without further ado, let’s start the day with recitation of verses
from the Holy Quran, - Surah Yaseen, with Arabic Recitation by Zeerak Zulfiqar & respective
Urdu and English translation by Namra Ijaz & Maryam Khan.
(after talawat) Dua: Jazakallah.
Dua: Before we move on, I would like volunteers form the audience to come forward and name
as many languages as you can that are spoken in Pakistan
[Volunteers from audience]
Maryam: See, this shows that our homeland has a rich and diverse history
Dua: But you know what is unfortunate? That with time these languages and the literature is
dying. Even our national and official language Urdu can hardly be read or written by most of us
today.
Maryam: And the irony, we are talking about preserving our languages but saying all this in
English!!!
Dua: That’s true: As a first step, to do the least we are going to refresh your memories about
the origins, dialects, and famous poets and authors of the few major languages spoken in our
country. This reflects that we are a diverse people and we can celebrate our diversity with
pride!!
Maryam H: Indeed. Let’s call upon our first speaker Do listen attentively since we are going to
ask
general knowledge questions at the end of the assembly too!
Dua: I would like to call upon Moosa and , who are going to take over the presenters’ desk
henceforth.
Languages and their
history

Musa: ASA. I am Muhammad Moosa and

Noman: I am Noman Zamir

Moosa: We are going to be introducing the major languages spoken in our country, its
dialects, literature, famous writes and poets etc.
Noman: I’ll now invite Rayan Ahmed to speak about Urdu, our official language.
Rayan: It is only fair to begin with our official language Urdu. Urdu started developing in north
India around Delhi in about the 12th century. It was based on the language spoken in the
region around Delhi, and it is heavily influenced by Arabic and Persian, as well as Turkish. Did
you know that Urdu is spoken as a first language by nearly 70 million people and as a second
language by more than 100 million people, predominantly in Pakistan and India?. Amir
Khosrow is known as the founder of Urdu Language. who composed dohas (couplets), folk
songs, and riddles in the newly formed speech. Urdu uses a modified form of Perso-Arabic
script known as Nastaliq, Today Urdu is spoken in many countries around the world, including
Britain, Canada, the USA, the Middle East and India. Thanks.

Moosa:… And now about the Punjabi language... [ Pasoori playing in the background. ]
How many Punjabi speakers in the audience today? Please raise your hands. Great. Familiar
with the track being played? It is indeed in Punajbi!
Noman: Let’s see if you know about the history of this language.
Irtiza: My name is Irtiza Ali and I’ll share a few quick facts about Punjabi.
Punjabi language originated from Sanskrit, Persian and Arabic. the The earliest writings in
Punjabi belong to the Nath Yogi era from the 9th to the 14th centuries.
 The Punjabi literary tradition is popularly seen to commence with Baba Farid
(1173–1266), whose Sufi poetry was compiled after his death in the Adi Granth.
 Punjabi is written in two different scripts, called Gurmukhī and Shahmukhī.
 It is the most widely spoken native language in Pakistan. It is spoken as a first language
by over 65% of Pakistanis.
Musa: Thanks. and now a little about the Pushto language {Bibi Shireen playing in the
background.} Pushto speakers in the audience, please raise your hands to show your love
for the language!
Noman: Coming to share about the origin and history of Pushto, we have Farzaaaamm.

Farzaam: The Pashto language is believed to have originated in the Kandahar areas of
Afghanistan.

 Pashto is written with a modified Arabic alphabet.

