Topographical map of The Punjab, Land of 5 Rivers

Punjab (British India), 1909

Dialects of Punjabi

The Punjab (ⁱ/ˈpʌndʒɑːb/ or /ˈpʌndʒæb/; Punjabi: ਪੰਜਾਬ, پنجاب), also spelled Panjab (Persian: پنجاب‎, panj-āb, "five rivers"),^[1] is a geographical region straddling the border between Pakistan and India which includes Punjab province in Pakistan and the states of the Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and some northern parts of the National Capital Territory of Delhi in India.^[2] The name of the region is Persian in origin and means "(The Land of) Five Rivers" referring to the following rivers: the Jhelum, the Chenab, the Ravi, the Sutlej, and the Beas.^[3] All are tributaries of the Indus River, the Jhelum being the largest. Punjab has a long history and rich cultural heritage. The people of the Punjab are called Punjabis and their language is called Punjabi. The main religions of the Punjab region are Islam, Sikhism and Hinduism.

The area now known as the Greater Punjab comprises what were once vast territories of West Pakistan and northern western India. The bigger section of the Punjab at about 60% lies within Islamic Republic of Pakistan and 40% within Republic of India where it has been further divided into three states; Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. The Punjab in Pakistan is soon to be divided into three parts - Punjab, Southern Punjab and the province of Bahawalpur.^[4]

The region is populated by Indo-Aryan speakers. Of these people there are different religious groups such as Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Jains and Buddhists. It has also been inhabited by Greeks,^[5] Persians,^[6] Arabs,^[7] Turks,^[8] Mughals, Afghans, Balochis, and British. In 1947, it was partitioned between British India's successor states with three out of the five rivers going to Pakistan and the remaining two rivers were allotted to India.

The Pakistani Punjab now comprises the most densely populated province in Pakistan. In India, the Government further sub-divided Punjab into the modern Indian states of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, and the Union Territory of Chandigarh, which serves as the capital for both Punjab and Haryana. A small part of the region was incorporated into Delhi, which expanded a bit northward post-independence. The Pakistani part of the region West Punjab (which includes the Islamabad Capital Territory) covers an area of 205,344 square kilometers (79,284 sq mi), whereas the Indian State of Punjab is 50,362 square kilometers (19,445 sq mi). Besides the Indian Punjab, the region also includes the Jammu state of India. The populations of the region are divided as 86,084,000 (2005) in West Punjab (Pakistan) and 24,289,296 (2000) in the present-day State of (East) Punjab (India). Punjabi is spoken by (approximately) 60% of the entire population in Pakistan mainly in the Punjab province, making it the most spoken language in Pakistan, and 92.2% in Indian Punjab. (3% of overall Indian population).^[9] The capital city of undivided Punjab was Lahore, which now sits close to the partition line as the capital of West Punjab; while the capital of East Punjab is Chandigarh, 248 km (154 miles) from Lahore.^[10] Indian Punjab uses the Gurmukhi script, while Pakistani Punjab uses the Shahmukhi script.

History[link]

Taxila Pakistan is a World Heritage Site

A section of the Lahore Fort built by the Mughal emperor Akbar.

The Bardari of Ranjit Singh, built in the Hazuri Bagh.

Government College in Lahore

The Punjab region of India and Pakistan, has a historical and cultural link to Indo-Aryan (Indo-Aryan) heritage identity as well as partially to the Dravidic indegenous communities. As a result of numerous invasions, many ethnic groups and religions make up the cultural heritage of Punjab.

In prehistoric times, one of the earliest known cultures of South Asia, the Harappa civilization, was located in Punjab.

The epic battles described in the Mahabharata were fought in modern-day Harayana and historic Punjab. The Gandharas, Kambojas, Trigartas, Andhra, Pauravas, Bahlikas (Bactrian settlers of Punjab), Yaudheyas and others sided with the Kauravas in the great battle fought at Kurukshetra.^[11] According to Dr Fauja Singh and Dr L. M. Joshi: "There is no doubt that the Kambojas, Daradas, Kaikayas, Andhra, Pauravas, Yaudheyas, Malavas, Saindhavas and Kurus had jointly contributed to the heroic tradition and composite culture of ancient Punjab".^[12]

In 326 BCE, Alexander the Great invaded the tip of Punjab from the north (Modern day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan) and defeated King Porus. His armies entered the region via the Hindu Kush in northwest Pakistan and his rule extended up to the city of Sagala (modern-day Sialkot) in northeast Pakistan. In 305 BCE the area was ruled by the Maurya Empire. In a long line of succeeding rulers of the area, Chandragupta Maurya and Ashoka the Great stand out as the most renowned. The Maurya presence in the area was then consolidated in the Indo-Greek Kingdom in 180 BCE. Menander I Soter "The Saviour" (known as Milinda in Indian sources) is the most renowned leader of the era. Neighbouring Seleucid rule came to an end around 12 BCE, after several invasions by the Yuezhi and the Scythian people.

