DIGITAL REVITALIZATION OR DILUTION: ANALYZING DIGITAL DISCOURSE OF POTOHARI LANGUAGE IDENTITY ON YOUTUBE CHANNELS

Abstract

Potohari remains an under-documented and institutionally neglected regional language in Pakistan. It is frequently misclassified as a dialect of Punjabi, which has led to its marginalization in both national language policy and educational domains. The research identifies the cultural dilution and language erosion due to the lack of institutional support, educational representation, and intergenerational transmission as primary factors contributing to the endangerment of regional languages. Digital platforms like YouTube are emerging as grassroots spaces for linguistic expression, though there is limited scholarly investigation into their role in reversing language shift or sustaining ethnolinguistic identity. This study employs Rodney H. Jones’ (2015) Discourse Data Analysis (DDA) in conjunction with Leanne Hinton’s Language Revitalization Theory(2001) to examine how Potohari language and identity are constructed and sustained in digital spaces, particularly through YouTube . How do YouTube users construct and express Potohari linguistic and cultural identity in digital discourse? And in what ways do YouTube comments reflect efforts to revitalize and maintain the Potohari language in the digital space? This study adopts a qualitative interpretive design, using elements of digital discourse analysis to investigate language attitudes and identity construction in user-generated YouTube comments on Potohari-language content. Two YouTube channels that feature Potohari language content specifically folk dramas, comedy skits, interviews, and language phrases were purposively selected. The users of this language are found across the globe in diaspora and they feel the strong urge to have separate identity of Potohari which is sometimes merged with Punjabi or with Pahari language and on that they seem to spread their voice on digital platforms. The findings affirm that Potohari speakers are actively involved in both identity construction and language revitalization through YouTube. The data analysis shows the efforts as part of a bottom-up, community-led revival, rooted not in state policy but in emotional labor, metalinguistic awareness, and intergenerational consciousness among the digital users. Future inquiries could adopt longitudinal approaches to track the evolution of language use over time. Investigating the role of youth, diasporic communities, or local influencers as digital agents of language revitalization. Such studies would contribute to a richer understanding of how localized linguistic identities are being reshaped and reasserted in the age of digital globalization.