Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا;

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Hindko Hindko (, romanized: , ) is a cover term for a diverse group of Lahnda dialects spoken by several million people of various ethnic backgrounds in several areas in northwestern Pakistan, primarily in the provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Pun ...

: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP or KPK, is one of the four provinces of

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. Located in the northwestern region of the country, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the smallest province of Pakistan by land area and the third-largest province by population after

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

and

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

. It shares land borders with the

Pakistani provinces The administrative units of Pakistan comprise four provinces, one federal territory, and two disputed territories: the provinces of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan; the Islamabad Capital Territory; and the administrative ...

Balochistan Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. ...

to the south,

to the south-east and province of

Gilgit-Baltistan Gilgit-Baltistan (; ), formerly known as the Northern Areas, is a region administered by Pakistan as an administrative territory, and constituting the northern portion of the larger Kashmir region which has been the subject of a dispute bet ...

to the north and north-east, as well as

Islamabad Capital Territory The Islamabad Capital Territory ( ur, , translit=Vafāqī Dār-alhakūmat) is the only federal territory of Pakistan. Located between the provinces of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, it includes the country's capital city of Islamabad. The terr ...

to the east, Autonomous Territory of Azad Jammu and Kashmir to the north-east. It shares an

international border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders c ...

with

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

to the west. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is known as a tourist hot spot for adventurers and explorers and has a varied landscape ranging from rugged

mountain ranges A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arise ...

valleys A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over ...

, plains surrounded by hills, undulating submontane areas and dense agricultural farms. While it is the third-largest Pakistani province in terms of both its population and its economy, it is geographically the smallest. The province is home to 17.9 percent of Pakistan's total population, with the majority of its inhabitants being

Pashtuns Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...

. Within Pakistan, K. Pakhtunkhwa borders

, the

, and the Pakistani-administered territories of

Gilgit–Baltistan Gilgit-Baltistan (; ), formerly known as the Northern Areas, is a region administered by Pakistan as an administrative territory, and constituting the northern portion of the larger Kashmir region which has been the subject of a dispute be ...

and

Azad Jammu and Kashmir Azad Jammu and Kashmir (; ), abbreviated as AJK and colloquially referred to as simply Azad Kashmir, is a region administered by Pakistan as a nominally self-governing entitySee: * * * and constituting the western portion of the larger Ka ...

. Once a stronghold of Buddhism, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the site of the ancient region of

Gandhara Gandhāra is the name of an ancient region located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, more precisely in present-day north-west Pakistan and parts of south-east Afghanistan. The region centered around the Peshawar Vall ...

, including the ruins of the Gandharan capital of

Pushkalavati Pushkalavati ( ps, پشکلاوتي; Urdu: ; Sanskrit: ; Prākrit: ; grc, Πευκελαῶτις ) or Pushkaravati (Sanskrit: ; Pāli: ), and later Shaikhan Dheri ( ps, شېخان ډېرۍ; ur, ), was the capital of the Gandhara kingdom, ...

(located near modern-day

Charsadda Chārsadda ( ps, چارسده; ; ur, ; ) is a town and headquarters of Charsadda District, in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan.

). The region's history is characterized by frequent invasions by various empires, largely due to its geographical proximity to the historically important

Khyber Pass The Khyber Pass (خیبر درہ) is a mountain pass in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, on the border with the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan. It connects the town of Landi Kotal to the Valley of Peshawar at Jamrud by traversing pa ...

. Although it is colloquially known by a variety of other names, the name "Khyber Pakhtunkhwa" was brought into effect for the

North-West Frontier Province The North-West Frontier Province (NWFP; ps, شمال لویدیځ سرحدي ولایت, ) was a Chief Commissioner's Province of British India, established on 9 November 1901 from the north-western districts of the Punjab Province. Followin ...

in April 2010, following the passing of the 18th Constitutional Amendment. On 2 March 2017, the

Pakistani government The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the four provinces, two autonomous territories, ...

considered a proposal for a merger of the adjoining

Federally Administered Tribal Areas , conventional_long_name = Federally Administered Tribal Areas , nation = Pakistan , subdivision = Autonomous territory , image_flag = Flag of FATA.svg , image_coat = File:Coat of arms ...

