Pathans of Punjab

Pashtuns of Punjab
Total population
2,387,378 (2023 Pakistani census) [only includes those who speak Pashto as their mother tongue][1]
Regions with significant populations
 Pakistan (Punjab, Hazara )
 India (Punjab; specifically Malerkotla, historically also Ludhiana and Jalandhar)
[2][3]
Languages
PunjabiHindkoPashtoSaraikiUrdu
Religion
Islam
Related ethnic groups
PathansPathans of SindhRohillaPathans of Gujarat • Pathans of Rajasthan • Pathans of Uttar PradeshPathans of Bihar

The Pashtuns of Punjab (Punjabi, Urdu: پنجابی پٹھان; Pashto: د پنجاب پښتانه), also called Punjabi Pathans[4] or Pathans, are descendants of Pashtun settlers,[5][6] an Eastern Iranian ethnic group, in the Punjab region of Pakistan[7] and India.[3] They were originally from the Pashtunistan region of Afghanistan and Pakistan bordering the Punjab region. Most of these Pashtun communities are scattered throughout the Punjab and have over time assimilated and integrated into the Punjabi society and culture.

These non-frontier Pathans are usually known by the town or locality in which they are settled, e.g. Lahori Pathans.[7]

  1. ^ "TABLE 11 : POPULATION BY MOTHER TONGUE, SEX, and RURAL/URBAN - 2023 Census" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 October 2024.
  2. ^ Shah, Mehtab Ali (1997-12-31). The Foreign Policy of Pakistan: Ethnic Impacts on Diplomacy, 1971-94. ISBN 9781860641695.
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Khyber- Pathan Communities in India was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Study of the Pathan Communities in Four States of India". www.khyber.org. Archived from the original on April 15, 2013. Retrieved 2023-01-24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  5. ^ "Pashtuns". Minority Rights Group. 2015-06-19. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  6. ^ Minahan, James B. Ethnic Groups of South Asia and the Pacific: An Encyclopedia: An Encyclopedia. ISBN 9781598846607.
  7. ^ a b Punjabi Musalmans; by J. M. Wikely, pages 133-134