Conversation on the phone

This is an audio recording of Wali, 16 year old boy, having a conversation with his friend on a mobile phone. He appears to be quite upset about an event at his one friend’s house during birthday celebrations. He narrates to his friend, on phone, the heated exchange of words between him and some other friend. The swear words are bleeped.
Date: February 3, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Performance of a joke

This is a recording of Mr. Anwar reciting a joke on the wit of an Indian involved in an argument with an American and a Russian.
Date: January 31, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Monologue on Naushad

This is a personal narrative about an incident of the childhood time of Naushad Shaikh, the paternal uncle of the researcher, in Mandē village of Azamgarh.
Date: January 31, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Personal narrative of Mohammad Khalid

This is a personal narrative of the life of the speaker Mohammad Khalid. The narrative is in the Northern (Mandē) dialect of Azamgarhi with some code-switching to Urdu.
Date: January 31, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Conversation while sewing clothes

This is a recording of a conversation on ladies’ clothes and design between four women, among whom one was sewing clothes.
Date: January 28, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Story about a king and a cat

This is a very short bedtime story of a king and a cat narrated in a rhyming pattern. These type of stories are told to lull and amuse small children.
Date: July 20, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Monologue on Mande village

This is a monologue on Mande village by Master Mohammad Khalid. The narrative is in the Northern (Mande) dialect of Azamgarhi. Frequent code-switching to Urdu can be easily heard even when pointed out to speak in the local language by the researcher in the beginning part of the recording.
Date: January 31, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Interpretation of an Urdu poem on dowry system

This is a description of an Urdu poem, written by one of the speaker's relatives, on the dowry system prevalent in North India. The poem is in the Urdu language, and the speaker interprets it and explains its meaning and significance in Azamgarhi to the researcher.
Date: February 1, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Personal narrative of Shazia Shaikh

This is a personal narrative of the life of the speaker Shazia Shaikh. She narrates many of her childhood incidences. Additionally, she provides a detailed description of most of her family members as well as her village Bairidih.
Date: December 28, 2019
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Retelling of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah

This is a retelling of one of the stories on Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, the eleventh and last king of the Awadh Kingdom. Wajid Ali Shah was widely regarded as a debauched and detached ruler, and this story highlights the point.
Date: January 31, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Personal narrative about Pīr Miā̃

This is a personal narrative about an elderly person famous by the name Pīr Miā̃ who would travel by horse. He once arrived in the village of Khetaurā, the village next to Bairīḍīh. The speaker tells some events which took place at that time and talks about Pīr Miyā̃ along with his interaction with him.
Date: February 10, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Discussion of irrigation systems (in Urdu)

This is a discussion on the popular irrigation systems used in Azamgarh and nearby areas of Purvanchal, Uttar Pradesh state, before the invention of tube wells. This discussion briefly also extends to farming systems and agricultural tools. This discussion was primarily between the researcher and two residents of southern Azamgarh who were distant relatives to the researcher. It took place almost entirely in Urdu, whereas some background noises can be frequently heard in Azamgarhi.
Date: January 28, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Performance of the folksong 'Dulahē tērī ãkhiā̃' 'O bridegroom, your eyes'

This is a performance of a traditional song by the title ‘Dulahē tērī ãkhiā̃’ (Eng. O bridegroom, your eyes) sung on the occasion of marriage. It praises the beauty of the bridegroom and his costume. Such songs are of great significance to the community; however, until recently, their popularity and importance have started dwindling because of the penetration of urban culture into rural society.
Date: January 29, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Performance of the folksong Dulahē kī ammā ‘O the bridegroom’s mother’

This is a performance of a traditional song by the title ‘Dulahē kī ammā’ (Eng. O the mother of the bridegroom). In this song, the bridegroom’s mother is asked to bless her son on this auspicious marriage occasion. Such folksongs are of great significance to the community; however, until recently, their popularity and importance have started dwindling because of the penetration of urban culture into rural society. This folksong is in the Eastern dialect of Urdu.
Date: January 29, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Reading and interpretation of Urdu article Khōkhlā vajūd 'Hollow existence' into Azamgarhi

This is a reading and simultaneous interpretation of an Urdu article Khōkhlā vajūd 'Hollow existence', which appeared in the Urdu daily newspaper 'The Inquilab' dated 26th of December 2019. The article was read by Naazli at her residence, and her cousin Faiza Khan simultaneously interpreted it into Azamgarhi. This was done at the request of Maaz, and the article was suggested to him by his grandfather.
Date: February 3, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Analytical discussion on the drama Gharphū̃kan patōh 'spendthrift daughter-in-law'

