1. Introduction

According to Social Contact theory, language is the result of the emergence of social interaction. Language is a vital component of a society. The purpose of language is communication which can be possible with the community. Therefore, the language grows with the society. It is affected by society and society also affects it which leads to drastic changes in it. Language variation can occur at the level of style, pronunciation, and lexicon (vocabulary). Languages change with the evolution process. Different societies with their respective languages come in contact and affect each other in terms of code-switching, code-mixing, borrowing, and modification of lexicon.

Urdu is the composition of Sanskrit, Arabic, and Persian. It arose in the Mughal Empire from Lucknow and has a great history of 1000 years. The language gained prominence during the Mughal Empire. In the subcontinent, the Urdu language resembled Marathi, Marwari, and Hindi in its word choice. Being the language of the court, it possessed enriched culture and literature. But, immediately after the Mughal Empire, India was ruled for 200 years by the British after which the impact of the English language grew by every passing day. The Urdu language, as a result, suffered and borrowed loan words from the English. Languages due to the natural process of evolution and social interaction are born, die and interact with each other. Thus in a bilingual or multilingual society languages experience several variations at the level of phonology, lexicon (vocabulary), accent and dialects. Bilingualism is a natural phenomenon that occurs through natural language contact. Bilingualism indicates the presence of two or more languages in the same speaker, in the way these languages play a significant role in effective communication [1]. Language gets impure due to bilingualism; observe code switching and code mixing in their speech. Urdu and English have the status of national and official languages respectively which persuades the speakers to switch and mix the languages. In addition, Westernization, modernization, technology, and mass communication are massive agents for variations in the Urdu language. The conflict between the official language and the national language is the major cause for the language switching, borrowing, and inclusion of English words in Urdu vocabulary. Eventually, the language loses its standard of linguistic factors i.e.; vocabulary, style, and register. The curriculum conflict is yet another major problem. Children are taught English from the primary level eventually; they learn English and forget their native language such students speak an impure language. 

The imperial languages are always promoted and dominant over the indigenous languages. The coming generations wish to learn the language which is superior and prestigious in the society. Therefore, in pursuit of learning English as a Second language and lingua Franca, Urdu has experienced drastic variations in its lexicon. Pakistan is a multilingual state where 6 major and 57 minor languages are spoken [6]. Being the national language, the speakers from different languages with their own culture and ethnicity also bring the changes; These changes are so contagious that they have found the ground and are spoken mixed with Urdu in our everyday communication with family members and friends; moreover, it has altered the names, titles, meet and greet manner.

1.1. Research Questions

1) What forms of variations have taken place in the vocabulary of the Urdu language for everyday communication?

2) What are the causes of variations in the use of Urdu implied in everyday communication?

1.2. Research Objectives

1) To investigate the forms of variations which have taken place in the vocabulary of the Urdu language for everyday communication.

2) To gain an in-depth study of variations in the use of Urdu implied in everyday communication.

1.3. Research Limitations

The study is restricted to finding the changes in the lexicon of the Urdu language for the last ten years. It focuses on exploring the causes of those changes and types of the changes; finally, the study concludes with the impact of those changes. It also discusses how far these changes are valuable and hazardous. The gap is left in this study to find a solution to preserve the Urdu language from becoming impure.

1.4. Methodology

The study is based on interviews asked from the Urdu speakers belonging to District Sanghar and Karachi from Sindh, and Lahore from Punjab. The data collected is based on a questionnaire that asked participants to answer based on their experience and knowledge. Tape recording, note taking and manual analysis are methodologies used. The collected data from participants is transcribed and analyzed manually relating to the nature of answers provided and comparative analysis with the previous studies. 

2. Literature Review

Several authors and scholars have worked on the language variation in the Urdu lexicon caused by numerous linguistic factors: regional variations (dialectal variations), social class, education, and technology. Language variation is an inevitable aspect of evolution as societies grow and communities interact with the language due to interaction with its neighboring languages faces the changes. The variations primarily are observed due to geographical changes that give rise to dialects. Pakistan and India vary in the dialects of language due to this geographical factor. Language varies due to the influence of other languages, language imperialism; bilingualism, and multilingualism that is, a person who speaks more than one or two languages shifts and shuffles the languages together causing the code-switch and code-mix. Code-switching is the inevitable consequence of bilingualism or multilingualism and anyone who speaks more than one language chooses between them according to concrete circumstances [5]. Code mixing occurs when a conversant uses two languages together to the extent that he/ she changes from one language to the other in the course of a single utterance [7]. Studies of Urdu varieties other than Modern Standard North Indian Urdu have received attention perhaps disproportionate to their number of speakers or position in the sociopolitical language hierarchy [2]. Language varies due to technology, television advertisements, and social media trends. The person who spends excess time surfing on social media and television reflects the habits and actions he watches, according to the theory of interaction. English as a lingua franca is widely used across the globe. Commercial advertisements which are readily capable of gaining public attention play a crucial role in language mixing. The English language is almost spoken and understood in every country around the world and various programs in magazines, radio, TV, and movies were reported in the English language. This contact of the English language with other domestic languages allows English to mix in spoken, and written, as well as in dictionaries [4]. As language dynamicity results in linguistic transformations over time, the linguistic properties become unstable. However, it is interesting to mention that is not a problem for the speakers, because the heterogeneity is structured and does not cause any damage to the process of communication [3].

