The Pakistan Academy of Letters (PAL) ( ur, ) is a
national academy
A national academy is an organizational body, usually operating with state financial support and approval, that co-ordinates scholarly research activities and standards for academic disciplines, most frequently in the sciences but also the humanit ...
with its main focus on Pakistani literature and related fields. It is the largest and the most prestigious
learned society
A learned society (; also learned academy, scholarly society, or academic association) is an organization that exists to promote an discipline (academia), academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and s ...
of its kind in
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
, with activities throughout the nation. It was established in July 1976 by a group of renowned Pakistani writers, poets, essayists, playwrights, and translators, inspired by the
Académie Française
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...
Ahmed Faraz
Syed Ahmad Shah (), better known by his pen name Ahmed Faraz, ( 12 January 1931 – 25 August 2008) was a Pakistani Urdu poet, scriptwriter and became the founding Director General (later Chairman) of Pakistan Academy of Letters. He wrote ...
was appointed its first Director. It is an autonomous non-profit organisation, supervised by its own Board of Governors, receiving support from the
Government of Pakistan
The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provin ...
as the apex national institution.
The Academy maintains several regional offices, and links with other national and international organizations of a similar status. Its agenda includes promotion of literary education, publication and documentation. with a view to promoting and fostering Pakistani literature, literary activities in Pakistan, and systematizing the support mechanism to writers and scholars of
Punjabi
Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan
* Punjabi language
* Punjabi people
* Punjabi dialects and languages
Punjabi may also refer to:
* Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
Pushto
Pashto (,; , ) is an Eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family. It is known in historical Persian literature as Afghani ().
Spoken as a native language mostly by ethnic Pashtuns, it is one of the two official languages ...
,
Balochi Balochi, sometimes spelt in various other ways, may refer to:
* Balochi language, a language of Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan
* an adjective for something related to the Baloch people, an ethnic group of Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan
* an adjecti ...
,
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
Ishtiaq Hussain Qureshi
Ishtiaq Hussain Qureshi ( ur, ) (20 November 1903 – 22 January 1981) popularly known as I.H. Qureshi, ''SP'', ''HI'', was a Pakistani conservative nationalist historian and playwright. He was the Vice Chancellor of the University of K ...
became the first Chairman of its Founding Fellows, among whom were prominent 'men of letters' representing different languages of Pakistan:
*
Ishtiaq Hussain Qureshi
Ishtiaq Hussain Qureshi ( ur, ) (20 November 1903 – 22 January 1981) popularly known as I.H. Qureshi, ''SP'', ''HI'', was a Pakistani conservative nationalist historian and playwright. He was the Vice Chancellor of the University of K ...
(history) (first chairman)
*
A. K. Brohi
Allah Bukhsh Karim Bukhsh Brohi ( ur, ; sd, الھ بخش ڪريم بخش بروھي; 1915 – 1987) known as A.K. Brohi) was a prominent Pakistani politician and lawyer. He originated from Shikarpur in Sindh. He was the first partne ...
(philosophy)
*
Hafeez Jalandhri
Abu Al-Asar Hafeez Jalandhari ( ur, ) (born 14 January 1900 – 21 December 1982) was a Pakistani Urdu-language poet who wrote the lyrics for the National Anthem of Pakistan
Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi
Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi ( ur, ) born Ahmad Shah Awan ( ur, ) (20 November 1916 - 10 July 2006) was an Urdu language Pakistani poet, journalist, literary critic, dramatist and short story author. He wrote 50 books on topics such as poetry, fiction ...
(Urdu language)
*
Shareef Kunjahi
Sharif Kunjahi ( pa, (Shahmukhi)) (1914 – 2007) was a leading writer and poet of Punjabi. He was among the first faculty members of the Department of Punjabi Language at University of Punjab in the 1970s and contributed to Punjabi literatu ...
Pashto
Pashto (,; , ) is an Eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family. It is known in historical Persian literature as Afghani ().
Spoken as a native language mostly by ethnic Pashtuns, it is one of the two official languages ...
language)
* Sardar Khan Gashkori (
Balochi Balochi, sometimes spelt in various other ways, may refer to:
* Balochi language, a language of Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan
* an adjective for something related to the Baloch people, an ethnic group of Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan
* an adjecti ...
language)
* Professor
Ahmed Ali (writer)
Ahmed Ali (1 July 1910 in Delhi – 14 January 1994 in Karachi) ( ur, احمد علی ) was a Pakistani novelist, poet, critic, translator, diplomat and scholar. A pioneer of the modern Urdu short story, his works include the short story c ...
