A SOCIOLINGUISTIC ANALYSIS OF URDU ENGLISH CODE SWITCHING IN PAKISTANI DRAMAS: A SOCIOLINGUISTICS INVESTIGATION

Abstract

This research examines the Urdu-English code-switching in Pakistani TV dramas from a sociolinguistics lens, investigating how language uses identity, class, gender, and generational affiliation. The study utilizes the theoretical framework of Conversational Code Switching introduced by John J Gumperz (1982). It scrutinizes the specific scenes from the drama “Chaudhary and Sons”, inspecting the bilingual speech of an elderly female character who alternates between Urdu and English. A qualitative method involving discourse analysis design is used to explore the function of language to communicate humor, power, and social accommodation. The analysis underscores several major functions of code switching given by Gumperz, including quotation, reiteration, interjection, and message qualification. It communicates that these linguistic changes are not arbitrary but socially navigate role shifts. The character’s English marked by a Punjabi accent in mixed discourse illustrated cultural negotiation between conventional identity and contemporary declaration. The results indicate that in the context of Pakistani media, bilingualism transcends mere class aspirations; it serves as a dynamic manifestation of identity across generational and cultural boundaries. The research ultimately demonstrates that code switching within media language serves as a vibrant confirmation of the evolving linguistic landscape in Pakistan, with hybridity marking resilience, adjustment, and the continuous development of social identity.