Learn Urdu

To learn Urdu is to learn one of the most widely spoken languages of the world. Spoken primarily in Pakistan, it is essentially the same language as Hindi, also called Hindustani, which is spoken in India. Together they are spoken by 600 million people in South Asia and in pockets of South Asian communities in cities around the world.

The Urdu language is written in the Arabic script and in this differs from Hindi which uses the Devanagari script. Urdu is a descendant of the great literary and religious language Sanskrit. It is distantly related to Greek, Latin and most of the European languages. As such, it has some characteristics of European languages which may be familiar to native English speakers, or those who have studied a European language.

This is where the similarities end, however. The pronunciation and sounds of Urdu are very different from European languages, given its thousands of years in close contact with other South Asian languages. Combined with the different writing system, learning Urdu makes for an interesting challenge. And unlike the major European languages, or the other major languages of Asia, there are relatively few resources to learn Urdu.



Internet/Free. Ukindia Learn to Read Urdu Free basic tutorial to learn to read Urdu, which is also downloadable. Elsewhere on the site are basic tutorials for reading other South Asian languages as well as news and other information.

Internet/Free. Urdu Language Resources An abundance of links and resources for someone learning Urdu or other South Asian languages. Grammars, dialogues, vocabulary and word lists, fonts and other tools, news and other resources.

Internet/Free. Hindi/Urdu Lessons Basic Urdu lessons. Alphabet, vocabulary and dialogues with sound files.

Internet/Free Transparent Language offers a free vocabulary trainer to get started learning Urdu. Get your Free BYKI™ Lite download by Transparent Language

Book/Audio Combo/Inexpensive
Teach Yourself Urdu
The longstanding Teach Yourself series has always had a wide variety of languages. They are the only major publisher with a book and audio course for Urdu.The coursebook comes with two audio cds and is available in most bookstores or online. Click on the image to the right for more information or to purchase.

Audio Only Pimsleur Hindi Compact (approx $90) Pimsleur does not have a separate Urdu product, but since Hindi and Urdu are essentially the same language, Pimsleurs cd's will work fine for an audio introduction to Urdu. The reading booklet that generally comes with Pimsleur Compact becomes null and void, unless you don't mind learning the wrong script! Combined with the lack of significant length of Pimsleur Compact, this product may be of limited use to some people, and I recommend it only as an audio supplement for another text-based method or as a last resort if you can get it cheap. The Pimsleur system is excellent, but there are too many limitations in this case to rely on this product alone to learn Urdu. Read my more indepth Review of Pimsleur Products

Software/Inexpensive Talk Now! Learn Urdu - Beginning Level ($30) This CD-Rom mostly uses games and interactive exercises to develop a beginning understanding of the language. There is also a more Intermediate level program after this one. For some this would make a good supplement to a more comprehensive written course, and add a little fun to the learning process.

"Language is the inventory of human experience."

- L. W. Lockhart