Tracing Motifs through a Linguistic Analysis of the Pakistani Indigenous Tales

Abstract

The Pakistani civilization is one of the oldest civilizations in the sub-continent inhabited between the Harappa civilization and the Indus Valley. The present study was designed for tracing out the indigenous culture of Southern Punjab in Pakistan. This study finds the representation of indigenous culture in the Pakistani folktales collected from Southern Punjab, Pakistan. The Pakistani indigenous folktales have been transferred from generation to generation by word of mouth. The researcher collected 40 folktales from the informants of study. The motif analysis was done through Thompson Motif Index. The researcher applied the multistage approach for the analysis of Saraiki folktales. The researcher found 577 motifs out of 40 folktales from 36 informants of the study. The motifs found from the Saraiki folktales represent the indigenous culture. The study establishes the antiquity of Pakistani cultural heritage in the world.