Arts/Society Heer and Loi (Jatt) being used in Punjabi songs

[Johinder Singh]

In Punjabi songs, you can often hear that the singer mentions the name Heer and Loi sometimes. If you were wondering why, this is because Heer and Loi are referring to “the Jatt” or are talking about Jatt. For example in the song Phulkari by Karan Randhawa, he repeats “Jatt Loi” and in Tere till ton, a hit song by Kuldeep Manak, he says “Heer” referring to the Jatt or Jatti. This is because Heer and Loi carry that Jatt heritage and history. It could also be because Heer means diamond in Punjabi and Loi means shawl in Punjabi, but mostly because of the Jatt heritage.