Word Meaning
बच्चों
bachchon
Meaning
Children, infants, or young offspring (plural oblique form).
Detailed Meaning
In Urdu poetry, 'bachche' or 'bachchon' evokes innocence, tenderness, and familial pathos. In this couplet from Ghalib's elegy for his nephew and adopted son Arif, it refers to Arif's surviving young children whose playful innocence the departed did not stay to behold. The word sharpens the emotional blow of premature death by highlighting the tragedy of the young ones left behind.
Etymology
From Sanskrit 'vatsa' (calf, child, darling) through Prakrit 'baccha' into Hindustani 'bacchā'.
Usage
In classical Urdu ghazal, the Persian/Arabic loan 'tifl' is more frequent, but the native Hindustani 'bachcha' is preferred in marsiya or personal elegies for direct, heartbreaking emotional realism.
Examples
The innocent play of children brings warmth to a desolate home.
Children throwing pebbles at the wandering lover in the street.