(FATA) with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as well as a repealing of the

Frontier Crimes Regulation The Frontier Crimes Regulations (FCR) were a special set of laws of British India, and which were applicable to the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). They were enacted by in the nineteenth century and remained in effect in Pakistan un ...

, which Pakistan had inherited following the

partition of British India The Partition of British India in 1947 was the change of political borders and the division of other assets that accompanied the dissolution of the British Raj in South Asia and the creation of two independent dominions: India and Pakistan. T ...

in 1947. However, some political parties opposed the merger, and instead called for the FATA to be reorganized as a separate province. However, on 24 May 2018, the

National Assembly of Pakistan The National Assembly ( ur, , translit=Aiwān-e-Zairīñ, , or ur, قومی اسمبلی, Romanization, romanized: ''Qaumi Assembly'') is the lower house, lower legislative house of the bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Pakistan, which al ...

voted in favour of the 25th Constitutional Amendment, which would merge the FATA as well as the

Provincially Administered Tribal Areas The Provincially Administered Tribal Area (PATA) was the former administrative subdivision of Pakistan designated in the Article 246(b) of the Constitution of Pakistan. No Act of Provincial Assembly can be applied to PATA whereas the Governor of th ...

with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The

Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa The Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is a unicameral legislature of elected representatives of the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which is located in Peshawar, the provincial capital. It was established under Article 106 of t ...

subsequently approved the bill on 28 May 2018; it was signed into law on 31 May by erstwhile Pakistani president

Mamnoon Hussain Mamnoon Hussain ( ur, ; 22 December 1941 – 14 July 2021) was a Pakistani politician and industrialist who served as the 12th president of Pakistan from 2013 to 2018. He was first appointed Governor of Sindh in June 1999 by President Rafiq ...

, which officially completed the administrative merger process.

Etymology

''Khyber Pakhtunkhwa'' means the " Khyber side of the land of the

," where the word ''Pakhtunkhwa'' means " Land of the Pashtuns", while according to some scholars, it refers to "Pashtun culture and society". When the British established it as a province, they called it "North West Frontier Province" (abbreviated as NWFP) until 2010 due to its relative location being in the northwest of their

Indian Empire The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

. After the creation of Pakistan, Pakistan continued with this name but a Pashtun nationalist party,

Awami National Party The Awami National Party (ANP; ur, , ps, اولسي ملي ګوند; lit. ''People's National Party'') is a Pashtun nationalist, secular and leftist political party in Pakistan. The party was founded by Abdul Wali Khan in 1986 and its curr ...

demanded that the province name be changed to "Pakhtunkhwa". Their logic behind that demand was that

Punjabi people The Punjabis ( Punjabi: ; ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ; romanised as Panjābīs), are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group associated with the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of eastern Pakistan and northwestern India. The ...

Sindhi people Sindhis ( sd, سنڌي Perso-Arabic: सिन्धी Devanagari; ) are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group who speak the Sindhi language and are native to the province of Sindh in Pakistan. After the partition of British Indian empire in 1947, m ...

and

Baloch people The Baloch or Baluch ( bal, بلۏچ, Balòc) are an Iranian peoples, Iranian people who live mainly in the Balochistan region, located at the southeasternmost edge of the Iranian plateau, encompassing the countries of Pakistan, Iran, and Afgh ...

have their provinces named after their ethnicities but that is not the case for

Pashtun people Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...