In 711 - 713 century CE 18 year old Arab Sultan Muhammad bin Qasim of Syria by way of the Arabian Sea came with Syrian Arab troops to defeat Raja Dahir. Sultan Muhammad bin Qasim then lead his troops and conquered Sindh and Punjab regions for the Islamic Umayyad Caliphate. Qasim was the first to bring Islam to the region, later on many Afghans, Pashtoon, and Turkic tribes took up the banner of Islam as they entered the region in subsequent years.

During the establishment and consolidation of the Muslim Turkic Mughal Empire prosperity, growth, and relative peace were established. Particularly under the reign of Jahangir. Muslim empires ruled Punjab for approximately 1000 years. The period was also notable for the emergence of Guru Nanak Dev (1469–1539). Later Mughal Emperors conflict with Sikh subjects shaped a pathway to the modern border partition.

In 1758, Punjab came under the rule of Marathas who captured the region by defeating Afghan forces of Ahmad Shah Abdali. Abdali's Indian invasion weakened the Maratha influence, but he could not defeat the Sikhs. At the formation of the Dal Khalsa in 1748 at Amritsar, the Punjab had been divided into 36 areas and 12 separate Sikh principalities, called misl. From this point onward, the beginnings of a Punjabi Sikh Empire emerged. Out of the 36 areas, 22 were united by Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The other 14 accepted British sovereignty. Ten years after Maharaja Ranjit Singh's death, the empire broke up and the British were then able to defeat Punjab with the help of some Hindu Dogra kings. The Sikh State of Punjab was the only Indian state which was not under European rule at that time.

The British Raj had political, cultural, philosophical and literary consequences in the Punjab, including the establishment of a new system of education. During the independence movement, many Punjabis played a significant role, including Ajit Singh Sandhu, Bhagat Singh, Udham Singh, Kartar Singh Sarabha, Bhai Parmanand, Muhammad Iqbal, Chaudhary Rehmat Ali, Ilam Din Shaheed and Lajpat Rai.

The Punjabis also played a prominent role in the mutiny of 1857 against the British^{[citation needed]}. Cities like Jhelum and Ludhiana served as centres of rebellion against the British government.^{[citation needed]}

At the time of partition in 1947, the province was split in to East and West Punjab. East Punjab became part of India, while West Punjab became part of Pakistan. The Punjab bore the brunt of the civil unrest following the end of the British Raj, with casualties estimated in the millions.

Demographics[link]

Ethnic ancestries of modern Punjabis include a mixture of Indo-Aryan, some Indo-Scythian, and indigenous Dravidic elements; Semitic ancestries can also be found in lesser numbers. With the advent of Islam, settlers from Mongolia, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Kashmir, Arabia, and Uzbekistan have also integrated into the Pakistani Muslim Punjabi society, from whom many Pakistani Punjabis claim descent. However the majority of Punjab is still made up of the native Arains, Jatts, Chamars, Scheduled Castes, Rajputs, Maliks, Khatris, Aheer, and Gujjars. The vast majority of Pakistani Punjabis inhabiting the fertile regions of four out of the five major rivers are Muslims by faith, but also include numerous minority faiths such as Ahmadi, Sikhs, Hindus, Christians and Parsis. Sikhism, a religion of the late 15th century, is the main religion practiced in Indian Punjab. About 70% of the population of Indian Punjab is Sikh, 27% is Hindu, and the rest are Muslims, Christians, and Jains.^[13] However, due to large scale migration from Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar, Bengal and Orissa demographics of Indian Punjab state have become more skewed than reported earlier. Indian Punjab contains the holy Sikh city of Amritsar. The states of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, formerly constituents of the British province of Punjab, are mostly Hindu-majority. The majority of Indian Punjabis speak Punjabi language written in Gurmukhi script. Others in Punjab speak Hindi written in Devnagri script. Himanchal Pradesh and Haryana also primarily speak Hindi, written in Devnagri script. Islam is the religion of more than 90% of the population of the Punjab in Pakistan, followed by a small Christian minority of about 3–5%. There is also a small number of Parsi, Christian,Hindu, and Sikh minorities. Pakistan uses the Shahmukhi script, that is closer to Urdu script and has considerable Arabic, Persian, and Turkic loan words. In total, Pakistan has 88 million people in its Punjab, and India has 55 million people in its Punjab. In greater Punjab there are 143 million people altogether.

