Urdu

Urdu is the national language of Pakistan though it is the first language of only a small minority in that country. It is also an official language of six states within India. It is closely related to Hindi [link], but is written with the Arabic script and is influenced by Arabic and Persian. A significant amount of Islamic literature is written in Urdu, so proficiency in Urdu facilitates a deeper understanding of Islam and of Pakistani culture.
Migration from Pakistan to Australia has increased significantly in the last decade and community language schools have been established. Urdu is currently only offered at one Australian university.

Number of people in Australia who speak this language at home: 36,835 (ABS Census Data, 2011)

Language Category: Asian Languages

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