Pakistan Muslim League (N) The Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) ( ur, , translit=Pākistān Muslim Līg (Nūn) PML(N) or PML-N) is a Centre-right politics, centre-right and Liberal conservatism, liberal conservative political party in Pakistan. Alongside the Pakistan Teh ...

was against that name since it was too similar to

Bacha Khan Abdul Ghaffār Khān (; 6 February 1890 – 20 January 1988), also known as Bacha Khan () or Badshah Khan (), and honourably addressed as Fakhr-e-Afghan (), was a Pakistani Pashtuns, Pashtun, List of Indian independence activists, independence ...

's demand of a separate nation of

Pashtunistan Pashtunistan ( ps, پښتونستان, lit=land of the Pashtuns) is a historical region in Central Asia and South Asia, inhabited by the indigenous Pashtuns, Pashtun people of Afghanistan and western Pakistan. Wherein Pashtun culture, the Pashto ...

. PML-N wanted to name the province something other than which does not carry Pashtun identity in it as they argued that there were other minor ethnicities living in the province especially

Hindkowans Hindkowans (lit. "Indian-speakers"), also known as the Hindki, is a contemporary designation for speakers of Indo-Aryan languages who live among the neighbouring Pashtuns, particularly the speakers of various Hindko dialects of Lahnda. The or ...

who spoke

, thus the word ''Khyber'' was introduced with the name because it is the name of a major

pass Pass, PASS, The Pass or Passed may refer to: Places *Pass, County Meath, a townland in Ireland * Pass, Poland, a village in Poland *Pass, an alternate term for a number of straits: see List of straits *Mountain pass, a lower place in a mountai ...

which connects Pakistan to Afghanistan.

History

Early history

During the period of

Indus Valley civilization The Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC), also known as the Indus Civilisation was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300 BCE to 1300 BCE, and in its mature form 2600 BCE to 1900&n ...

(3300 BCE – 1300 BCE) the modern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's

, through

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 Provinc ...

provided a route to other neighboring regions and was used by merchants on trade excursions. From 1500 BCE,

Indo-Iranian peoples Indo-Iranian peoples, also known as Indo-Iranic peoples by scholars, and sometimes as Arya or Aryans from their self-designation, were a group of Indo-European peoples who brought the Indo-Iranian languages, a major branch of the Indo-European l ...

started to enter in the region from modern

after having passed the Khyber Pass. The Gandharan civilization, which reached its zenith between the sixth and first centuries BCE, and which features prominently in the Hindu epic poem ''

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...

'', had one of its cores over the modern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Vedic upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...

texts refer to the area as the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

. The area was once known to be a great center of learning.

Alexander's conquests

At around 516 BCE.,

Darius Hystaspes Darius I ( peo, wiktionary:𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹𐎺𐎢𐏁, 𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹𐎺𐎢𐏁 ; grc-gre, Δαρεῖος ; – 486 BCE), commonly known as Darius the Great, was a List of monarchs of Persia, Persian ruler who served as the third King o ...

sent

Scylax Scylax of Caryanda ( el, Σκύλαξ ὁ Καρυανδεύς) was a Greek explorer and writer of the late 6th and early 5th centuries BCE. His own writings are lost, though occasionally cited or quoted by later Greek and Roman authors. The peri ...

, a Greek seaman from

Karyanda Caryanda or Karyanda ( grc, Καρυάνδα) was a city on the coast of ancient Caria in southwestern Anatolia. Stephanus of Byzantium describes it as a city and harbour (λίμην) near Myndus and Cos. But λιμήν, in the text of Stephanu ...

, to explore the course of the Indus river. Darius Hystaspes subsequently subdued the peoples dwelling west of the Indus Valley and north of Kabul. Gandhara was incorporated into the Persian Empire as one of its far easternmost

satrapy A satrap () was a governor of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid Empires and in several of their successors, such as in the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic empires. The satrap served as viceroy to the king, though with consid ...

system of government. The satrapy of Gandhara is recorded to have sent troops for Xerxes' invasion of Greece in 480 BCE. In the spring of 327 BCE,

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...

crossed the Indian Caucasus (Hindu Kush) and advanced to

Nicaea Nicaea, also known as Nicea or Nikaia (; ; grc-gre, Νίκαια, ) was an ancient Greek city in Bithynia, where located in northwestern Anatolia and is primarily known as the site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea (the first and seve ...