Economy[link]

Phulkari embroidery from Patiala

The historical region of Punjab is considered to be one of the most fertile regions on Earth. Both east and west Punjab produce a relatively high proportion of India and Pakistan's food output, respectively. The agricultural output of the Punjab region in Pakistan contributes significantly to Pakistan's GDP. The region is important for wheat growing. In addition, rice, cotton, sugarcane, fruit and vegetables are also major crops. Both Indian and Pakistani Punjab are considered to have the best infrastructure of their respective countries.^[14] The Indian Punjab has been estimated to be the second richest state in India.^[15] The Pakistani Punjab produces 68% of Pakistan's food grain production.^[16] Its share of Pakistan's GDP has historically ranged from 51.8% to 54.7%.^[17]

Called "The Granary of India" or "The Bread Basket of India", Indian Punjab produces 1% of the world's rice, 2% of its wheat, and 2% of its cotton.^[18] In 2001, it was recorded that farmers made up 39% of Indian Punjab's workforce.^[19]

Timeline[link]

• 3300 - 1500 BCE: Harappan civilization (located in modern-day Pakistan)
• 1500 - 1000 BCE: (Rigvedic) Vedic civilization
• 1000 - 500 BCE: Middle and late Vedic Period
• 599 BCE: Birth of Mahavira
• 567 - 487 BCE: Time of Gautama Buddha
• 550 BCE - 600 CE: Buddhism remained prevalent
• 326 BCE: Alexander's Invasion of Punjab (Pakistani parts)
• 322 - 298 BCE: Chandragupta I, Maurya period
• 273 - 232 BCE: Reign of Ashoka
• 125 - 160 BCE: Rise of the Sakas
• 2 BCE: Beginning of Rule of the Sakas.
• 45 - 180 : Rule of the Kushans
• 320 - 550 : Gupta Empire
• 500 : Hunnic Invasion
• 510 - 650 : Vardhana's Era
• 647 - 1192 : Rajput period
• 711 - 713 century : Muhammad bin Qasim of Syria by way of Arabia defeats Raja Dahir and conquers Sindh and Punjab regions along the Indus River (modern day Pakistan) for the Umayyad Caliphate.
• 713 - 1300 : Muslim empires (Turks and Afghans) invade. Islam is being accepted, and a Hindu majority lives along side the Muslims.
• 1206 - 1290 : Mamluk dynasty establishes by Mohammad Ghori
• 1290 - 1320 : Khilji dynasty establishes by Jalal ud din Firuz Khilji
• 1320 - 1413 : Tughlaq dynasty established by Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq
• 1414 - 1451 : Sayyid dynasty established by Khizr Khan
• 1451 - 1526 : Lodhi dynasty establishes by Bahlul Khan Lodhi
• 1526 - 1707 : Mughal rule
• 1526–1530: Zaheeruddin Muhammad Babur
• 1530–1540: Nasiruddin Muhammad Humayun
• 1540–1545: Sher Shah Suri of Afghanistan
• 1545–1554: Islam Shah Suri
• 1555–1556: Nasiruddin Muhammad Humayun
• 1556–1605: Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar
• 1605–1627: Nooruddin Muhammad Jahangir
• 1627–1658: Shahaabuddin Muhammad Shah Jahan
• 1658–1707: Mohiuddin Muhammad Aurangzeb Alamgir
• 1469 - 1539 : Guru Nanak Dev Ji (1st Sikh Guru)
• 1518 - 1565 : Mir Chakar Khan Rind
• 1539 - 1675 : Period of 8 Sikh Gurus from Guru Angad Dev Ji to Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji
• 1675 - 1708 : Guru Gobind Singh Ji (10th Sikh Guru)
• 1699 : Birth of the Khalsa
• 1708 - 1713 : Conquests of Banda Bahadur
• 1722: Birth of Ahmed Shah Durrani, either in Multan in Mughal Empire or Herat in Afghanistan.
• 1714 - 1759 : Sikh warriors (Sardars) perform warfare against Afghans & Mughal Governors
• 1739 : Invasion by Nadir Shah and defeat of weakened Mughal Empire
• 1747-1772: Durrani Empire led by Ahmad Shah Durrani
• 1756 - 1759 : Sikh and Maratha Empire cooperation in the Punjab
• 1761 : The Third Battle of Panipat, between the Durrani Empire against the Maratha Empire. Islamic Jihad was declared, various Muslim warriors answered the call.
• 1762 : 2nd massacre (Ghalughara) from Ahmed Shah's 2nd invasion
• 1761 - 1801 : Rule of the Sikh Misls (Confederacy)
• 1801 - 1839 : Sikh Empire also known as Sarkar Khalsa, Rule by Maharaja Ranjit Singh
• 1845 - 1846 : First Anglo-Sikh War
• 1848 - 1849 : Second Anglo-Sikh War
• 1849 : Complete annexation of Punjab into British India
• 1849 - 1947: British rule
• 1947 : Partition of British India thus Punjab into 2 parts the Eastern part (or two rivers) became the Indian Punjab and the Western part (3 rivers) the Pakistan Punjab
• 1966: Eastern Punjab ,again, divided into three parts namely Punjab(present day), Haryana, Himachal Pradesh

