ਭਾਖਿਆ (bhaakhiaa)
Meaning: noun: Speech, language.
Quote:
ਖਤ੍ਰੀਆ ਤ ਧਰਮੁ ਛੋਡਿਆ ਮਲੇਛ ਭਾਖਿਆ ਗਹੀ॥
ਖੱਤਰੀਆਂ ਨੇ ਆਪਣਾ ਧਰਮ ਛੱਡ ਦਿਤਾ ਹੈ, ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨਾਂ ਦੀ ਭਾਸ਼ਾ (ਫਾਰਸੀ) ਅਪਨਾਅ ਲਈ ਹੈ।
khatreeaa ta dharam chhoḍiaa malechh bhaakhiaa gahee.
The Kshatriyas have abandoned their dharma and adopted the language of Muslims (Persian, a foreign language). -Guru Nanak Sahib, Guru Granth Sahib, 663
Message: This verse comments on the conduct of people during Guru Nanak era. Under the Mughal rule, the Hindus were forgetting their mother tongue, customs, and wear, and adopted the foreigner’s, whom they called “malechh” (literally, non-Aryans or non-Hindus).
The message is true even today, in the sense that we too often try to copy the culture and customs of others and forsake our own heritage.
Etymology: Modification of bhaakhaa, from Sanskrit bhaashaa (speech) → Pali → Prakrit bhaasaa (speech, language) → Old Punjabi bhaakhaa.