, where Omphis, king of

Taxila Taxila or Takshashila (; sa, तक्षशिला; pi, ; , ; , ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan. Located in the Taxila Tehsil of Rawalpindi District, it lies approximately northwest of the Islamabad–Rawalpindi metropolitan area and ...

and other chiefs joined him. Alexander then dispatched part of his force through the valley of the Kabul River, while he himself advanced into modern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's

Bajaur Bajaur District ( ps, باجوړ ولسوالۍ, ur, ) is a district in Malakand Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan. Until 2018, it was an agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, then during restructuring that merged ...

and Swat regions with his troops. Having defeated the Aspasians, from whom he took 40,000 prisoners and 230,000 oxen, Alexander crossed the

Gouraios The Panjkora River ( ur, ) is a river in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of the northwest of Pakistan. The river runs through the mountainous northern part of the province, and forms the Kumrat Valley. It passes from Dir, Timergara and meet at ...

(

Panjkora River The Panjkora River ( ur, ) is a river in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of the northwest of Pakistan. The river runs through the mountainous northern part of the province, and forms the Kumrat Valley. It passes from Dir, Timergara and meet at ...

) and entered into the territory of the Assakenoi – also in modern-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Alexander then made Embolima (thought to be the region of

Amb AMB may refer to: * Active magnetic bearing * Advanced Memory Buffer, used in Fully Buffered DIMM memory * Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, one of the armed sections of the Palestinian Fatah movement * Ambergate railway station, abbreviation used in the ...

in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) his base. The ancient region of

Peukelaotis Pushkalavati ( ps, پشکلاوتي; Urdu: ; Sanskrit: ; Prakrit, Prākrit: ; grc, Πευκελαῶτις ) or Pushkaravati (Sanskrit: ; Pali, Pāli: ), and later Shaikhan Dheri ( ps, شېخان ډېرۍ; ur, ), was the capital of the Gand ...

(modern

Hashtnagar Hashtnagar (Pashto: هشتنګر, more commonly known as اشنغر in Pashto) is one of the two constituent parts of the Charsadda District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The name Hashtnagar is derived from the Sanskrit अष्टनगरम् ''A� ...

, north-west of

Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...

) submitted to the Greek invasion, leading to Nicanor, a Macedonian, being appointed satrap of the country west of the Indus, which includes the modern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Mauryan rule

Mauryan rule began with

Chandragupta Maurya Chandragupta Maurya (350-295 BCE) was a ruler in Ancient India who expanded a geographically-extensive kingdom based in Magadha and founded the Maurya dynasty. He reigned from 320 BCE to 298 BCE. The Maurya kingdom expanded to become an empi ...

displacing the Nanda Empire, establishing the Mauryan Empire. A while after, Alexander's general Seleucus had attempted to once again invade the subcontinent from the Khyber pass hoping to take lands that Alexander had conquered, but never fully absorbed into this empire. Seleucus was defeated and the lands of Aria, Arachosia, Gandhara, and Gedrosia were ceded to the Mauryans in exchange for a matrimonial alliance and 500 elephants. With the defeat of the Greeks, the land was once more under Hindu rule. Chandragupta's son

Bindusara Bindusara (), also Amitraghāta or Amitrakhāda (Sanskrit: अमित्रघात, "slayer of enemies" or "devourer of enemies") or Amitrochates (Greek: Ἀμιτροχάτης) (Strabo calls him Allitrochades (Ἀλλιτροχάδης)) ...

further expanded the empire. However, it was Chandragupta's grandson

Ashoka Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, ...

, who converted to

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

and made it the official state religion in

and also

Pakhli Pakhli Sultanate was an ancient sarkar (district) of the Mughal Subah of Punjab, now part of Hazara, Pakistan. It roughly corresponds to the ancient Urasa, the Aρσa or Οΰaρσa which Ptolemy placed between the Bidaspes (Jhelum) and the Indus. ...