 The earliest literary form is poetry; Mohammad Hotak’s - Pata Khazana (1728–29;
“The Hidden Treasure”) is a collection of Pashto poetry from the 8th century onward.
 Khushal Khan Khattak is considered the "father of Pashto literature" and the national
poet of Afghanistan. He wrote many works in Pashto but also a few in Persian. The
national poet of Afghanistan, Khushhal Khan Khatak (1613–94), wrote spontaneous
and forceful poetry of great charm. His grandson Afzal Khan was the author of an early
history of the Pashtun.
 Originally spoken by the Pashtun people, Pashto became the national language of
Afghanistan in 1936. It is spoken by more than 35 million people, most of whom reside
in Afghanistan
or Pakistan. Thank you!
Noman - This brings us to the native langue spoken in the South-most region of Pakistan. Can
you guess which one? Yes Sindhi it is…. [Sindhi song being played in the background.]
Musa: To inform you a bit about the history of the Sindhi language we have Haider Zafar.
[Haider] The name "Sindhi" is derived from the Sanskrit Sindhu, the original name of the
Indus River, along whose delta Sindhi is spoken.
 Like other languages of the Indo-Aryan family, Sindhi is descended from Old Indo-
Aryan . Sindhi is one of the oldest languages of the sub-continent, with a rich culture,
vast folklore and extensive literature and is one of the major languages of Pakistan,
spoken in the province of Sindh by approximately twenty million people.
 Pir Shams Sabzwari Multani, Pir Shahabuddin and Pir Sadruddin are recognized as poets
of Sindhi language. Shah Abdul Latif of Bhitai however is the greatest known thinker and
poet of all times, produced by Sindh!
Noman: Can you guess the language, based on the music being played in the background? :
(with the KANA YAARI piano beat in background in low volume)Yes. Balochi language it is.
Musa: I would like to call upon Saad bin Tariq to enlighten you all on the history of this language!
Saad bin Tariq :
 There are mainly three dialects of Balochi language: Makurani, Rakhshani, and
Koh-e- Sulemani. Balochi, one of the oldest languages, full of vocabularies,
idioms and idiomatic phrases, lullabies, folk stories, folk songs, and folk
literature.
 Eastern Balochi has been influenced by Sindhi, while Western Balochi has been
influenced by Persian.
 Mast Tawakali (Balochi: ‫توکیل مست‬, was a 19th century Baloch Sufi poet, mystic and
reformist, who is regarded as the "Father of Balochi literature".
 Syed Zahoor Shah Hashmi is well known for his contributions to the Balochi literature.
One of his most recognized work is "Sayad Gunj", the first ever Balochi language
dictionary.
  It is estimated that Balochi speakers are more than 20 million and most of them
reside in Pakistani Balochistan, Iranian Balochistan, and Afghanistan.
Noman: (with the BALO BATIYAN piano beat in background with low volume) Can you guess
the next language we are going to talk about… Siraiki!!
Musa: and coming to share its rich history is Muqtada!
Muqtada: Saraiki is considered one of the largest languages of South Punjab and it is also
an ancient dialect of this region.
 The history of this dialect dates back to almost 4500 years in the Indus civilization.
The people inhabiting South Punjab are also called as Saraiki.
 The Siraiki-speaking region spreads across the southwestern districts of Punjab
province, here were probably at least 20 million speakers in the early 21st century,
 The great cultural symbol of Siraiki identity is the magnificent poetry of the
Bahawalpuri saint- poet Khwaja Ghulam Farid (1845–1901), which celebrates the
scenery of the local deserts with an abundance of purely local vocabulary and
continues to be a major inspiration of modern Siraiki literature.
Noman: The next on the list of major languages spoken in the country is Hindko!
Musa: and coming to share its rich history is Maryam Shamim!
Maryam Shamim: its roots can be traced out some five thousand years back in the Vedak period.
 Hind’ means Sindh and ‘ko’ means language. When the invaders from Afghanistan came
to this
area, they found a similar language being spoken from Peshawar to UP. They called it
Hindko.
 Hindko is spoken in Peshawar, Kohat, Dera Ismail Khan, Nowshera, Swabi, Azad
Jammu and Kashmir and parts of Punjab
 The language has produced classical poets including Sayeen Ahmed Ali, stated to be a
disciple of Bulleh Shah.
 mahiya is particularly associated with the language

Noman: Thanks Maryam. and last but not the least of the languages on out list today is Balti.
Musa: I would like to invite Sameer to talk about it: [Balti music in the background]
Sameer: The language spoken in Baltistan, is known as BALTI.
It is originally a Tibetan dialect. The current Balti writing system is based on Perso Arabic
Script. However, according to historians, the Tibetan Script was used between the 8th and
16th centuries. Its folk-literature is not yet available in written-shape; but continues to be
orally transmitted.
Prose writers Afzal Ravish wrote fictional stories in Balti whilst Ghulam Hussain Lobsang
brought out Aqawal-e-Zareen in Balti. Syed Abbas Kazmi’s literary products on Balti
Folksongs etc. and late Syed Shamshad Hussain’s posthumous publication ‘Rung Yul’ make
an addition to the literature.
Noman: These were just a few of major languages spoken in the country. So why do we not
speak read and write in in these languages anymore? To address that we have a role play
coming up!
Roleplay:
Title: Embracig our Hertage

Characters:
Zeerak: One of the students afraid to speak Kashmiri.
Maryam Khan : Zeerak’s supportive friend who encourages him.
Ahmad: Another friend who joins Namra in encourging zerak

Namra: The second student who is afraid to speak Kashmiri.

