Portal:Punjab

The Punjab Portal

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Introduction

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Punjab (/pʌnˈdʒɑːb, -ˈdʒæb, ˈpʊn-/; Punjabi: [pə̞ɲˈdʒäːb] ^ⓘ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb), also known as the Land of the Five Rivers, is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern-Pakistan and northwestern-India. Punjab's major cities are Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Multan, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Sialkot, Chandigarh, Shimla, Jalandhar, Patiala, Gurugram, and Bahawalpur.

Punjab grew out of the settlements along the five rivers, which served as an important route to the Near East as early as the ancient Indus Valley civilization, dating back to 3000 BCE, followed by migrations of the Indo-Aryan peoples. Agriculture has been the chief economic feature of the Punjab and formed the foundation of Punjabi culture. The Punjab emerged as an important agricultural region, especially following the Green Revolution during the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s, and has been described as the "breadbasket of both India and Pakistan."

Punjab's history is a tapestry of conflict, marked by the rise of indigenous dynasties and empires. Following Alexander the Great's invasion in the 4th century BCE, Chandragupta Maurya allied with Punjabi republics to establish the Maurya Empire. Successive reigns of the Indo-Greek Kingdom, Kushan Empire, and Indo-Scythians followed, but were ultimately defeated by Eastern Punjab Janapadas such as the Yaudheya, Trigarta Kingdom, Audumbaras, Arjunayanas, and Kuninda Kingdom. In the 5th and 6th centuries CE, Punjab faced devastating Hunnic invasions, yet the Vardhana dynasty emerged triumphant, ruling over Northern India. The 8th century CE witnessed the Hindu Shahis rise, known for defeating the Saffarid dynasty and the Samanid Empire. Concurrently, the Tomara dynasty and Katoch Dynasty controlled eastern Punjab, resisting Ghaznavid invasions. Islam took hold in Western Punjab under Ghaznavid rule. The Delhi Sultanate then succeeded the Ghaznavids in which the Tughlaq dynasty and Sayyid dynasty Sultans are described as Punjabi origin. The 15th century saw the emergence of the Langah Sultanate in south Punjab, acclaimed for its victory over the Lodi dynasty. After the Mughal Empire's decline in the 18th century, Punjab experienced a period of anarchy. In 1799 CE, the Sikh Empire established its rule, undertaking conquests into Kashmir and Durrani Empire held territories, shaping the diverse and complex history of Punjab.

The boundaries of the region are ill-defined and focus on historical accounts and thus the geographical definition of the term "Punjab" has changed over time. In the 16th century Mughal Empire the Punjab region was divided into three, with the Lahore Subah in the west, the Delhi Subah in the east and the Multan Subah in the south. Under the British Raj until the Partition of India in 1947, the Punjab Province encompassed the present Indian states and union territories of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, and Delhi, and the Pakistani regions of Punjab, and Islamabad Capital Territory.

The predominant ethnolinguistic group of the Punjab region are the Punjabi people, who speak the Indo-Aryan Punjabi language. Punjabi Muslims are the majority in West Punjab (Pakistan), while Punjabi Sikhs are the majority in East Punjab (India). Other religious groups include Hinduism, Christianity, Jainism, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, and Ravidassia. (Full article...)

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The Punjabis (Punjabi: پنجابی (Shahmukhi); ਪੰਜਾਬੀ (Gurmukhi); romanised as Panjābī) are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group associated with the Punjab region, comprising areas of northwestern India and eastern Pakistan. They generally speak Standard Punjabi or various Punjabi dialects on both sides.

Majority of the overall Punjabi population adheres to Islam with significant minorities practicing Sikhism and Hinduism and smaller minorities practicing Christianity. However, the religious demographics significantly vary when viewed from Pakistani and Indian sides, respectively, with over 95 percent of the Punjabi population from Pakistan being Muslim, with a small minority of Christians and Hindus and an even smaller minority of Sikhs. Over 57 percent of the population of the Indian state of Punjab is Sikh and over 38 percent Hindu with a small minority of Muslims and Christians. (Full article...)

