Maulvi Abdul Haq

Maulvi Abdul Haq () was a scholar and linguist, who is also regarded as Baba-e-Urdu () (Father of Urdu). He was a champion of the Urdu language and the demand for it to be made the national language of Pakistan.

Early life

Abdul Haq was born on November 16, 1872 in Hapur town in Ghaziabad District in India. He developed an affinity for the Urdu, Deccani, Persian and Arabic. He did B.A. from Aligarh Muslim University in 1894 where he found company of some of the savants of that time, including, Shibli Nomani, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Ross Masood, Mohsin-ul-Mulk, Syed Mehmud, Professor Arnold, and Babu Mukharjee. After graduation, Abdul Haq went to Hyderabad Deccan and associated himself to learning, teaching, translating and upgrading Urdu. Abdul Haq was deeply influenced by Sir Syed's political and social views, and learnt English and scientific subjects. Like Khan, Abdul Haq saw Urdu as a major cultural and political influence on the life and identity of the Muslims of India. He founded the Anjuman Taraqqi-i-Urdu in 1903 in Aligarh. Professor Arnold become the first president and Shibli Nomani the first secretary. Abdul Haq joined the Indian Civil Service under the British Raj, and worked as a chief translator at the Home Department in Delhi, before being appointed as the provincial inspector of schools at Aurangabad in the Central Provinces....
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