Pashtuns in Punjab

The Pathans of Punjab (Punjabi: <small>(Shahmukhi)</small>, पंजाबी पठान <small>(Devanagari)</small>; ) are originally Pashtun people (Pathans) who have settled in the Punjab region of Pakistan and India. These Pashtun communities are scattered throughout the Punjab.

These non-frontier Pathans are usually known by the town or locality in which they are settled, e.g., Kasuri Pathans or Multani Pathans. They should not be confused by the Hindkowans, who have a distinct identity from the Punjabi Pathans.

History and origin

These colonies of Pathans (Pashtun people or ethnic Afghans) are accounted for by Sir Densil Ibbetson in the following manner:

Large numbers of Pathans accompanied the armies of Mahmud of Ghazni, Muhammad of Ghor and Babur, and many of them obtained grants of land in the Punjab plains and founded Pathan colonies which still exist. Many Pathans have also been driven out of Afghanistan due to devastated invading forces such as Genghis Khan and his Mongol armies, including internal feuds or famine, and have taken refuge in the plains east of the Indus River where the Mongols marked the line of their aggression.

The tribes most commonly to be found in the Punjab region are the Yusufzai, Mandanr, Lodhi, Kakar, Sherwani, Orakzai, Tanoli, Karlanri and the Zamand...
Read More