The journal is ‘a peer refereed publication of the UOG and the CLTS is dedicated to provide an independent and trans-disciplinary forum for discourse on issues in Translation, Linguistics and related disciplines’
Pakistan Journal of Languages and Translation Studies
(Issues 2015 & 2016)
Editor: Dr. Ghulam Ali
Published by: Centre for Languages and Translation Studies, University of Gujrat
Pages: 106 & 217
Naghma-e-Qudsi
Author: Ameer Meenai
Translator: Muhammad Athar Masood
Publisher: Tehzeeb Fundation of Pakistan, Karachi
Pages: 175; Price: Rs.500/-
University of Gujrat is an upcoming institution of higher learning. First of its kind in the country, its Centre for Languages and Translation Studies, is purported to aspire to ‘transfer knowledge from different languages and cultures of the world to national languages of the country and vice versa’. The Centre ‘shares its boundaries with linguistics, literature, sociology, psychology, anthropology, politics, media studies, computer sciences etc.’ The instant journal with its two issues, is ‘a peer refereed publication of the UOG and the CLTS is dedicated to provide an independent and trans-disciplinary forum for discourse on issues in Translation, Linguistics and related disciplines’. The Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Zia ul-Qayyum ably assisted by Dr. Ghulam Ali, Head CeLTS, is the guiding soul behind the whole project.
The versatile musicologist and critic Muhammad Athar Masood, a bright PMS officer with a rich literary background and a Ph.D. degree in Persian to his credit, has lately ventured to translate the ace work of the renowned Urdu poet of the post-Mughal era (also described as ‘a polymath’ for his multi-dimensional but versatile intellectual and artistic pursuits) Ameer Meenai (1829-1900) into Urdu. In fact Saut-ul-Mubarak, compiled by Nawab Wajid Ali Shah (1822-1887) of Awadh (Oudh), is the last book in Persian on the sub-continental music, comprising six chapters (hijabat). Naghma-e-Qudsi is actually the annotated rendition of the first hijab of the said work in Persian by Ameer Meenai that Muhammad Athar Masood has now converted into Urdu, in the instant book.
The three publications are being reviewed in tandem here.
‘By and large the articles, overtly focused on languages and translation studies as contained in the two issues of the journal, seem to have been thoughtfully conceived and executed in the prescribed manuscript format, and embody useful material for the common, uninitiated reader also to consume albeit their avowed academic value for scholars and researchers.’
The PJLTS (Issues 2015 & 2016)
The journal bears the names of forty distinguished scholars of national and international origin on its editorial advisory board. The two issues taken together carry some seventeen research articles on diverse subjects.
The topics discussed in the 2015 issue are: religious socio-cultural intertextuality in Arabic-English translation (Mohammad Ahmad Thawabteh); translation of political discourse in the Middle Eastern context (Husam Haj Omar); reflexives and reciprocals in classical Hijazi Arabic (Mohammad Ali Al Zahrani); use of mnemonic devices in teaching English idioms (Muhammad Uzair, Muhammad Iqbal Butt, Arshad Mahmood, Gulap Shahzada); seeing across the globe through multiple perspective approach in comparative literature and translation studies (Mazhar Hayat, Shahida Parveen Rai); woman, a game of profit and loss: a materialistic feminist analysis of The Holy Woman by Qaisra Shahraz (Sumaira, Uzma Asmat); and the creation of irony through the flouting of Grice’s maxims: an analysis of Pakistani Urdu comedy showHum Sab Umeed say HaiN (Mehwish Noor, Ghulam Ali, Riaz Ahmed Mangrio).
The 2016 issue of the journal contains ten articles that highlight themes like: fiction as history: a post-colonial historiography of British India in River of Fire (Kanwal Zahra, Muhammad Shahbaz Arif); linguistic variation across written registers of Pakistani English: a multidimensional analysis (Muhammad Asim Mahmood, Zahida Hussain); (re)contextualizing feminism and the Muslim Pakistani society in Meatless Days: a catachrestic perspective (Ali Usman Salim, Mazhar Hayat, Ghulam Murtaza); the profile of Iranian English translation undergraduate students (Masood Khoshsaligheh, Mohammad Reza Hashemi, Roya Sadeghpoor); analyzing the phenomenon of intertextuality in the process of literary translation (Isra Irshad, Ghulam Ali); an exploratory study to find linguistic barriers affecting doctor-patient communication (Ejaz Mirza); prestige as a social constraint in intra-sentential codeswitching (Arshad Ullah, Muhammad Ajmal Khurshid, Nazir Ahmed Malik); Punjabi nuNand Urdu ko: a morpho-semantic analysis (Mubashir Iqbal, Riaz Ahmed Mangrio, Raza E Mustafa); English lexical stress and problems of Punjabi learners: some acoustic cues (Muhammad Iqbal Butt, Arshad Mahmood); and the acquisition of English syntactic structures by Urdu L1 speakers in Pakistan: the case of articles (Azher Pervaiz, Nadeem Haider Bukhari).
By and large the articles, overtly focused on languages and translation studies as contained in the two issues of the journal, seem to have been thoughtfully conceived and executed in the prescribed manuscript format, and embody useful material for the common, uninitiated reader also to consume albeit their avowed academic value for scholars and researchers. In some cases however, expressional inadequacies are not inconspicuous in the composition. Editors need to be extra-vigilant in the pre-printing processing of the material intended to be published with a view to enhancing the quality and academic worthiness of the product.
‘Ameer Meenai’s work, though fractional, brings into light some important aspects of the Nawab Wajid Ali Shah’s personal life and his interest in the arts together with the political scenario rife at the fag end of his regime. It also reflects the former’s grasp of the knowledge of music as well as the Persian language.’
Naghma-e-Qudsi
Nawab Wajid Ali Shah (1822-87) was the tenth and last ruler of Awadh (Oudh). His reign lasted for only nine years, from 1847 to 1856, when he was deposed and exiled by the British to the suburbs of Calcutta (Kolkata). A gifted composer himself, he was rated as a ‘munificent patron’ of music, dance, drama and poetry. His poetic alias was Akhtar.
Ameer Meenai’s work, though fractional, brings into light some important aspects of the Nawab’s personal life and his interest in the arts together with the political scenario rife at the fag end of his regime. It also reflects the former’s grasp of the knowledge of music as well as the Persian language.
The first hijab, further split into 17 sub-divisions (purdahs), covers the genesis of sur and the delicacies plus intricacies of its various formulations. The terminology of surs and ragas has been explicated with great dexterity along with a few diagrams classifying some importantragas and their permutations.
The appendix of the book captioned Takmilah comprising two chapters, is intended to bring out the variations in ragas devised by ancient authorities on music.
The translator has ventured to transfer the thematic intent of the original work, into Urdu with remarkable felicity although at some places perhaps owing to the peculiar nature of the original text abounding in technical argot, it tends to appear somewhat involved. All said, the book will be hopefully read with equal interest by the dilettante as well as the connoisseur of music.