(English language)
Board of Governors appointed in 1978
First Board of Governors
*
Ishtiaq Hussain Qureshi
Ishtiaq Hussain Qureshi ( ur, ) (20 November 1903 – 22 January 1981) popularly known as I.H. Qureshi, ''SP'', ''HI'', was a Pakistani conservative nationalist historian and playwright. He was the Vice Chancellor of the University of K ...
(first chairman)
*
Ashfaq Ahmad
Ashfaq Ahmed Khan ( ur, ; 22 August 1925 – 7 September 2004) was a writer, playwright and broadcaster from Pakistan. His works in Urdu included novels, short stories and plays for television and radio of Pakistan. He received the President's ...
Pareshan Khattak
Pareshan Khattak ( ur, پری شان خٹک), (10 December 1932 – 16 April 2009) real name Gahami Jan Khattak, former Vice-Chancellor, Pashto poet and writer and former Chairman University Grants Commission.
Born in Karak, Pakistan he joined ed ...
* Syed Mujtaba Hussain
* Two representatives from the Ministry of Education
* One representative from the Universities Grants Commission (now the
Higher Education Commission of Pakistan
The Higher Education Commission (colloquially known as HEC) is a statutory body formed by the Government of Pakistan which was established in 2002 under the Chairmanship of Atta-ur-Rahman. Its main functions are funding, overseeing, regulating ...
)
Pakistan Academy of Letters was established in 1976 but its Board of Governors were not officially appointed by the
Government of Pakistan
The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provin ...
until 1978, when its objectives and functions were also determined.
Academy's support for the writers
The Pakistan Academy of Letters gives annual awards called National Literary Awards for the best original books (within the literary and critical categories) written in all the major languages of Pakistan. The award recipients were initially given a cash prize of Rupees 100,000 (increased to Rs200,000 by 2016).
In 1980, Shafiq-ur-Rehman was appointed the Academy's first Chairman. He has been followed in this fixed-tenure position by a number of writers.
From time to time, the Academy nominates Fellows, and more restrictively some Life Fellows, who earn the privilege of using the post-nominal letters FPAL. The Fellowship of the Academy is highly selective, indicating high distinction in the respective field, and is only awarded to those who are recognized to have contributed extraordinary work to enrich the creation and understanding of Pakistani literature.
Launch of lifetime achievement awards
The Kamal-e-Fun Award (Lifetime Achievement Award) was launched in 1997 by the academy in the field of literature for recognition of creative and research work done by individuals. It also initially carried a cash award of Rupees 500,000 (increased to Rupees 1 million by 2016). Starting in 1997, it was conferred on fourteen people by the end of 2010. A jury comprising Pakistan's eminent literary figures announces, after careful consideration, the name of the yearly award recipient. This award is considered to be Pakistan's highest literary award.
Commemorative postage stamp issued for the academy
On 24 September 2003,
Pakistan Postal Services
Pakistan Post ( ur, ) is a state enterprise which functions as Pakistan's primary and largest postal operator. 49,502 employees through a vehicle fleet of 5,000 operate traditional "to the door" service from more than 13,419 post offices acro ...
issued a commemorative postage stamp on the 25th anniversary of the academy's 'official founding' in 1978.
Recent developments
In 2020, Pakistan Academy of Letters inaugurated 'Faiz Ahmed Faiz Auditorium' on
Faiz Ahmed Faiz
Faiz Ahmad ''Faiz'' (13 February 1911 – 20 November 1984; Urdu, Punjabi:
فیض احمد فیض) was a Pakistani poet, and author of Urdu and Punjabi literature. Faiz was one of the most celebrated Pakistani Urdu writers of his time. Out ...
's birthday with the poet's daughters
Muneeza Hashmi
Muneeza Hashmi ( ur, ; born 1946) is a broadcaster, television producer, actress and a former general manager of the Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV). Hashmi has over four decades of experience working with public media. She is currently ...
,
Salima Hashmi
Salima Hashmi ( ur, ; born 1942) is a Pakistani painter artist, former college professor, anti-nuclear weapons activist and former caretaker minister in Sethi caretaker ministry. She has served for four years as a professor and the dean of Nati ...
and noted scholar
Iftikhar Arif
Iftikhar Hussain Arif ( ur, ; born 21 March 1944), is an Urdu poet, scholar and littérateur from Pakistan. His style is romantic Urdu poetry. He has headed the Pakistan Academy of Letters and the National Language Authority. He has received t ...