Setting: (4 chairs)
A school courtyard. Zeerak and Namra are sitting together, looking worried. Maryam and
Ahmad approach them with friendly smiles.
Scene 1:
Maryam: (Noticing Zeerak and namra's expressions) Hey Zeerak, namra, you both seem a bit
down.
What’s going on?
zeerak: (Sighing) Oh, hi maryam. It’s just… namra and I were talking, and we both feel nervous
about
speaking Punjabi. We’re worried that people might make fun of us.
namra: (Nodding) Yeah, it’s true. I feel like I’ll sound strange or that people won’t
understand. mustafa: (Joining the group) Hey, I overheard you. I just want to say that there’s
nothing to be afraid
of when it comes to speaking your own language.
maryam: (Encouragingly) Exactly. Your mother tongue is a big part of who you are. It connects
you to
your culture, your family, and your roots. There’s so much value in that.

zeerak: (Hesitant) But what if people laugh at us or think we’re

different?

Ahmad: (Supportively) Speaking in your native languge is something to be proud of. It’s about
embracing who you are and sharing something meaningful with others.
maryam: (Encouragingly) Think of it this way: when you speak your language, you’re keeping
it alive. It’s a special gift that you can share with others and help others understand the
richness of your culture.
namra: (Smiling slightly) That’s true. I hadn’t thought about it that way.
Ahmad: (Smiling) And you’re not alone. We’re here to support you. You can start by using
Punjabi or Pushto with us. It’s a safe space to practice.
zeerak: (Feeling encouraged) I guess you’re right. Maybe I’ve been letting my fears hold me
back too
much.
Maryam: (Happily) That’s the spirit! We’re all here to help each other. Let’s practice together
and
build our confidence.
namra: (More confident) Yeah, I’m willing to give it a try. Thanks for the encouragement.
Ahmad: (Cheerfully) That’s awesome! Remember, celebrating our language is celebrating who
we
are. We should be proud of it.
maryam: (Smiling) Absolutely. Let’s start small and support each other along the way
zeerak: (Smiling) Thanks, everyone. I feel better about speaking my native languge now
namra: (Confidently) Me too. Let’s make this happen!
Ahmad: (Excitedly) Great! Let’s embrace our heritage with

pride!

maryam: (Encouragingly) Yes! Together, we can make a

difference!

Role play wrap up:

5-7 boys line up on stage:

Shuja: We hope you enjoyed the roleplay. We wanted to take a moment to talk about
something really important
Bilal: Yes, we wanted to share that speaking your mother tongue is something to be proud of!
Ab ur Rehman: Think about it—your mother tongue connects you to your roots, your culture,
and your family history. When you speak it, you’re honoring that connection.

Obaid: Your courage to speak up can inspire others and keep your culture alive.
Ali: Plus, when you speak your language, you’re not just using words—you’re sharing a part of
yourself
and your heritage.
Ali: And you know one way the languages can be kept alive?
Incorporating them in popular music!
the famous Balochi Song “Kana Yaari” was a thrilling one. This Balochi song which is a mix of hip
hop and cultural tunes/ The Music taste of our singers is the amazing which attracts us while
also presents various cultures of our country.
Ahmad: An excellent example of the Siraiki Pakistani music is the soul-stirring Saraiki
song "BALO BATIYAN,". This globally celebrated song, sung in the melodious Saraiki
language, wonderfully showcases Pakistan's vibrant culture while highlighting the
exceptional talents of these artists.

(exit) - Q and A
session

Maryam and Dua take over:

Maryam Hasan: So, I hope you all understood the positive message conveyed through this
assembly.
Dua: now we have a few questions for you. The ones who answer correctly are going to be
presented with these customized book marks!
Maryam H: Please introduce yourself, tell us which language you are going to speak in and
then say a few sentences or words. Or counting!!! I would also like to invite any teachers and
support staff to say a few words in any of the native languages that they might know.
Question and answer session:
1. Who is known as the founder of Pushto language? Ans (Amir Khurow)
2. Name a famous Urdu Poet? (Ghalib, Iqbal, Mir, Faiz etc)
3. Why is Sindh language named Sindhi. Hint: an ancient civilization. (Indus, Sindh river
flows in the regions where its spoken) = Indo Aryans.
4. Can you count from 1 to 10 in Pushto or Punjabi? (hahahahaha)
5. Saraiki Language is spoken in which region of Pakistan?
 Swat
 Multan
 Quetta
6. The origin of Balti language is:
 Chinese
 Tibetan
 Nepalese

Dua: To wrap up, I will say that the languages and music of Pakistan are important parts of our
culture and show the rich history we share. By appreciating and celebrating these diverse
aspects, we help bring people together and honor our past. Let’s keep enjoying and sharing our
languages and music so that they can continue to inspire us all.
Maryam
Let us all pay homage to our country by singing the national anthem with zeal and respect!