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General images

Image 1Rajputs in Delhi (1868) (from Punjab)
Image 2Map of the Multan Province of the Sikh Empire, Herbert B. Edwardes, 1848–49 (from Sikh Empire)
Image 3Map showing the Punjabi Sikh Empire (from Punjab)
Image 4Maharaja Ranjit Singh seeking the sanctuary of Guru Nanak, ca.1830 (from Sikh Empire)
Image 5The Indian subcontinent in 1805. (from Sikh Empire)
Image 6Brahmin in Lahore (c. 1799–1849) (from Punjab)
Image 7Jats in Delhi (1868) (from Punjab)
Image 8Taxila in Pakistan is a World Heritage Site. (from Punjab)
Image 9Arora in Lahore (c. 1862–1872) (from Punjab)
Image 10Kumhars in Lahore (c. 1859–1869) (from Punjab)
Image 11One of the first known kings of ancient Punjab, King Porus, fought against Alexander the Great. His surrender is depicted in this 1865 engraving by Alonzo Chappel. (from Punjab)
Image 12Tarkhans in Lahore (c. 1862–1872) (from Punjab)
Image 13Gujjars in Delhi (c. 1859–1869) (from Punjab)
Image 14
The dominant mother tongue in each District of Pakistan, according to the 2017 Pakistan Census
(from Punjab)
Image 15Left to right: Gurkha, Brahmin and Shudra (Chuhra-Chamar) in Shimla (1868) (from Punjab)
Image 16The expanding Sikh Empire in 1809. The Cis-Sutlej states are visible south of the Sutlej River (from Sikh Empire)
Image 17
Ranjit Singh listening to Guru Granth Sahib being recited near the Akal Takht and Golden Temple, Amritsar, Punjab, India.
(from Sikh Empire)
Image 18Silver copper coin of Khizr Khan, founder of the Sayyid dynasty (from Punjab)
Image 19Two late 19th century drawings of Sikh troops in action against British forces during the Anglo-Sikh Wars (from Sikh Empire)
Image 20Contemporary painting of the Battle of Sobraon in 1846. (from Sikh Empire)
Image 21Detail from ‘Darbar (royal court) of Maharaja Ranjit Singh’, gouache, ca.1850 (from Sikh Empire)
Image 22The charge of the British 16th Lancers at Aliwal on 28 January 1846, during the First Anglo-Sikh War (from Sikh Empire)
Image 23Illustration of Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh Empire (from Punjab)
Image 24Ranjit Singh holding court in 1838 (from Sikh Empire)
Image 25Rig Veda, the oldest known Hindu text, originated in the Punjab region. (from Punjab)
Image 26The Samadhi of Ranjit Singh is located in Lahore, Pakistan, adjacent to the iconic Badshahi Mosque (from Sikh Empire)
Image 27Nanakshahi coins of the Sikh Empire (from Sikh Empire)
Image 28The snow-covered Himalayas (from Punjab)
Image 29Map of the Punjab Province (British India) (from Punjab)
Image 30Ranjit Singh, c. 1830. (from Sikh Empire)
Image 31A letter sent from the King of France, Louis-Philippe to Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Ranjit Singh is addressed as “Rendjit Sing Bahador – Padichah du Pendjab”. 27 October 1835 (from Sikh Empire)
Image 32Sikh warrior helmet with butted mail neckguard, 1820–1840, iron overlaid with gold with mail neckguard of iron and brass (from Sikh Empire)
Image 33Maharaja Ranjit Singh holding court outside near the Golden Temple in Amritsar with everyone dressed in Basant (yellow) (from Sikh Empire)
Image 34Arains in Lahore (1868) (from Punjab)

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Official portrait, 2004

Manmohan Singh (Punjabi: [mənˈmoːɦən ˈsɪ́ŋɡ] ^ⓘ; born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist, academician and bureaucrat who served as the Prime Minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He is the fourth longest-serving prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Narendra Modi. A member of the Indian National Congress, Singh was the first Sikh prime minister of India. He was also the first prime minister since Jawaharlal Nehru to be re-elected after completing a full five-year term.

Born in Gah, West Punjab, in what is today Pakistan, Singh's family migrated to India during its partition in 1947. After obtaining his doctorate in economics from Oxford, Singh worked for the United Nations during 1966–1969. He subsequently began his bureaucratic career when Lalit Narayan Mishra hired him as an advisor in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. During the 1970s and 1980s, Singh held several key posts in the Government of India, such as Chief Economic Advisor (1972–1976), governor of the Reserve Bank (1982–1985) and head of the Planning Commission (1985–1987). (Full article...)

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Guru Gobind Singh Guru Nanak Ranjit Singh Porus Bulleh Shah Harjit Sajjan Abdus Salam Jagmeet Singh Banda Singh Bahadur Jind Kaur Sophia Duleep Singh Bhagat Singh Har Gobind Khorana Abdus Salam Guru Tegh Bahadur

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Coin of the Scythian king Maus, about 80 BC.

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Notice board

Punjabi wikipedians' noticeboard

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WikiProject Punjab

WikiProject Punjab was formed to foster better articles on the region of Punjab with a spirit of cooperation. The project is a home base that provides a place for Wikipedians (editors) to discuss issues, while share information and resources regarding improvements to Punjabi related articles, which can be discussed at the project's talk page. To join WikiProject Punjab (anyone may join), simply list your username on the members page. Editors are also encouraged to participate in the more regional and/or topic specific WikiProject 's as listed below.

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