Kohistan (;'' "Land of Mountains"''), also called Indus Kohistan (), was an administrative
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...
within the
Hazara region
Hazara (Hindko: هزاره, Urdu: ) is a region in northeastern Pakistan, falling administratively within Hazara Division of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. It is dominated mainly by the Hindko-speaking Hindkowan people, who are the native ethni ...
of
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا; Urdu, Hindko: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP or KPK, is one of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, ...
Province in
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
that was bifurcated into
Upper Kohistan and
Lower Kohistan in 2014, and
Kolai-Palas in 2017. It covered an area of and had a population of 472,570 at the 1998 Census. Geographically, Kohistan stretched from the border with
Gilgit-Baltistan in the north, in the east by
Mansehra District
Mansehra District is a district in Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan.
It was established as a district in 1976, prior to which it was a tehsil within the former Hazara District. Two former subdivisions of Mansehra we ...
, in the south by
Battagram District
Battagram ( ps, بټګرام ولسوالۍ, ur, ) is a district in Abaseen Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan. The headquarter is Battagram, which is about 75-km from Mansehra.
Overview and history
The district of Battagra ...
, and on the west by
Shangla
Shangla District ( ps, شانګله ولسوالۍ, ur, ) is a district in Malakand Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The district's headquarter is located at Alpuri, while the largest city and commercial center is Besham. The district ...
and
Swat districts.
Geography
The District lied between 34° 54′ and 35° 52′ north latitudes and 72° 43′ and 73° 57′ east longitudes.
It was bounded on the north by the
Diamer District
The Diamer District ( ur, ), also spelled Diamir District,) is a district in Gilgit-Baltistan territory of Pakistan. The headquarters of the district is the town of Chilas. The district is bounded by on the north by the Tangir and the Gilgit dis ...
of
Gilgit-Baltistan, on the southeast by
Manshera District, while it shared its borders with
Kaghan Valley
The Kaghan Valley ( ur, ) is an alpine valley located in the Mansehra District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The valley covers a distance of across northern Pakistan, rising from its lowest elevation of to its highest point at the Babusa ...
of the Mansehra District in the east, on the south by
Battagram District
Battagram ( ps, بټګرام ولسوالۍ, ur, ) is a district in Abaseen Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan. The headquarter is Battagram, which is about 75-km from Mansehra.
Overview and history
The district of Battagra ...
and on the west by
Shangla
Shangla District ( ps, شانګله ولسوالۍ, ur, ) is a district in Malakand Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The district's headquarter is located at Alpuri, while the largest city and commercial center is Besham. The district ...
and
Swat Districts.
![Dassu, Kohistan](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/Dassu%2C_Kohistan.jpg)
Kohistan is where the
Hindukush
The Hindu Kush is an mountain range in Central and South Asia to the west of the Himalayas. It stretches from central and western Afghanistan, Quote: "The Hindu Kush mountains run along the Afghan border with the North-West Frontier Province ...
,
Karakorum
Karakorum (Khalkha Mongolian: Хархорум, ''Kharkhorum''; Mongolian Script:, ''Qaraqorum''; ) was the capital of the Mongol Empire between 1235 and 1260 and of the Northern Yuan dynasty in the 14–15th centuries. Its ruins lie in th ...
and
Himalayan Mountain systems meet and serve as a natural boundary for environmental regions in the chains of the
Himalayas
The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 10 ...
,
Karakoram and
Hindu Kush
The Hindu Kush is an mountain range in Central and South Asia to the west of the Himalayas. It stretches from central and western Afghanistan, Quote: "The Hindu Kush mountains run along the Afghan border with the North-West Frontier Province ...
mountains.
This uniqueness of the mountains system also results in rich flora and fauna and therefore gives home to unique species such as the
western tragopan
The western tragopan or western horned tragopan (''Tragopan melanocephalus'') is a medium-sized brightly plumed pheasant found along the Himalayas from north-eastern districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in northern Pakistan in the west to Ut ...
pheasant and the
snow leopard
The snow leopard (''Panthera uncia''), also known as the ounce, is a felid in the genus '' Panthera'' native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List because the global population is es ...
.
Education
The literacy rate of the District among the population aged 10 years and above is 11.1%: male 17.23% and female 2.95%. The proportion of working or employed population to population aged 10 years and above is 26.47% which is 70.53% of the total labor force. Out of the total employed population, 71.60% are self-employed, 10.68% work as employees, and 17.32% are unpaid family helper.
Kohistan's literacy rate is amongst the lowest in Pakistan and hovers around 20%.
It has the lowest
Human Development Index
The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistic composite index of life expectancy, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income indicators, wh ...
of all districts in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
See also
*
Upper Kohistan District
Upper Kohistan District ( Kohistani, ur, ) is a district in Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan.
Overview and history
In 2014, the government bifurcated Kohistan District into two districts namely Upper Kohistan and ...
*
Lower Kohistan District
Lower Kohistan District ( ps, لر / کوز کوہستان ولسوالۍ , ur, ) is a district in Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan. The district headquarters of Lower Kohistan is Pattan.
Overview and history
In 2014 ...
*
Kolai-Palas District
Kolai-Pallas District ( ps, کولئ پالس ولسوالۍ , ur, ضِلع کولئ پالس ) is a district in Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan. It was a sub division of Kohistan district of Hazara division till it ...
References
{{Authority control
Districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Hindu Kush