, the modern Hazara, as evidenced by rock-inscriptions at

Shahbazgarhi Shahbaz Garhi, or Shahbazgarhi, is a village and historic site located in Mardan District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It is at an altitude of 293 metres (964 feet). It is about 12 km from Mardan city. It has mountains, green trees, ...

and

Mansehra Mansehra is a city in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan and the headquarters of Mansehra District. It is the 71st largest city of Pakistan and 7th largest city in the province. The name of the city (written in Hindko, Urdu and Goj ...

. After Ashoka's death the

Mauryan The Maurya Empire, or the Mauryan Empire, was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in the Indian subcontinent based in Magadha, having been founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 322 BCE, and existing in loose-knit fashion until ...

empire fell to pieces, just as in the west the

Seleucid The Seleucid Empire (; grc, Βασιλεία τῶν Σελευκιδῶν, ''Basileía tōn Seleukidōn'') was a Greek state in West Asia that existed during the Hellenistic period from 312 BC to 63 BC. The Seleucid Empire was founded by the ...

power was waning. The Greek princes of

Bactria Bactria (; Bactrian: , ), or Bactriana, was an ancient region in Central Asia in Amu Darya's middle stream, stretching north of the Hindu Kush, west of the Pamirs and south of the Gissar range, covering the northern part of Afghanistan, southwe ...

seized the opportunity for declaring their independence, and

Demetrius Demetrius is the Latinized form of the Ancient Greek male given name ''Dēmḗtrios'' (), meaning “Demetris” - "devoted to goddess Demeter". Alternate forms include Demetrios, Dimitrios, Dimitris, Dmytro, Dimitri, Dimitrie, Dimitar, Dumit ...

conquered part of Northern India (c. 190 BC). His absence led to a revolt by Eucratides, who seized on Bactria proper and finally defeated Demetrius in his eastern possessions. Eucratides was, however, murdered (c. 156 BC), and the country became subject to a number of local rulers, of whom little is known but the names laboriously gathered from their coins. The area was attacked from the west by the

Parthians Parthian may be: Historical * A demonym "of Parthia", a region of north-eastern of Greater Iran * Parthian Empire (247 BC – 224 AD) * Parthian language, a now-extinct Middle Iranian language * Parthian shot, an archery skill famously employed by ...

and the north by the

Saka The Saka ( Old Persian: ; Kharoṣṭhī: ; Ancient Egyptian: , ; , old , mod. , ), Shaka (Sanskrit ( Brāhmī): , , ; Sanskrit (Devanāgarī): , ), or Sacae (Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) were a group of nomadic Iranian peoples who hist ...

s, a

Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...

n tribe around 139 B.C. Local Greek rulers still exercised a feeble and precarious power along the borderland, but the last vestige of the Greco-Indian rulers were finished by a people known to the old Chinese as the Yeuh-Chi.

Kushan rule

This race of nomads had driven the

Sakas The Saka (Old Persian: ; Kharosthi, Kharoṣṭhī: ; Egyptian language, Ancient Egyptian: , ; , Old Chinese, old , Pinyin, mod. , ), Shaka (Sanskrit (Brahmi script, Brāhmī): , , ; Sanskrit (Devanagari, Devanāgarī): , ), or Sacae (An ...

from the highlands of

, and were themselves forced southwards by the nomadic

Xiongnu The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, the supreme leader after 20 ...

