Pakistani poetry
Encyclopedia
Pakistan has a rich and diverse tradition of poetry that includes Urdu poetry
, English
poetry, Sindhi poetry
, Pashto poetry, Punjabi poetry
, Saraiki poetry, Baluchi
poetry, and Kashmiri poetry
. Sufi poetry
has a strong tradition in Pakistan
and the poetry of popular Sufi poets is often recited and sung.
Persian poetry is still common in Pakistan
as a literary vehicle because of the centuries of Persian influence on the region. Many sufi poets wrote their Kalam in Persian
. Pakistan's national poet Allama Mohammad Iqbal also wrote many volumes of poetry in Persian.
Poetry is widely read across Pakistan. Gatherings for the recitations of poetry known as Mushaira
frequently take place. Verses of popular poets are also used as political slogans by political activists. The national poet of Pakistan is Muhammad Iqbal
.
Urdu poetry
Urdu poetry is a rich tradition of poetry and has many different types and forms. Borrowing much from the Persian language, it is today an important part of Pakistani and North Indian culture....
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
poetry, Sindhi poetry
Sindhi poetry
Sindhi language poetry continues an oral tradition of a thousand years. The verbal verses were based on folk stories. Sindhi is one of the oldest languages of the Indus Valley having own literary colour both in poetry and prose. Sindhi poetry is very rich in thoughts as well as contain variety of...
, Pashto poetry, Punjabi poetry
Punjabi Literature
Punjabi literature refers to literary works written in the Punjabi language particularly by peoples from the historical Punjab region of India and Pakistan including the Punjabi diaspora. The Punjabi language is written in several different scripts, of which the Shahmukhi, the Gurmukhī scripts are...
, Saraiki poetry, Baluchi
Balochi language
Balochi is a Northwestern Iranian language. It is the principal language of the Baloch of Balochistan, Pakistan, eastern Iran and southern Afghanistan. It is also spoken as a second language by some Brahui. It is designated as one of nine official languages of Pakistan.-Vowels:The Balochi vowel...
poetry, and Kashmiri poetry
Kashmiri literature
Kashmiri literature has a history of at least 2,500 years, going back to its glory days of Sanskrit. Early names include Patanjali, the author of the Mahabhashya commentary on Pāṇini's grammar, suggested by some to have been the same to write the Hindu treatise known as the Yogasutra, and...
. Sufi poetry
Sufi poetry
Sufi poetry has been written in many languages, both for private devotional reading and as lyrics for music played during worship, or dhikr. Themes and styles established in Punjabi Poetry, Sindhi Poetry, Arabic poetry and mostly Persian poetry have had an enormous influence on Sufi poetry...
has a strong tradition in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and the poetry of popular Sufi poets is often recited and sung.
Persian poetry is still common in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
as a literary vehicle because of the centuries of Persian influence on the region. Many sufi poets wrote their Kalam in Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
. Pakistan's national poet Allama Mohammad Iqbal also wrote many volumes of poetry in Persian.
Poetry is widely read across Pakistan. Gatherings for the recitations of poetry known as Mushaira
Mushaira
Mushaira is a poetic symposium. Its a term in Urdu used to describe an event where poets gather to perform their works. A mushaira is a beloved part of the culture of Pakistan and North India, and it is greatly admired by participants as a forum for free self-expression.-Forms:A mushaira can take...
frequently take place. Verses of popular poets are also used as political slogans by political activists. The national poet of Pakistan is Muhammad Iqbal
Muhammad Iqbal
Sir Muhammad Iqbal , commonly referred to as Allama Iqbal , was a poet and philosopher born in Sialkot, then in the Punjab Province of British India, now in Pakistan...
.
Urdu poetry
- Ahmad Faraz
- Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi
- Amjad Islam AmjadAmjad Islam AmjadAmjad Islam Amjad, PP, SI is a famous Urdu poet, drama writer and lyricist from Pakistan.-Life and career:...
- Faiz Ahmed FaizFaiz Ahmed FaizFaiz Ahmad Faiz was a Pakistani intellectual, poet, and one of the most famous poets of the Urdu language. He was a member of the Anjuman Tarraqi Pasand Mussanafin-e-Hind and an avowed Marxist. In 1962, he was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize by the Soviet Union...
- Ahmed FarazAhmed FarazAhmad Faraz born Syed Ahmad Shah on January 14, 1931, in Kohat, was a Pakistani Urdu poet. He was considered one of the greatest modern Urdu poets of the last century. Faraz is his pseudonym 'takhalus'...
- Parveen ShakirParveen ShakirParveen Shakir was an Urdu poet, teacher and a civil servant of the Government of Pakistan.Shakir started writing at an early age and published her first volume of poetry, Khushbu [Fragrance], to great acclaim, in 1976...
- Tanwir PhoolTanwir PhoolTanwir Phool is the pen name of Tanwiruddin Ahmad Siddiqui, a Pakistani author and poet, writing in Urdu and English.-Education and career:...
