Zindagi (ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ) is the Punjabi word for 'life'. It means the whole span from birth to death, and also the way a person lives it: their daily routine, their struggles and their joys. It comes from the Persian word zindagī, and it is one of the most used words in Punjabi songs and everyday speech.
How it's used
- 1ਮੇਰੀ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਪਿੰਡ ਵਿੱਚ ਬਹੁਤ ਸੋਹਣੀ ਸੀ।My life in the village was very beautiful.
- 2ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਵਿੱਚ ਮਿਹਨਤ ਤੋਂ ਬਿਨਾਂ ਕੁਝ ਨਹੀਂ ਮਿਲਦਾ।In life, nothing comes without hard work.
- 3ਉਹ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਭਰ ਆਪਣੇ ਪਰਿਵਾਰ ਦੀ ਸੇਵਾ ਕਰਦਾ ਰਿਹਾ।He served his family all his life.
Show 2 more examples
- 4ਮੈਨੂੰ ਨਹੀਂ ਪਤਾ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਕਿੱਧਰ ਜਾ ਰਹੀ ਹੈ।I do not know where life is heading.
- 5ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦਾ ਹਰ ਦਿਨ ਇੱਕ ਨਵਾਂ ਮੌਕਾ ਹੈ।Every day of life is a new chance.
ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦਾ ਅਰਥ ਹੈ 'ਜੀਵਨ'। ਇਹ ਸ਼ਬਦ ਫਾਰਸੀ ਦੇ ਸ਼ਬਦ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਤੋਂ ਆਇਆ ਹੈ। ਇਹ ਇਸਤਰੀ ਲਿੰਗ ਹੈ, ਅਤੇ ਇਸ ਦਾ ਬਹੁਵਚਨ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀਆਂ ਹੈ। 'ਮੇਰੀ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ' ਦਾ ਮਤਲਬ ਹੈ 'ਮੇਰਾ ਜੀਵਨ', ਸਿਰਫ਼ ਜੀਉਂਦਾ ਹੋਣਾ ਨਹੀਂ, ਸਗੋਂ ਉਹ ਸਭ ਕੁਝ ਜੋ ਜੀਵਨ ਵਿੱਚ ਭਰਿਆ ਹੋਇਆ ਹੈ। 'ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਭਰ' ਦਾ ਮਤਲਬ ਹੈ 'ਸਾਰੀ ਉਮਰ', ਅਤੇ 'ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦਾ ਸਫ਼ਰ' ਦਾ ਮਤਲਬ ਹੈ ਜਨਮ ਤੋਂ ਬੁਢਾਪੇ ਤੱਕ ਦਾ ਰਸਤਾ। ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਗੀਤਾਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਇਹ ਸ਼ਬਦ ਬਹੁਤ ਵਰਤਿਆ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ, ਜਿਵੇਂ ਅਖਿਲ ਦੇ ਗੀਤ 'ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ' ਵਿੱਚ।
What does zindagi mean in Punjabi?
Zindagi (ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ) is the Punjabi word for 'life'. It covers the whole span from birth to death, and also the way a person lives: their daily routine, their struggles and their joys. When a Punjabi speaker says 'meri zindagi', they mean 'my life', not just the fact of being alive but everything that fills it.
Where does zindagi come from?
Zindagi comes from Classical Persian zindagī, the word for life. It is a feminine noun, and its plural is zindagiyaan (ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀਆਂ), meaning lives or lifetimes. Punjabi has other words for life too: jindari (ਜਿੰਦੜੀ), jeevan (ਜੀਵਨ), jaan (ਜਾਨ) and hayat (ਹਯਾਤ). Of these, zindagi is the one people reach for first in everyday speech, while jeevan sounds more formal and is more common in books and hymns.
In songs and everyday writing you will also see the spelling jindagi (ਜਿੰਦਗੀ), with the first vowel shortened. Akhil's 2017 song 'Zindagi', with lyrics by Maninder Kailey, spells it both ways in the same song, which shows how freely the two spellings are used.
How is zindagi used?
Zindagi is used whenever Punjabis talk about how life is going. 'Zindagi vich' means 'in life', as in 'Zindagi vich mehnat ton bina kujh nahi milda', nothing comes in life without hard work. 'Zindagi bhar' means 'for a lifetime' or 'all my life', a phrase used for promises and for service to family. And 'zindagi da safar' means 'the journey of life', the road a person travels from birth to old age.
Zindagi in songs
Zindagi is one of the most sung words in Punjabi music. In Akhil's song 'Zindagi' the singer says, 'Mainu zindagi da pata naiyo chalda, kinjh langdi payi ae tere naal', which means 'I do not even realise how life is passing, the way it is going with you by my side.' The line works because zindagi here means more than being alive: it means the shared days of a life together.
What does 'zindagi bhar' mean?
'Zindagi bhar' means 'for a lifetime' or 'all my life'. It is used for promises that are meant to last, such as 'Main zindagi bhar tera saath devanga', 'I will stand by you all my life', and for service, such as 'Oh zindagi bhar apne parivar di seva karda reha', 'He served his family all his life.'
Related words
Sources (2)
- Wiktionary: ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ; borrowed from Classical Persian zindagī; feminine; Shahmukhi زندگی; meanings life, lifetime; synonyms jindṛī, jīvan, jān, hayāt; plural zindgīā̃
- LyricsRaag: Zindagi lyrics, Akhil (2017), lyrics by Maninder Kailey; 'Mainu zindagi da pata naiyo chalda, kinjh langdi payi ae tere naal' = 'I don't even realize the life passing by, the way it is going with you by my side'
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