State of Chitral
This article is part of the series: Historical regions of Pakistan Image File history File links Flag_of_Chitral. ... National Emblem of Pakistan (large) This image depicts a seal, an emblem, a coat of arms or a crest. ... The historical regions of Pakistan are former states, provinces and territories which mainly existed between 1947 and 1975 when the current provinces and territories were finally established. ...
Capital	Chitral Town
Area	10,400 km²
Main language(s)	Farsi Khowar (colloquial) Image File history File links Chitral_Map. ... Chitral, or Chitrāl, is the name of a town (35° 53 N; 71° 48 E), valley, river, district, and former princely state in the Malakand Division of the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan. ... Persian (فارسی = Fârsi . ... Khowar is classified as a Dardic Language. ...
Established	1585
Abolished	28th July 1969
Historic regions of Pakistan
Original Provinces Baluchistan East Bengal Federal Capital Territory North West Frontier Province Sind West Punjab One-Unit Provinces (15th century - 16th century - 17th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century was that century which lasted from 1501 to 1600. ... The Chief Commissioners Province of Baluchistan was a former province of Pakistan located in the northern parts of modern Balochistan province. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with East Pakistan. ... The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) around Karachi was the original capital territory of Pakistan. ... North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) is geographically the smallest of the four provinces of Pakistan. ... Sindh (Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. ... The Punjab/ پنجاب province of Pakistan is part of the larger Punjab region. ... East Pakistan West Pakistan	Former States Amb Bahawalpur Chitral Dir Hunza Kalat Khairpur Kharan Las Bela Makran Nagar Phulra Swat
Other regions Baluchistan States Union Gilgit Agency Trans-Karakoram Tract
Government of NWFP

This article is about the former State of Chitral. For other uses, see Chitral.

The State of Chitral, or Chitrāl, was a former princely state of Pakistan and British India which ceased to exist in 1969. The area of the state now forms part of the district of Chitral in the North-West Frontier Province. It has been suggested that East Bengal (province) be merged into this article or section. ... Independent (as part of Pakistan) from British Empire - August 14, 1947 Separated from East Pakistan as Pakistan - March 26, 1971 Capital Karachi Language Urdu, English West Pakistan consisted of the western part of Pakistan from 1947 until 1971, when East Pakistan became Bangladesh and West Pakistan became the present-day... Amb was a small princely state in what is today the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan. ... The State of Bahawalpur was a princely state of the Punjab in what is now Pakistan, stretching along the southern bank of the Sutlej and Indus Rivers, with its capital city at Bahawalpur. ... This article details the historical State of Dir Dir, see Dir The State of Dir was a small former princely state located in the modern North-West Frontier Province in Pakistan. ... This page is about the town of Hunza in northern Kashmir. ... The State of Kalat was a princely state located in the centre of the modern province of Balochistan. ... The State of Khayrpur was a princely state on the Indus river in what is now Pakistan, with its capital city at Khayrpur. ... The State of Kharan was an autonomous princely state of both British India and Pakistan, located in the southwest of modern Pakistan. ... The State of Las Bela was princely state of Pakistan and British India which existed until 1955. ... The State of Swat was a princely state which existed in the north of the modern North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan until it was dissolved in 1969. ... This article details the former Pakistani region of the Baluchistan States Union. ... The Gilgit Agency was an occupied province of the Maharaja of Kashmir before November 1, 1947. ... Trans-Karakoram Tract is occupied by China now, having been part of Pakistan-occupied Jammu & Kashmir until 1963, when Pakistan had handed over it to China according to the border agreement. ... Chitral, or Chitrāl, is the name of a town (35° 53 N; 71° 48 E), valley, river, district, and former princely state in the Malakand Division of the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan. ... A princely state is any state under the reign of a prince, both terms being taken in the broad sense. ... British India (otherwise known as The British Raj) was a historical period during which most of the Indian subcontinent, or present-day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Myanmar, were under the colonial authority of the British Empire (Undivided India). ... Here is a list of all of the districts of Pakistan as of 2003. ... Chitral, or Chitrāl, is the name of a town (35° 53 N; 71° 48 E), valley, river, district, and former princely state in the Malakand Division of the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan. ... North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) is geographically the smallest of the four provinces of Pakistan. ...

The former princely capital, Chitral Town, is situated on the west bank of the Chitral (or Kunar) River at the foot of Tirich Mir which at 7,708 m or 25,289 ft is the highest peak of the Hindu Kush. Kunar Valley is a valley in Afghanistan. ... Tirich Mir is the highest mountain in the Hindu Kush region of northern Pakistan. ... The Hindu Kush or Hindukush (هندوکش in Persian) is a mountain range in Afghanistan as well as in the Northern Areas of Pakistan. ...