- Fehmida Riaz
- Habib JalibHabib JalibHabib Jalib was a Pakistani revolutionary poet. A left-wing activist and politician, he was a staunch democrat who opposed martial law, authoritarianism and state oppression.-Early life:...
- Hafeez Jullundhri
- Hakim Ahmad ShujaHakim Ahmad ShujaHakim Ahmad Shuja , MBE, was a famous Urdu and Persian poet, writer, scholar and mystic, from former British India, later Pakistan.- Background:...
- Iftikhar ArifIftikhar ArifIftikhar Hussain Arif, PP, SI, HI commonly known as Iftikhar Arif is an Urdu poet, scholar and littérateur from Pakistan. His style is romantic Urdu poetry. He has headed Academy Adbiyat, the Pakistan Academy of Letters and currently, he is the Chairman of Muqtadra Quami Zaban, the National...
- Imran Azam Raza
- John Elia
- Josh MalihabadiJosh MalihabadiJosh Malihabadi was a noted Urdu poet born in British India, who was an Indian citizen until 1958, when he emigrated to Pakistan and became a Pakistani citizen...
- Kishwar NaheedKishwar NaheedKishwar Naheed , Sitara-e-Imtiaz is an Urdu poet from Pakistan known for her pioneering feminist poetry.-Life and Family:...
- Majeed AmjadMajeed AmjadMajeed Amjad was one of the greatest of modern Urdu poets of the Indian subcontinent. In the popular culture he is not as well known or widely read as Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Noon Meem Rashid, Nasir Kazmi or Meeraji but amongst the cognoscenti and many critics he is widely regarded as a philosophical...
- Mehmood ShamMehmood ShamMahmood Shaam is an Urdu-language journalist of Pakistan. He is the editor in Karachi of the Daily Jang, Pakistan's largest newspaper.He will be working as the Chief Editor of Ary Digital Urdu News paper.- Writer :Cardio Spasm 1969...
- Mohsin NaqviMohsin NaqviSyed Mohsin Naqvi was a great Urdu language poet of Pakistan. He is believed to have been murdered on 15 January 1996. He was born in a village Sadat near Dera Ghazi Khan. He did his Graduation from Govt. College Bosan Road Multan. The secret of his life is that his actual Name was Ghulam Abbas. He...
- Mohsin BhopaliMohsin BhopaliMohsin Bhopali was an acclaimed Urdu poet from Pakistan.-Life:Born in Bhopal, British India, Mohsin Bhopali later migrated to Pakistan...
- Munir NiaziMunir NiaziMunir Ahmad, better known as Munir Niazi, SI was an Urdu poet from Pakistan who also produced poetry in the Panjabi language.Niazi was born in Khanpur on 19 April 1928, a village near Hoshiarpur, India. He was from the Niazi tribe...
- Nasir KazmiNasir KazmiSyed Nasir Raza Kazmi, was a renowned Urdu poet of Pakistan. He was one of the greatest poets of this era, especially in the use of "ista'aaray" and "chhotee beher". Kazmi was born on December 8, 1925 at Ambala in British India.-Education and Career:Kazmi was educated at Ambala, Simla and Lahore...
- Qateel ShifaiQateel ShifaiAurangzeb Khan or Qateel Shifai was a Pakistani Urdu poet.-Early life:Qateel Shifai was born in Haripur, Hazara Division, British India .-Career:...
- Qayyum Nasir
- Shakeb JalaliShakeb JalaliShakeb Jalali was a Pakistani Urdu poet of a unique diction.Shakeb Jalali's real name was Syed Hassan Rizvi. His ancestors were from a small town, Saddat Jalali, near Aligarh, India. In accordance with the well known Poet, Writer and authentic Critic Mr...
- Raees WarsiRaees WarsiRaees Warsi is an Urdu poet, writer and lyricist from Pakistan. He has blended contemporary issues into classic rhyme. Where Urdu poetry was confined to the issues of love, romance and its tragedies till the early 20th century, Warsi and some other notable contemporary poetry have expanded Urdu...
- Syed Ishtiaq Hussain Kazmi
- Shafiq Ahmad Khan
- Lt.Col Muhammad Khalid Khan
English poetry
- Taufiq Rafat
- Daud KamalDaud KamalDaud Kamal 4 January 1935 - 5 December 1987) was a Professor of English Literature at University of Peshawar, Pakistan. He was educated at Cambridge University, UK. Kamal started writing poetry in his twenties and became one of the major English language poets of Pakistan...
- Alamgir HashmiAlamgir HashmiAlamgir Hashmi is a major English poet of Pakistani origin in the latter half of the 20th century. Considered avant-garde, both his early and later works were published to universal critical acclaim and widespread influence...
- Shahid Suhrawardy
- Maki Kureshi
- Waqas Ahmed Khwaja
- Kaleem Omar
- M.Athar Tahir
- Omer TarinOmer TarinOmer Tarin , born March 1967, is a well-known Pakistani poet in English, research scholar, and social activist...
