Aer language

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Indo-Aryan language spoken in Pakistan

title: "Aer language" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["languages-of-sindh", "indo-aryan-languages"] description: "Indo-Aryan language spoken in Pakistan" topic_path: "linguistics" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aer_language" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Indo-Aryan language spoken in Pakistan ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox language"]

Field	Value
name	Aer
nativename	آیر
image	File:Aer language Arabic script.svg
region	Sindh, Pakistan
speakers	100
date	1998
ref	e25
familycolor	Indo-European
fam2	Indo-Iranian
fam3	Indo-Aryan
fam4	Western Indo-Aryan
fam5	Gujarati
script	Arabic script
iso3	aeq
glotto	aerr1238
glottorefname	Aer
dia1	Jikrio Goth
dia2	Jamesabad
::

Aer ( ) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by around 100 people in Sindh, Pakistan and Gujarat, India. and is spoken in rural areas of Sindh including Hyderabad, Kot Ghulam Muhammad, and Kunri. Some speakers are also reported to be living in Shaheed Benazirabad, but they have a different culture.

History

After the Partition of India in 1947, the Muslim speakers of the language migrated to Pakistan, while the Hindu speakers stayed in India. Most of the Aer speakers in Pakistan live in Deh 333, near Hyderabad in lower Sindh. The language was formed in the Indian subcontinent during the Delhi Sultanate and Mughal Empire due to the influence of Persian, Arabic, and Turkish on Indian languages.

A 1998 estimate concluded there were around 200 native speakers. Current estimates, however, put the number of speakers at 150, further cementing its 'endangered' status.

Classification

Aer has been classified as one of the Gujarati languages. Ethnologue reports that the closest language is Kachi Koli and especially its dialects Katai Meghwar and Kachi Bhil, and that most Aer speakers are bilingual in Sindhi. Two varieties of Aer are Jikrio Goth Aer and Jamesabad Aer.

Alphabet

Aer is commonly not written, but when it is, it is written in a variety of the Arabic script.

::data[format=table title="Aer Perso-Arabic alphabet"]

Letter	Name of Letter	Transcription	IPA
{{nq	ا}}	alif	a
{{nq	ب}}	be	b
{{nq	پ}}	pe	p
{{nq	ت}}	te	t
{{nq	ٹ}}	ṭe	ṭ
{{nq	ث}}	se	(s)
{{nq	ج}}	jīm	j
{{nq	چ}}	če	č
{{nq	ح}}	he	(h)
{{nq	خ}}	khe	kh
{{nq	د}}	dāl	d
{{nq	ڈ}}	ḍāl	ḍ
{{nq	ۮ}}	ɗāl	ɗ
{{nq	ذ}}	zāl	(z)
{{nq	ر}}	re	r
{{nq	ڑ}}	ṛe	ṛ
{{nq	ۯ}}	ɭe	ɭ
{{nq	ز}}	ze	z
{{nq	ژ}}	je	j
{{nq	س}}	sīn	s
{{nq	ش}}	šīn	š
{{nq	ص}}	swād	(s)
{{nq	ض}}	zwād	(z)
{{nq	ط}}	to'e	(t)
{{nq	ظ}}	zo'e	(z)
{{nq	ع}}	‘ayn	ʿ
{{nq	غ}}	ghayn	gh
{{nq	ف}}	fe	f
{{nq	ق}}	kāf	k
{{nq	ک}}	kāf	k
{{nq	گ}}	gāf	g
{{nq	ل}}	lām	l
{{nq	م}}	mīm	m
{{nq	ن}}	nūn	n
{{nq	ݨ}}	ṇūn	ṇ
{{nq	ں}}	˜	˜
{{nq	و}}	waw	w
{{nq	ہ}}	he	h
{{nq	ھ}}	_he	_h
{{nq	ۿ}}	ɦ	ɦ
{{nq	ء}}	hamza	ʿ
{{nq	ی}}	ye	y
{{nq	ے}}	ye	e, ē
::

References

Torwali, Zubair. (28 July 2015). "Saving local languages".
Arshad, Muhammad. (2021-09-06). "How Many Languages Are Spoken In Pakistan".
Parekh, Rauf. (2018-01-02). "Some endangered Pakistani languages".
Rahman, Tariq. (January 2004). "Language Policy and Localization in Pakistan: Proposal for a Paradigmatic Shif".
Bukhari, Syed Muhammad Azeem Shah. (7 April 2019). "معدوم ہوتی پاکستانی زبانیں".
"Did you know Aer is endangered?".
Parekh, Rauf. (2017-03-13). "Literary notes: How many languages are spoken in Pakistan?".
"ScriptSource - Entry - Aer language keyboard".

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