Population

The official language of the state was Farsi but the general population was mainly of the Khos tribe, who spoke the Khowar language (or Chitrali), which is also spoken in parts of Yasin, Gilgit and Swat. Chitral was also famous for being home to the Kalash tribe who reside in three remote valleys southwest of Chitral Town. Persian (فارسی = Fârsi . ... Khowar is classified as a Dardic Language. ... Yasin Valley is a high mountain valley in the Hindu Kush mountains, in the northwest region of Gilgit in northern Pakistan. ... PTDC Motel at Malam Jabba Ski Resort, Swat, NWFP, Pakistan. ... The Kalasha, also known as the Kalash, are an ethnic group that lives in the Hindu Kush region of Pakistan. ...

History

From ancient times, Chitral was an important point on the trade routes from northern Afghanistan (ancient Bactria) and the Tarim Basin to the plains of Gandhara (in northern Pakistan), and the region near Jalalabad, in eastern Afghanistan. Bactria (Bactriana) was the ancient Greek name of the country between the range of the Hindu Kush (Caucasus Indicus) and the Amu Darya (Oxus); its capital, Bactra (now Balkh), was located in what is now northern Afghanistan, southern Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan. ... Taklamakan Desert in the Tarim Basin. ... Gandhāra (also Ghandara, Ghandahra, Chandahara, and Persian Gandara) is the name of an ancient kingdom in eastern Afghanistan and north-west province of Pakistan. ... Jalalabad (Persian: Jalālābād) is the capital of Nangarhar province in Afghanistan, 150 km east of Kabul near the Khyber Pass. ...

In the second century CE, the area fell under the rule of the Kushans. The people converted to Islam in the eleventh century CE. Some are members of the Ismaili sect headed by the Aga Khan. Chitral was ruled by the Katur Mehtars who claimed descent from Tamerlane, through his descendant Sultan Abul Ghazi Baiqara of Herat. Boundary of the Kushan empire, c. ... (10th century - 11th century - 12th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 11th century was that century which lasted from 1001 to 1100. ... The Ismaili (Arabic الإسماعيليون, Persian: اسماعیلیان Esmâiliyân) branch of Islam is the second largest Shia community, after the Twelvers who are dominant in Iran. ... Aga Khan is the heriditary title of the Imam (spiritual and general leader), of the Nizari sect (result of the 1094 split from the Mustalis) within the Ismaili branch of Islam (Nizari Ismaili). ... The Katur Dynasty was the ruling family of the erstwhile princely state of Chitral, now located in Pakistan. ... For the chess engine Tamerlane, see Tamerlane. ...

From 1634 - 1712 it was under the sway of Badakhshan (in Afghanistan). Eventually Afghan expansionism led the Mehtars to build a relationship with nearby Kashmir and later directly with the British. Badakhshan is a region comprising parts of northeastern Afghanistan and of Tajikistan. ... Shown in green is the Kashmiri region under Pakistani control. ...

Chitral remained an autonomous state throughout British rule in India and after 1947 survived until it was incorporated into Pakistan on 28th July 1969. Chitral was the largest and richest of the Dardic principalities, to the point that it was considered an independent kingdom.

Government

The ruling family of Chitral was the Katur dynasty, founded by Shah Katur (1585-1630), which governed Chitral until 1969 when the government of Pakistan took over. During the reign of Mehtar Aman-ul-Mulk, known as Lot (Great) Mehtar, the dynasty's sway extended from Asmar in the Kunar Valley of Afghanistan to Punyal in the Gilgit Valley. 1585 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. ... Events February 22 - Native American Quadequine introduces Popcorn to English colonists. ... Kunar Valley is a valley in Afghanistan. ...

Tribes in Upper Swat, Dir Kohistan and Kafiristan (present day Nuristan, not to be confused with the Kalasha valleys which have always been an integral part of Chitral) paid tribute to the Mehtar of Chitral. Official seal of the LAPD SWAT. SWAT (an acronym for Special Weapons And Tactics; originally Special Weapons Assault Team) is a specialized paramilitary police unit in major United States city police departments, which is trained to perform dangerous operations. ... Kohistan is a Persian word meaning mountainous region or highland (Koh = mountain; -istan = suffix -land). ... Nurestan Province (also spelled Nuristan) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. ...

The ruler's title, Mehtar, is unique; his male descendants were styled Mehtarjao, equally rare, until the higher (Persian) royal style Shahzada, originally reserved for the Crown Prince (Tsik mehtar, again unique, as Heir Persumptive, becoming Wali-Akht Sahib when heir Apparent), was extended to all princes of the Mehtar's blood since the rulers at that point. The term prince (the female form is princess), from the Latin root princeps, when used for a member of the highest aristocracy, has several fundamentally different meanings - one generic, and several types of titles. ...

The scions of the Katur dynasty are still widely respected and honoured by the people of Chitral today, but the current Mehtar, H.H. Saif-ul-Mulk Nasir does not hold any royal powers.

See also

• Chitral
• North-West Frontier Province

Chitral, or Chitrāl, is the name of a town (35° 53 N; 71° 48 E), valley, river, district, and former princely state in the Malakand Division of the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan. ... North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) is geographically the smallest of the four provinces of Pakistan. ...

External links

• Brief history of Chitral State at 4DW website
• World Statesmen website on Pakistan
• Government of NWFP
• Government of Pakistan