Editing Balti language (section)

==Literature==
Other than proverb collections, no prose literature has been found written in Balti.{{Citation needed|date=May 2020}} Some epics and sagas appear in oral literature such as the ''[[Epic of King Gesar]]'' and the stories of ''rgya lu cho lo bzang'' and ''rgya lu sras bu''. All other literature is in verse. Balti literature has adopted numerous [[Persian language|Persian]] styles of verse and vocables which amplify the beauty and melody of its poetry.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Bano |first1=Nuzhat |last2=Mir |first2=Abdul Rehman |last3=Issa |first3=Muhammad |date=2024-01-04 |title=The Extinction of Words from Use: A Critical Aspect of Balti Language Endangerment |url=https://ojs.ahss.org.pk/journal/article/view/467 |journal=Annals of Human and Social Sciences |language=en |volume=5 |issue=1 |pages=182–195 |doi=10.35484/ahss.2024(5-I)17 |issn=2790-6809|doi-access=free }}</ref>

Nearly all the languages and dialects of the mountain region in the north of Pakistan such as [[Pashto]], [[Khowar language|Khowar]] and Shina are [[Indo-Aryan languages|Indo-Aryan]] or [[Iranian languages|Iranic languages]], but Balti is one of the [[Sino-Tibetan languages]]. As such, it has nothing in common with neighboring languages except some loanwords absorbed as a result of linguistic contact. Balti and [[Ladakhi language|Ladakhi]] are closely related.

The major issue facing Balti literature is its centuries-long isolation from [[Tibet]] and even from its immediate neighbor, Ladakh, due to political divisions and strong religious differences. Separated from its linguistic kin, Balti is under pressure from more dominant languages such as [[Urdu]]. This is compounded by the lack of a suitable means of transcription following the abandonment of its original Tibetan script. The Baltis do not have the awareness to revive their original script and there is no institution that could restore it and persuade the people to use it again.{{Citation needed|date=May 2020}} Even if the script were revived, it would need modification to express certain Urdu phonemes that occur in common loanwords within Balti.

Example of poetry:{{blockquote|{{center|
:Youq fangsay thalang paqzi na mandoq na mabour na
:Na drolbi laming yani si soq fangse chi thobtook
:Nasir Karimi}}}}