I did not learn Urdu in Pakistan. I learned it in Madinah.

It may sound unlikely, yet it perfectly explains my relationship with Urdu. I grew up in a home where Arabic was the language of everyday life, while Punjabi was the language of our family. Urdu found its way into our home through neither school nor textbooks. It arrived every morning in the form of a Saudi newspaper, Urdu News.

My mother would sit beside me, patiently helping me read one word at a time. Long before Urdu became part of my career in journalism and research, it had already become part of my identity.

Without realizing it, I was discovering one of the most powerful tools of statecraft: respecting people through their language.

- Dr. Talha AlKashmiri  

At the time, I thought my mother was simply teaching me the language of my homeland. Without realizing it, I was discovering one of the most powerful tools of statecraft: respecting people through their language.

Many people see language as little more than a means of communication. Nations that seek lasting influence see it differently: language builds trust, deepens understanding and strengthens relationships between societies. Geography defines borders. Language reaches people.

This is why Saudi Arabia’s commitment to Urdu should not be viewed simply as an initiative for a resident expatriate community. The Kingdom recognized early that speaking to millions of Muslims in their own language is part of its broader mission, as the home of Islam’s Two Holy Mosques carries a responsibility to communicate with the wider Muslim world beyond Arabic, even as Arabic remains the language of the Qur’an itself.

For me, Urdu News was never merely the newspaper through which I learned a language. It reflected a simple truth: meaningful bridges between nations are built by speaking to people in the language closest to their hearts. Saudi Arabia was practicing public diplomacy long before the term became fashionable, speaking directly to millions of readers and allowing them to follow the Kingdom’s transformation through its own voice.

Today, that vision matters more than ever. Language has become an essential part of how nations shape their image, earn public trust and build lasting influence. Those who speak to people in their own language stand a far better chance of being understood as they intend, rather than through someone else’s interpretation.

Since the nineteenth century, Urdu has served as a unifying language for Muslims across the Indian subcontinent, extending well beyond poetry and literature into a rich intellectual tradition of Qur’anic exegesis, Hadith and Islamic jurisprudence. It remains one of the leading languages of Islamic scholarship and a vehicle for cultural exchange among hundreds of millions of Muslims, for whom it is also the language through which they preserve identity and follow developments across the Islamic world.

It is also the national language of one of Saudi Arabia’s closest strategic partners, a country with which the Kingdom has built decades of cooperation in politics, the economy, defense, development and humanitarian work. Investing in Urdu, then, is not simply a service for its speakers. It is an investment in Saudi Arabia’s long-term strategic interests.

As the Kingdom advances Vision 2030, it is presenting itself to the world in new ways: not only as a leading energy producer and economic powerhouse, but also as a global destination for investment, tourism, innovation and international partnerships. A transformation of this scale cannot be communicated through a single language. It must be shared in the languages of the people the Kingdom hopes to reach.

Nowhere is this more evident than at the Two Holy Mosques. Every year, millions of pilgrims travel to Saudi Arabia, many from Urdu-speaking communities, needing more than translated instructions. They need guidance in a language that offers reassurance and a genuine sense of belonging. The Kingdom’s continued expansion of multilingual services there, including Urdu, should be understood as more than a translation initiative. It reflects an enduring commitment to serving Islam and Muslims, in which language becomes a source of trust and inclusion.

The importance of Urdu extends well beyond religious communication, too. Saudi-Pakistani relations are entering a new phase, with growing cooperation in investment, energy, technology, education and economic development, and a partnership of this depth requires people who understand not only each other’s language but also each other’s society.

Anyone who follows Pakistan only through English gains valuable insight into its institutions and political elite. Those who understand Pakistan through Urdu gain something different: access to the pulse of society, its newspapers, literature and evolving intellectual life. That is not simply an academic advantage. It provides a stronger foundation for better policy and a deeper understanding of an important strategic ally.

The same principle works both ways. Just as Saudi Arabia benefits from investing in Urdu, Pakistan must continue investing in Arabic. Strong and lasting partnerships cannot depend on only one side learning the other’s language.

This becomes even more important as artificial intelligence reshapes the future of communication. Languages that invest in digital content and language technologies will be better equipped to preserve their cultural heritage and protect their narratives for future generations. Saudi Arabia and Pakistan now have an opportunity to deepen cooperation in Arabic and Urdu language technologies and knowledge platforms, with benefits extending far beyond the two countries to the wider Muslim world.

After all these years, I can still picture my mother placing Urdu News in my hands in our home in Madinah, encouraging me to read one word after another. I thought, then, that I was simply learning the language of my homeland. I understand now that she was teaching me something greater: that nations which seek to remain close to people’s hearts do not begin with translation. They begin with respect.



Dr. Talha AlKashmiri writes analytical pieces on geopolitics, Pak Arab relations, and South Asian affairs. He has a strong affinity with Urdu and Arabic language and literature. He tweets @DrAlkashmiri