Adil Najam
The headline used for this photograph by the Daily Times was just too good not to reproduce above.
I do not know if this qualifies as Pinglish or not but the typo – ‘over’ instead of ‘our’; the misplaced space in ‘Friend Ship’; and the grammar slippage in ‘with Pak-China’ are so very charming and so very Pakistani. (or, maybe, it means what it says; i.e., we have an OVER-close friendship with China!)
But please, let no one think I am being a snob in laughing at these mistakes. I really am not. Really.
Its our language too and as a free people we will use it whatever way we want. What better revenge can we have on our erstwhile colonists. Also, I have always subscribed to the notion that ‘Friend Ship is the best Ship of all’ :-)
@Pervaiz
AoA is short for asalamoalaikum
I read it someplace i dont exactly remember this was supposed to be a friendship poem goes something like “Be a jellyfish Be a shellfish but dont be selfish” :)
….and one more thing. This is new for me. In this age of electronics, I get e-mails from my Pakistani friends starting with “AoA”. Any guess what this might be.
I have a copy of a well known illustrated book on Pakistan with a picture of busy Anar Kali Bazar. One of the bill boards reads: HOLE SALE. Of course we know many Pakistani doctors with “MBBS” and not “M.B.,B.S.”. And there is no shortage of Pakistani “PHD Doctors” either. I also wonder why it is B.Sc. and M.Sc. and not B.S. and M.S. Also being gracious people we are not shy to “WELL COME” our guests. Thanks God for the “spell check” in my computer.
One more spelling that pakistan’s truck industry never seems to get right is the word Inflammable. I’ve seen anything written from imflamabel to flameabel on trucks in pakistan. Some of the artists also can’t seem to get it centered geometrically on a truck’s back. Sometimes more than half of the letters are written on one half of the oil tanker’s back e.g. ‘imflamm’ on one side and then just ‘able’ on the other side :)
Adil thanks for bringing spellings to forelight here. While everyone (especially me) makes mistakes on spellings, the comedy of the situation should be enjoyed :)
Funny! ‘Friend ship is the best ship.’ I remember hearing that so many times, sounded cute too!