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Punjabis
Total population:	100 to 120 million
Significant populations in:	Majority populations in: Pakistan Significant populations in: Image File history File links Stop_hand. ... Image File history File links Punjabis. ... India Other: United Kingdom Canada Malaysia
Language:	Majority Punjabi Minority: Punjabi (also Panjabi; in Gurmukhī, Panjābī in Shāhmukhī) is the language of the Punjab regions of India and Pakistan. ... Multani Hariyanavi Hindko Kangri Dogri
Religion:	Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism, Christianity
Related ethnic groups:	Seraikis, Dogra

Punjabis are a largely an Indo-Aryan people native to the Punjab region located in the north west corner of the Indian subcontinent. Punjabis are the largest ethnic group of Pakistan and are also found in northern India. There are also traces of Dravidian ancestry found in many sections of the Punjabi population. In India, ethnic Punjabis can be found across the greater Punjab region which now comprises the states of Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh and the union territories of Chandigarh and Delhi. Siraiki (also known as Seraiki, Multani and Southern Punjabi) is an old language or dialect mostly spoken in central Pakistan by approximately 14 million people[1]. It is an Indo-European language of the Indo-Iranian subfamily. ... Hariyanavi or Jatu or Bangaru is a dialect of Hindi language, spoken in Haryana. ... Hindko is an ancient language spoken in the Indian subcontinent. ... A variant of Punjabi ... Dogri is an Indic language spoken by some two million people in South Asia, chiefly in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir but also in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, other parts of Kashmir and elsewhere. ... Islam (Arabic: ; ( ▶ (help· info)), the peaceful submission to the will of God) is a monotheistic faith, one of the Abrahamic religions and the worlds second-largest religion. ... Hinduism (Sanskrit/Hindi: हिन्दु धर्म; also known as Sanātana Dharma - सनातन् धर्म, and Vaidika Dharma - वैदिक धर्म) is a worldwide religious tradition that is based on the Vedas, and is the direct descendant of the Vedic religion. ... The Golden Temple is a sacred shrine for Sikhs Sikhism (Punjabi: ), is a monotheistic religion based on the teachings of ten Gurus who lived primarily in 16th and 17th century North India. ... The neutrality of this article is disputed. ... The Seraikis (also spelt as Saraikis) are a people in the southern areas of Pakistani Punjab. ... This article contains information that has not been verified and thus might not be reliable. ... The Indo-Aryan languages form a subgroup of the Indo-Iranian languages, thus belonging to the Indo-European family of languages. ... Punjab, 1903 Punjab Province, 1909 The Punjab (meaning: Land of five Rivers; also Panjab, Gurmukhi: ਪੰਜਾਬ, Shahmukhi: پنجاب) is a region straddling the border between India and Pakistan. ... An ethnic group is a group of people who identify with one another, or are so identified by others, on the basis of a boundary that distinguishes them from other groups. ... This article details the Indian state of Punjab. ... Haryana (हरयाणा) is a state in north India. ... Himachal Pradesh, formally the Punjab Hill States, is a state in northwest India. ... ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... This article deals with the metropolis of Delhi. ...

The Punjabis are a heterogeneous group and can be subdivided into a number of tribal or 'caste' identities each having their own subtle differences and sense of difference in ancestry or origin. However, there is usually a lack of evidence to give credit to many of the claims made by the various subgroups of Punjabis as it relates to the ancestry or origins of their group and most stories appear to be purely myths. Look up Heterogeneous in Wiktionary, the free dictionary A heterogeneous compound, mixture, or other such object is one that consists of many different items, which are often not easily sorted or separated, though they are clearly distinct. ...

