Dialects of Sindh

Sindhi  has  in  all  six  dialects  -  Siroli (northern),  Vicholi (centeral),  Lari (southern), Kohistani(in the hilly region)  Thareli(prevalent in Thar),  Kuchhi  (in vogue in lower Sindh and Kuchh). Lasi(of Lasbela) may also be counted as a dialect but mostly it is spoken outside the boundaries of Sindh. 

In  Sindhi  the  word  “Siro”  means  ‘Head’ (the upper part of body) and thus “Siroli’ means the language of Upper Sindh. From ‘Siro’ also is derived ‘Siraiki’. The Seraiki as a language is not  a  dialect  of  Sindhi;  however,  the  form  of Siraiki spoken in Sindh is called ‘Sindhi-Siraiki’.

“The  ‘Sindhi-Siraiki’  is  different  from standard  Sindhi  dialect  ‘Vicholi’  only  in having  a  more clearly  articulated pronunciation,  and  a  slightly  different vocabulary”. (Grierson: 1919: 9) The  dialect  namely  ‘Vicholi’  (the  Sindhi word  ‘Vich-u’  means  ‘middle’  or  center)  is spoken in Central Sindh. It is recognized as the standard dialect, and is employed in education, media and literature. 

‘Lari’  is  the  language  of  Lar.  The  word ‘Lar’  means  ‘sloping  (ground),’  just  as  ‘Siro’ means ‘upper’,  and  ‘Vicholo’,  ‘central.’  Thus  it is  applied  to  the  Lower  Sindh,  which  includes area around Hyderabad, Thatta, Badin and the Indus Delta. The Lari dialect retains many old forms, including  certain  prominent  Dardic peculiarities that have been lost by Vicholi. ‘Thareli’  and ‘Kucchi’  are  both  mixed dialects.  The  former  is  spoken  in  the  Thar (desert)  of  Sindh.  It  is  a transition  form  of speech  representing  Sindhi  shading  off  into Rajasthani,  Marwari.  Kucchi,  on the  other hand,  is  a  mixture  of  Sindhi  and  Gujarati, spoken in lower Sindh and Kutcch. Kohistani is spoken  in  the  mountainous  region  lying between  Karachi  and  Dadu  districts,  Thano bola Khan being its centre. 

And, the dialect of ‘Lasi’ is spoken in Las Belo  area  of  present  Balochistan  adjoining Sindh in the West.