. One group, known as the Kushan, took the lead, and its chief, Kadphises I, seized vast territories extending south to the

Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...

valley. His son Kadphises II conquered North-Western India, which he governed through his generals. His immediate successors were the fabled Hindu kings: Kanishka, Huvishka, and Vasushka or Vasudeva, of whom the first reigned over a territory which extended as far east as Benares, far south as Malwa, and also including

and the Kabul valley. Their dates are still a matter of dispute, but it is beyond question that they reigned early in the Christian era. To this period may be ascribed the fine statues and bas-reliefs found in

and Udyana. Under Huvishka's successor, Vasushka, the dominions of the Kushan kings shrank to the Indus valley and the modern

Hindu Shahis

After the Saffarids had left in

, the

Hindu Shahi The Hindu Shahis (also known as Oddiyana, Odi Shahis, Uḍi Śāhis, or Brahman Shahis, 822–1026 CE) were a dynasty that held sway over the Kabul Valley, Gandhara and western Punjab region, Punjab during the early medieval period in the Indian ...

s had once again been placed into power. The restored Hindu Shahi kingdom was founded by the Brahmin minister Kallar in 843 CE. Kallar had moved the capital into Udabandhapura in modern-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from Kabul. Trade had flourished and many gems, textiles, perfumes, and other goods had been exported West. Coins minted by the Shahis have been found all over the Indian subcontinent. The Shahis had built Hindu temples with many idols, all of which were later looted by invaders. The ruins of these temples can be found at Nandana, Malot, Siv Ganga, and Ketas, as well as across the west bank of the Indus river. At its height, King Jayapala, the rule of the Shahi kingdom had extended to Kabul from the West, Bajaur to the North, Multan to the South, and the present-day India-Pakistan border to the East. Jayapala saw a danger from the rise to power of the Ghaznavids and invaded their capital city of

Ghazni Ghazni ( prs, غزنی, ps, غزني), historically known as Ghaznain () or Ghazna (), also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana ( gr, Αλεξάνδρεια Ωπιανή), is a city in southeastern Afghanistan ...

both in the reign of

Sebuktigin Abu Mansur Nasir al-Din Sabuktigin ( fa, ابو منصور سبکتگین) ( 942 – August 997), also spelled as Sabuktagin, Sabuktakin, Sebüktegin and Sebük Tigin, was the founder of the Ghaznavid dynasty, ruling from 367 A.H/977 A.D to 38 ...

and in that of his son

Mahmud Mahmud is a transliteration of the male Arabic given name (), common in most parts of the Islamic world. It comes from the Arabic triconsonantal root Ḥ-M-D, meaning ''praise'', along with ''Muhammad''. Siam Mahmud *Mahmood (singer) (born 199 ...

. This had initiated the

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

Ghaznavid and

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

Shahi struggles. Sebuktigin, however, defeated him and forced Jayapala to pay an indemnity. Eventually, Jayapala refused payment and took to war once more. The Shahis were decisively defeated by

Mahmud of Ghazni Yamīn-ud-Dawla Abul-Qāṣim Maḥmūd ibn Sebüktegīn ( fa, ; 2 November 971 – 30 April 1030), usually known as Mahmud of Ghazni or Mahmud Ghaznavi ( fa, ), was the founder of the Turkic Ghaznavid dynasty, ruling from 998 to 1030. At th ...

after the defeat of

Jayapala Jayapala or Jaipal was a ruler of the Hindu Shahi dynasty from 964 to 1001 CE. His kingdom stretched from Laghman to Kashmir and Sirhind to Multan, with Peshawar being in the center. He was the son of Hutpal and the father of Anandapala. Epit ...

at the

Battle of Peshawar The Capture of Peshawar took place in spring of 1758https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Chhatrapati_Shivaji/ngCqCQAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22Battle+of+Peshawar%22+1758&pg=PP1&printsec=frontcover Page 37 when Maratha Empire in alliance with the ...

on 27 November 1001. Over time, Mahmud of Ghazni had pushed further into the subcontinent, as far as east as modern-day

Agra Agra (, ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital New Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is ...

