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There are lots of good reasons why you should learn Urdu.
First, it’s the 20th most populous language in the world; so for avid travelers, it’ll surely come in useful. It’s also rich in poetry and literature, emerging from the early 14th-15th centuries. Finally, if you’re a fan of calligraphy and the arts, you’re bound to encounter its beautiful texts inscribed on Islamic religious and historical structures.
Learning Urdu is simpler than ever these days since there are many language-learning resources like apps. One of the most popular platforms is Rosetta Stone, a highly immersive and interactive option.
To know exactly why that is (and if you could take up Urdu on it), let’s find out a little more about the app.
What is Rosetta Stone?
Rosetta Stone is the name and Dynamic Immersion is the game!
Rosetta Stone builds on your language acquisition experience by offering short yet interactive tutorials. Their Core Lessons integrate innovative features—such as audio, image, and text—with their courses to best prepare you for real-life interactions!
Thus, not only will you acquire reading, writing, and speaking skills, but you’ll also get to observe them in worldly contexts.
For added flexibility, Rosetta Stone lets you customize Your Plan to suit your current goals, skill level, and day-to-day schedule. Furthermore, their TruAccent speech recognition technology helps perfect your pronunciation by recording and assessing your speech during lessons.
All in all, it’s a pretty great spot to learn a new language! However, since Urdu isn’t offered by Rosetta Stone at the moment (and it’s also not available on Duolingo), you ought to find an alternative—and luckily, we’ve got three good options:
The best Rosetta Stone alternatives
For as impressive as it is, it’s a shame that there isn’t a Rosetta Stone Urdu course. Nevertheless, these alternative Urdu learning apps will come just in handy (and for a number of good reasons):
1. Mondly Urdu
Mondly offers interactive and bite-sized lessons for students of all levels. Whether you’re an absolute beginner or a seasoned intermediate, you’re bound to progress quickly on this app!
Here, you’ll get Urdu courses on reading, writing, and speaking, suitable for many different contexts. Might you want to practice reading the alphabet or speaking for travel, it has enough gamified content in store!
To top it all off, all its tutorials are equipped with high-quality audio that functions as if you’re learning from native speakers!
Mondly offers one free lesson a day. Get Mondly Premium for full access. It’s worth it.
Key Features:
- Gamified lessons on vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation
- Contains high-quality audio (recorded by native Urdu speakers)
- Has a special hands-free mode for portability
2. Pimsleur
Want an app that’s backed by science? Tired of rote memorization techniques? Well, Pimsleur’s audio course is the answer.
Based on the scientifically supported Pimsleur Method, this app is expertly designed to boost your conversation skills. With the goal of developing your long-term memory, it uses gradual interval recall drills to stress important Urdu vocabulary.
On top of that, its lessons are largely based on real-life scenarios—so essentially, you’ll be studying the language for practical use!
Here’s an offer for you: Try Pimsleur Urdu absolutely free today!
Key Features:
- Focused on building conversational skills
- Optimizes long-term memory through well-timed intervals
- Based on the scientifically-proven Pimsleur Method
3. Ling App
Beginners, intermediates, and advanced-level learners rejoice, for Ling has courses for everyone!
Primarily using mini-games, this app is determined to teach Urdu in a light, interactive manner. From sentence arrangement to picture-matching, fun flashcards to built-in chatbot—its dynamic user interface keeps lessons simple and fresh for all levels!
Moreover, it comes with extensive vocabulary, grammar, and dialogue tutorials—so I say skip the books, and take a good look over here!
Ling starts free, but if you want additional features, subscribe to the Pro Version (you might chance upon a sale!).
Key Features:
- Includes courses for beginners and up
- Game-like Urdu lessons with a user-friendly interface
- Made with an interactive chatbot
Other great resources to learn Urdu
Mastering Urdu comes with learning how to read, write, understand, and speak it. Fortunately, there are hundreds of books, websites, and podcasts to keep you up and about! Here are some of the best ones we’ve found:
Simply Learn Urdu: Need handy flashcards, audio recordings, and a quick search function all in one app? Then head on over to Simply Learn Urdu!
UrduPod101: As the name suggests, UrduPod101 covers all things podcast related! Here, you can slow down audio files, get line-by-line breakdowns, and even avail of their bonus material, such as word lists and flashcards.
italki: italki features a wide variety of community and professional tutors. You may sift through their profiles, view their rates, and book your classes on the italki Virtual Classroom and/or Skype.
Beginning Urdu: A Complete Course: Beginning Urdu is a textbook made for first-year Urdu students—so if you’re looking for classroom-type lessons, this is it! It even has MP3 audio to accompany your studies.
Cudoo: Learn how to introduce yourself, talk about your job, your interests, and many other things in the Urdu language with Cudoo’s Urdu courses. There are classes from the beginner to the advanced level, all accessible anytime on any device.
Read and Write Urdu Script: The Urdu script, Nastaliq, requires much study and practice. This 11-unit primer is loaded with readings, word lists, and exercises to polish your reading and writing skills.
Forvo: Forvo’s online pronunciation dictionary is definitely not one to miss! Simply search up the words and phrases you’re struggling to say and play out the corresponding audio.
r/Urdu: Reddit forums are surprisingly helpful in the realm of language learning. Should you need additional resources or advice, just drop by and view their posts!
Conclusion
Rosetta Stone is undoubtedly a great language platform, as it’s built with lessons, functions, and technologies that suit students of all levels. However, since Urdu isn’t a course they offer, you’ll have to search for a close alternative instead.
Good for you, there are many amazing ones—starting with these three apps—that feature similarly interactive and practical tutorials. So, just pair this with other books, games, and websites, and let the learning commence!