Photo gallery[link]

• 

  The Mughal-era Badshahi Mosque in Lahore, Capital of Pakistan Punjab

• 

  The Faiz Mahal, Khairpur

• 

  The fort at Bathinda

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  The main gate of the Qila Mubarak, Patiala

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  The Golden Temple in Amritsar

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  The Alamgiri Gate built in 1673, is the main entrance to the Lahore Fort

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  The clock tower in Faisalabad was built during the British Raj

• 

  The Phuara Chowk (lit. Fountain Crossing) in Patiala

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  The memorial of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre

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  Jalandhar railway station reception block

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  Irrigated land in the Punjab

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  The mausoleum of Shah Rukn-e-Alam

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  The Shalimar Gardens in Lahore

• Mohindra college night.jpg

  Mohindra College in Patiala

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  The Wazir Khan Mosque in Lahore

• 

  The Hiran Minar in Sheikhupura, a tribute to Jahangir's favourite antelope

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  The mausoleum of Nur Jahan in Lahore

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  The mausoleum of Jahangir in Shahdara, Lahore

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  The Noor Mahal (Palace of Light) in Bahawalpur

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  The Jhelum River, one of the major rivers of the Punjab

• 

  The Mankiala stupa near Islamabad

• 

  The city of Chandigarh, capital of Indian Punjab

See also[link]

Punjab portal

• Punjabi culture
• Punjabi language
• Punjabi cuisine
• Punjabi dance
• Music of Punjab
• Sikhism

Further reading[link]

• [Quraishee 73] Punjabi Adab De Kahani, Abdul Hafeez Quaraihee, Azeez Book Depot, Lahore, 1973.
• [Chopra 77] The Punjab as a sovereign state, Gulshan Lal Chopra, Al-Biruni, Lahore, 1977.
• Patwant Singh. 1999. The Sikhs. New York: Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-50206-0.
• The evolution of Heroic Tradition in Ancient Panjab, 1971, Buddha Parkash.
• Social and Political Movements in ancient Panjab, Delhi, 1962, Buddha Parkash.
• History of Porus, Patiala, Buddha Parkash.
• History of the Panjab, Patiala, 1976, Fauja Singh, L. M. Joshi (Ed).
• The Legacy of The Punjab, 1997, R M Chopra.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Punjab region

• Official website of Punjab, India
• Great people of Punjab, India
• Official website of Punjab, Pakistan
• Punjab, India at the Open Directory Project
• Punjab, Pakistan at the Open Directory Project
• Punjab travel guide from Wikitravel
• Phulkari

v t e The five rivers of the Punjab Punjabi names Jhelum Ravi Chenab Beas Satluj Greek names Hydaspes Hydraotes Acesines Hyphasis Hesidros Sanskrit names Vitasta Parushani Ashikini Vipasa Shatadru