3. Findings

The study led to very interesting and insightful findings which are detailed as follows.

Table 1: Variation in names of Family members

Table 2: Other Changes In Lexemes

Table 3: Changes In Standard Of The Language

4. Discussion

The collected data from different participants highlight the changes in word choice during conversations in Urdu between friends and family. All the participants agreed that the changes have taken place in the Urdu lexicon in the previous 10 years. As per the collected data, the changes found are given below. 

People observe code-switching and code-mixing in their communication. They have made the language impure ultimately, the young speaker does not speak or understand the original vocabulary of the words. The factors behind these variations are education standards, migration, globalization, socialization, personal touch, and geographical distance. The evolution has resulted in massive changes in the Urdu language and with those adaptations the language has shifted for betterment as well and is called, "Modern Urdu". The stress in words has subsided with the evolution that has resulted in the language becoming more elegant. 

Since the adaptations and changes are also appreciated to some extent. But, the Urdu language in recent years has encountered such changes that it has completely diverged from its original classical style. Due to the lack of social interaction with elderly people, excess use of social media, and preference to English over Urdu has caused the death of several words in Urdu. The contents of social media such as commercial ads and vlogs, also imply the use of the English language extensively. Ultimately, the youth is inspired by them and replicates their style. The teachers in educational institutes mix and switch the codes to make their language understandable for the students. Roman Urdu is widely used in texts and messaging, and this has badly affected the write-up, dictation, and script (املاہ).

 Due to the impact of contact languages, the compassionate and delightful tone of Urdu has changed to aggressive and offensive. During the interview with Participant 1, she said that being a teacher she has observed the students are not reluctant to use immoral and abusive language and use of pragmatic approach to mock each other, this shows the traces of immorality in the conversation of youth. Participant: 04 answered the question on changes in word choice while communicating the friends as, nowadays, the loose and uncivilized manner of speech is rampant. Ethics and norms of speech have vanished while frankness and friendliness are valued. Participant: 06, in his interview, stated these changes have affected the religious and cultural values. The English culture and trends that are shown on Social media are promoted. Eventually, it has led society towards destruction.

Technology has immensely caused harm to the socio-cultural identity of the nations. Several borrowed vocabulary words have been adapted. It has coined vocabulary from innovations in technology. Words like texting, messaging, email, phone, internet, and media have become part of everyday communication due to the advancement and wide use of technology. Thus, language encounters variations in lexeme (vocabulary) based on sociocultural interaction and union.

 5. Conclusion

Language is with the community, as long as the active speakers are present in the society the language survives. Language through the natural process of evolution keeps changing and developing. These changes can be good or bad for the language, in other words, these changes may develop or destroy the language. Urdu is spoken as a first language by nearly 70 million people and as a second language by more than 100 million people, predominantly in Pakistan and India. It is the official state language of Pakistan and is also officially recognized, or “scheduled,” in the constitution of India. Urdu is the language composed of Sanskrit, Arabic, Persian, and Hindi. Since Urdu is not a completely original language it has emerged from several languages, therefore, it has several words of the languages of which it is composed. In the previous 10 years, Urdu has confronted several impurities in it in the form borrowing of new vocabulary by different linguistic practices like coinage, borrowing, abbreviations, and acronyms. The rise of mobile phones and instant messaging has led to the widespread use of abbreviations and acronyms in written communication. Urdu speakers have adopted this trend by using abbreviations like "LOL" (لول), and "BRB" (بیک کI). Urdu, like other languages, has adopted numerous technological terms from English and other languages. As technology advanced, new concepts and inventions emerged, and Urdu needed to incorporate these terms into its lexicon. Words like "ٹیکسٹ" (text), "میل" (email), "فون" (phone), "انٹرنیٹ" (internet), and "سوشل میڈیا" (social media) are examples of borrowed words that have become part of everyday Urdu vocabulary. With the development of new technologies, Urdu-speaking communities have coined new words and phrases to describe these innovations. For instance, "ویب سائٹ" (website), "ڈاؤن لوڈ کرنا" (to download), and "وائرل ہونا" (to go viral) are Urdu neologisms that have emerged in response to technological advancements.

Yet, after such immense changes in word choice, Urdu has moved towards betterment due to print form (literature), courses, showbiz industry. Therefore, the language apart from impurities, has developed, though there need to draw the focus of youth towards Urdu to promote the language by increasing the vitality (active speaking community) and standard of the language.