Subgroups

Some of the major subgroups of the Punjabis include the Jats, Rajputs, Khatris, Gakhars, Aroras, Brahmins, Tarkhans, Sainis, Arains, Ahirs, Gujjars, Sansis and Harijans and Chamars. Most of these subgroups can be further sub-divided into clan and family groups. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Punjabi Khatri is a subcaste of the Kshatriya caste that is specific to Punjab. ... The Gakhars ( Gakkhars, Gurkkhars, Gurkhars) have been suggested, by the British archaeologist Sir Alexander Cunningham to have been Indo-Sassanians in origin. ... Indian (Punjab): Hindu and Sikh name based on the name of a mercantile community of the Punjab. ... A Brahmin (ब्राह्मण) (pronunciation is Brahman) is a member of the Hindu priestly caste. ... The Tarkhan tribe inhabits the Punjab area of Northwest India. ... A caste name of Indo-Aryan (Vedic Kshatriya) tribe is now a farming community spreaded over Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttaranchal and Uttar Pradesh in modern India. ... Arain is a Muslim tribe settled mainly in the Punjab and Sindh provinces of Pakistan. ... The people of the Ahir tribe are traditionally cow herders and shepherds. ... Gujjar (also Gujar, Gurjar, or Gurjara, the Sanskrit form found in some literature) is a member of a South Asian ethnic group mainly located in eastern Pakistan, Kashmir, Gujarat and northwestern India. ... In South Asias caste system, an untouchable, dalit, or achuta is a person outside of the four castes, and considered below them. ...

Punjabi Diaspora

The Punjabis are native to the Punjab but have immigrated in large numbers to many parts of the world. The United Kingdom has a significant number of Punjabis from both India and Pakistan. Canada also has a big immigrant community of Punjabis. The Middle East has a large immigrant community of Punjabis, in places such as the UAE and Kuwait. Punjabis also emigrated to South East Asia; places such as Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong. Punjab, 1903 Punjab Province, 1909 The Punjab (Meaning: Land of five Rivers) (also Panjab, Gurmukhi: ਪੰਜਾਬ, Shahmukhi: پنجاب) is a region straddling the border between India and Pakistan. ... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... UAE redirects here; for other uses of that term, see UAE (disambiguation) The United Arab Emirates is an oil-rich country situated in the south-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Southwest Asia, comprising seven emirates: Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras al-Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm al-Quwain. ... Location of Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia. ...

Punjabis in Shalwar Kameez

Image File history File links Punjabis3. ... Image File history File links Punjabis3. ... Salwar kameez is the traditional dress worn by various peoples of south-central Asia. ...

Religion

Religion has played an important part in shaping Punjabi ethnic identity and it is not uncommon for Punjabis to generally treat their religious identity as their ethnic one. Punjabis belong largely to three major religions, Islam, Hinduism and Sikhism. The large majority of Punjabis are Muslims, followed by Hindus and Sikhs, although a large number of Punjabis in Pakistan are Christian as well. Although the Punjabi Sikhs are smaller in number than the Punjabi Muslims and Punjabi Hindus they are often thought of to have the strongest Punjabi identity due to their more frequent and visible use/display of the Punjabi language and traditional, non-religious aspects of the Punjabi culture. Islam (Arabic: ; ( ▶ (help· info)), the peaceful submission to the will of God) is a monotheistic faith, one of the Abrahamic religions and the worlds second-largest religion. ... Hinduism (Sanskrit/Hindi: हिन्दु धर्म; also known as Sanātana Dharma - सनातन् धर्म, and Vaidika Dharma - वैदिक धर्म) is a worldwide religious tradition that is based on the Vedas, and is the direct descendant of the Vedic religion. ... The Golden Temple is a sacred shrine for Sikhs Sikhism (Punjabi: ), is a monotheistic religion based on the teachings of ten Gurus who lived primarily in 16th and 17th century North India. ... A Muslim is a believer in or follower of Islam. ... This article is about the Hindu religion; for other meanings of the word, see Hindu (disambiguation). ... A Sikh man wearing a turban The adherents of Sikhism are called Sikhs. ... As a noun, Christian is an appellation and moniker deriving from the appellation Christ, which many people associate exclusively with Jesus of Nazareth. ... Punjabi (also Panjabi; in Gurmukhī, Panjābī in Shāhmukhī) is the language of the Punjab regions of India and Pakistan. ...

Further reading

• H.A. Rose, Ibbetson, Maclagan, (1990). Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North West Frontier Province. Asian Educational Services, India, ISBN 8120605055
• Ibbetson, Punjab Castes: Race, Castes and Tribes of the People of Punjab. Cosmo Publications, ISBN 8170204585
• Ibbetson, Denzil, (2002). Panjab castes. Low Price Publications. ISBN 8175362901