The writing system Urdu and Hindi also have separate scripts.
Urdu is written right to left in the Nastaliq script, which differs in small but important respects from the Naskh script used for Arabic. It is a consonantal system in which vowels are indicated by marks above and below the letters. Letters also change according to their position - initial, medial, final or isolated - in the word.
A high value is attached to calligraphic skills.
Hindi is written in the Devanagari script. It runs from left to right with an almost continuous horizontal line running along the top.
Urdu names
Grandfather
Mohammed
Akram
Iqbal
Father
Yusuf
Ali
Akram
Son
Mohammed
Arif
Yusuf
Daughter
Khalida
Parween
Yusuf
Males have a personal name (e.g. Akram, Aziz, Arif) which can come first or second and is used only by family and friends; and a religious name (e.g. Mohammed, Abdul) which can come first or second but is never used alone. The two names together (e.g. Mohammed Arif) form a 'calling name' which is used by acquaintances. Some men also use a hereditary name, (e.g. Qureshi, Chowdrey), or a male title (e.g. Khan).Women have a personal name which always comes first and a second name which is either a female title (e.g. Bano, Begum, Bi, Bibi) or another personal name. Girls and boys usually take their father's personal name as a family name; married women usually take their husband's personal name.Hindi speakers will use Hindu names. The family priest consults an almanac to suggest syllables that can be used in the baby's name. Then, in a ceremony that usually takes place on the twelfth day following the birth, the father whispers the chosen name in the baby's ear.Children can be given one or two personal names; in the case of two, the first name is usually the one used. The family name is shared by all members of the family and usually indicates the sub-caste.
