Punjabi is an Indo-European language that originated in north South Asia a millennium ago. Punjab means “the land of five rivers” that descend from the Himalaya mountain range. There are over 130 million Punjabi speakers in the world today. Punjabi is also an important language in California; it is the third most common language spoken in the Central Valley. Our campus is located in the heart of the historic Punjabi community, the first sizeable South Asian American community, that started in the 1890s.

Elementary Punjabi (PUN 1, 2, and 3) is a three-course sequence taught in an in-person format where you will learn listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills in Punjabi and to Punjabi culture.

Intermediate Punjabi (PUN 21, 22, and 23) is the next three-course sequence taught in an in-person format where you will learn integrated listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills in formal and informal contexts.

In addition, virtual courses for Punjabi (PUN 1V, 2V, and 3V) are also available via UC Online. This course series is hosted by the UC Davis Middle East/South Asia Studies Program, but is open to all UC students. It was developed due to a generous UC Innovative Learning Teaching Initiative (ILTI) grant.

Source: Gurmeet Kaur, Fascinating Folktales of Punjab.