- Ikram Azam
- Anna Molka Ahmad
- GF Riaz
- Ejaz Rahim
- Hina Faisal Imam
- Jocelyn Ortt-Saeed
- Parveen Pasha
- Lt.Col Muhammad Khalid Khan
Punjabi poetry
- Bulleh ShahBulleh ShahBulleh Shah was a Punjabi Sufi poet, a humanist and philosopher.-Early life:Bulleh Shah is believed to have been born in 1680, in the small village of Uch, Bahawalpur, Punjab, in present day Pakistan. His father, Shah Muhammad Darwaish, was a teacher and preacher in a village mosque...
- Fariduddin Ganjshakar
- Mian Muhammad BakhshMian Muhammad BakhshMīān Muhammad Bakhsh was a Sufi saint and a Punjabi/Pahari poet; he belonged to the Qadiri tariqah. He is especially renowned as the author of a book of poetry called Saiful Malūk. He was born in a village called Khari Sharif, situated near Mirpur, Azad Kashmir.-Lineage:He belonged to the Gujjar...
- Waris ShahWaris ShahWaris Shah was a Punjabi Sufi poet, renowned for his contribution to Punjabi literature. He is best-known for his seminal work Heer Ranjha, based on the traditional folk tale of Heer and her lover Ranjha. Heer is considered one of the quintessential works of classical Punjabi literature...
- Sultan BahuSultan BahuSultan Bahu was a Muslim Sufi and saint, who founded the Sarwari Qadiri Sufi order.Sultan Bahu belonged to the Awan tribe, and was born in Anga, Soon Valley, Sakesar . Like many other Sufi saints of South Asia, Sultan Bahu was a prolific writer, with more than forty books on Sufism attributed to...
- Shah HussainShah HussainShah Hussain was a Punjabi Sufi poet who is regarded as a Sufi saint. He was the son of Sheikh Usman, a weaver, and belonged to the Dhudha clan of Rajputs. He was born in Lahore...
- Ustad DamanUstad DamanUstad Daman was a Punjabi poet and mystic. He was the most celebrated Punjabi poet at the time of the Partition of British India in 1947...
Saraiki poetry
- Khawaja Farid
- Sachal SarmastSachal SarmastSachal Sarmast was a Sufi poet from Sindh during the Kalhora era. He was born in daraza near Ranipur, Sindh. His real name was Abdul Wahab and "Sachal" was his nickname. He also used it in his own poetry. Sachu means truthful in Sindhi while Sarmast means mystic in Sindhi and Urdu...
- Bulleh ShahBulleh ShahBulleh Shah was a Punjabi Sufi poet, a humanist and philosopher.-Early life:Bulleh Shah is believed to have been born in 1680, in the small village of Uch, Bahawalpur, Punjab, in present day Pakistan. His father, Shah Muhammad Darwaish, was a teacher and preacher in a village mosque...
- Sultan BahuSultan BahuSultan Bahu was a Muslim Sufi and saint, who founded the Sarwari Qadiri Sufi order.Sultan Bahu belonged to the Awan tribe, and was born in Anga, Soon Valley, Sakesar . Like many other Sufi saints of South Asia, Sultan Bahu was a prolific writer, with more than forty books on Sufism attributed to...
- Shakir Shuja Abadi
Sindhi poetry
- Shah Abdul Latif
- Sachal SarmastSachal SarmastSachal Sarmast was a Sufi poet from Sindh during the Kalhora era. He was born in daraza near Ranipur, Sindh. His real name was Abdul Wahab and "Sachal" was his nickname. He also used it in his own poetry. Sachu means truthful in Sindhi while Sarmast means mystic in Sindhi and Urdu...
- Lal Shahbaz Qalander
- Shah Inayatullah
- Shaikh AyazShaikh AyazShaikh Ayaz was one of the great Sindhi poets of Pakistan. He was born in Shikarpur Sindh. By profession he was a lawyer but he also served as the vice chancellor of Sindh University. His poetry brought new trends into Sindhi literature....
Pashto poetry
- Khushal Khan KhattakKhushal Khan KhattakKhushal Khan Khattak was a prominent Pashtun malik, poet, warrior,A charismatic personality and tribal chief of the Khattak tribe. He wrote a huge collection of Pashto poems during the Mughal Empire in the 17th century, and admonished Pashtuns to forsake their divisive tendencies and unite...
- Rahman BabaRahman BabaAbdul Rahman Baba is popularly known as Rahman Baba , was a Pashtun Muslim poet from Peshawar in modern-day Pakistan who remains the most popular poet among the Pashtuns...
- Ameer Hamza ShinwariAmeer Hamza ShinwariAmeer Hamza Shinwari , born in Landi Kotal in the year 1907 and died in February 1994, was a famous Pashtun poet. He Belonged to the Shinwari tribe of the ethnic Pashtuns. Ameer Hamza's work is considered a fusion between classic and modern poetry...
- Khan Abdul Ghani Khan
- Ajmal KhattakAjmal KhattakAjmal Khattak was a Pakistani politician, writer, Pashtun poet, Khudai Khidmatgar, former President of Awami National Party and close friend of the late Khan Wali Khan....
See also
- List of Pakistani writers