This is an analytical discussion — in Urdu — on a drama titled – Gharphū̃kan patōh (Eng. spendthrift daughter-in-law). It depicts a typical rural life of the North Indian plains where a woman and her family are very much sick of the misdeeds of the daughter-in-law because she is very spendthrift! Naazli helps Maaz understand some unfamiliar words and guides him through some of the sentences while she was sewing some clothes on the sewing machine.
Date: February 4, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Conversation between Tauqeer Ahmad and the children of Bindawal village

This is a conversation between Tauqeer Ahmad and the children of Bindawal village in the Northern Azamgarhi dialect as they were warming themselves in front of a fire. The children seeing the researcher and Mr. Tauqeer, try to escape but Mr. Tauqeer asks them to stay at their places. He then starts questioning an incident that took place the previous night wherein police arrived at the village and fined someone who was fishing illegally.
Date: November 23, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Conversation while cleaning fishes

This is a recording of a conversation while cleaning fishes. There was some conversation between women who were cleaning fishes. In order to get natural data, Maaz goes near to them, sits, and starts recording without alerting them. Suddenly as few seconds pass, one of them alerts, and everyone takes a surprise! But a few moments later, they become comfortable with it. They then start imitating and mocking the far northern variety of Azamgarhi spoken in Dewārā, the flood plain area of the Ghaghra river in the northern part of Azamgarh.
Date: January 28, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Story of Master Sahib

This is a story of a teacher who once — while teaching his students — says, “I have made you human from donkey by beating, but you don’t understand.” A washerman who had no children passes by and hears this. He then approaches the teacher and pleads with him to turn a donkey into a son for his sake. The teacher agrees to this and asked him to return after six months. The washerman returns after six months and asks for his son. The teacher replies that he taught and trained him so much that he became a judge at the Allahabad High Court. The washerman then visits the court, and the story continues.
Date: January 31, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Story of Rājā Guguliyā

This is a story about a prince whose maternal uncles killed his father. Once — when young — he asks his mother about his father. She replies that he was murdered by his uncle. From that day onwards, he decides to take revenge for his father’s death. His uncles wanted to kill the prince too — the way they killed his father. This story describes how the prince takes revenge. This story is in the western variety of the Southern dialect of Azamgarhi. succeeds in finding Sheherbano. This story is told in the western variety of the Southern dialect of Azamgarhi
Date: February 10, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Story of a princess and her stepmother

This is a story about a princess whose mother died and her father remarries. The stepmother gives birth to a daughter, and the princess and her stepsister spend their childhood in a friendly way. As time passes, the stepmother and daughter develop jealousy and animosity towards the princess and adopt every possible technique to trouble her. Even after suffering so much, the good fate of the princess always takes care of her. All inflicted hardship by the stepmother bounces back to her daughter. The moral of the story is — As you sow shall you reap. This story is told in the western variety of the Southern dialect of Azamgarhi.
Date: February 10, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Story of hen and python

This is a story about a hen and python who were very good friends. Once, seeing the hen being quite healthy, the python’s intentions went awry. He asked the hen to go inside her stomach once and check what’s there, and then he would do the same. The hen replied, okay, and the python goes inside and finds 8-10 eggs. His intentions very nefarious at once, and he asks the hen to do the same. The poor hen does so, and the cunning snake does not open his mouth to let her out.
Date: February 10, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Conversation in Fatehpur village about land issues, village, farming, harvest, and fisheries

This is a conversation between three people in Fatehpūr village in the Maū district of UP. The conversation begins with some land issues in Fatehpūr and then moves on to modern-day farming issues faced in the village. Then the speakers move on to discussing the prospects of fisheries and then to the climate of Fatehpūr, which is relatively colder because of the Fatehpūr Ratōh Lake.
Date: November 21, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library

Story of a king and three sisters

This is a story about a king who once takes a walk in his kingdom to check if everyone there is pleased with him. He finds three sisters wishing that if they marry the royal cook, the vizier, and the king, their lives will change forever. This happens, and the king marries the younger sister. She gives birth to a child whom the elder sister replaces with a kitten and leaves him flowing in the river. This happens thrice. The children were found by a gardener who brings them up very well. The story, which is in the Northern (Mandē) dialect with some instances of code-switching to Urdu, continues further.
Date: January 31, 2020
Creator: Shaikh, Maaz
System: The UNT Digital Library