The land, it's people, and it's stories

It is interesting how what sprouts from the land, the trees; make their way into the language & literature of the people who know that land as home.

Local folktales from ethnic groups across the country and Urdu literature would be incomplete without our trees: Pipli, Shisham, Chinar, Shamshad, Peepal, and Injeer. Our languages would not be the same without the proverbs and similes about these trees.

The same is also true for herbal medicine, may it be Neem, Gur ka Sherbet, or the Karri Patta. It is not only about the land we claim, but also about how the land claims us as its own.

It is about the fruits like the Gurgura for which we do not have names for in English; it is about the flowers we use to adorn our hair; and it is about the herbs and spices we add to our food.

It is why the Palestinians have folk songs about olive harvests, and books like The Land of Sad Oranges.

It is why Congolese folklore mentions palm trees and mangroves every now and then, just Sudanese fables mention baobab trees, and the Yemeni & Syrians hold citrus close to their hearts.