. During his campaigns, many Hindu temples and Buddhist monasteries had been looted and destroyed, as well as many people being converted to Islam. Following the collapse of Ghaznavid rule, local

of the

Delhi Sultanate The Delhi Sultanate was an Islamic empire based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for 320 years (1206–1526).

controlled the region. Several Turkic and Pashtun dynasties ruled from Delhi, having shifted their capital from Lahore to Delhi. Several Muslim dynasties ruled modern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the Delhi Sultanate period: the Mamluk dynasty (1206–90), the

Khalji dynasty The Khalji or Khilji (Pashto: ; Persian: ) dynasty was a Turco-Afghan dynasty which ruled the Delhi sultanate, covering large parts of the Indian subcontinent for nearly three decades between 1290 and 1320.Tughlaq dynasty The Tughlaq dynasty ( fa, ), also referred to as Tughluq or Tughluk dynasty, was a Muslim dynasty of Indo- Turkic origin which ruled over the Delhi sultanate in medieval India. Its reign started in 1320 in Delhi when Ghazi Malik assumed the ...

(1320–1413), the

Sayyid dynasty The Sayyid dynasty was the fourth dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate, with four rulers ruling from 1414 to 1451. Founded by Khizr Khan, a former governor of Multan, they succeeded the Tughlaq dynasty and ruled the sultanate as a vassal of the Timu ...

(1414–51), and the

Lodi dynasty The Lodi dynasty ( ps, لودي سلسله; fa, سلسله لودی) was an Afghan dynasty that ruled the Delhi Sultanate from 1451 to 1526. It was the fifth and final dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate, and was founded by Bahlul Khan Lodi when he ...

(1451–1526). Yusufzai Pashtun tribes from the Kabul and Jalalabad valleys began migrating to the

Valley of Peshawar The Valley of Peshawar ( ps, د لوی پېښور وادي; ur, وادئ پشاور), or Peshawar Basin, historically known as the Gandhara Valley, is a broad area situated in the central part of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The va ...

beginning in the 15th century, and displaced the Swatis of the

Bhittani The Bettani ( ps, بېټني), also spelled Baittani or Bhittani, is a Pashtun tribe located mostly in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Bettani are named after ''Shaykh Beṭ'', their legendary ancestor who is said to be the second son of Qais Abdu ...

confederation (a predominant Pashtun tribe of Hazara div) and

Dilazak The Dilazak ( ps, دلزاک) is a Pashtun tribe, primarily living in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. History The Dilazak originally dwelled in eastern Afghanistan. They were among the earliest Pashtun tribes to have migrated to present-day northwestern Pakis ...

Pashtun tribes across the

Indus River The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmir, ...

Hazara Division Hazara Division is an administrative division of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It is located along the Indus River and comprises eight districts: Abbottabad, Mansehra, Haripur, Battagram, Upper Kohistan, Kolai-Palas, Lower ...

Mughal

Mughal suzerainty over the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region was partially established after Babar, the founder of the Mughal Empire, invaded the region in 1505 CE via the

. The Mughal Empire noted the importance of the region as a weak point in their empire's defenses, and determined to hold Peshawar and Kabul at all cost against any threats from the Uzbek ''

Shaybanid The Shibanids or Shaybanids ( fa, سلسله شیبانیان) or more accurately the Abu'l-Khayrid-Shibanids were a Persianized''Introduction: The Turko-Persian tradition'', Robert L. Canfield, Turko-Persia in Historical Perspective, ed. Robert L. ...

s''. He was forced to retreat westwards to

but returned to defeat the Lodis in July 1526, when he captured Peshawar from

Daulat Khan Lodi Daulat Khan Lodi (Pashto: دولت خان لودی) was the governor of Lahore during the reign of Ibrahim Lodi, the last ruler of the Lodi dynasty. Due to disaffection with Ibrahim, Daulat invited Babur to invade the kingdom. He was initial ...

, though the region was never considered to be fully subjugated to the Mughals. Under the reign of Babar's son,

Humayun Nasir-ud-Din Muhammad ( fa, ) (; 6 March 1508 – 27 January 1556), better known by his regnal name, Humāyūn; (), was the second emperor of the Mughal Empire, who ruled over territory in what is now Eastern Afghanistan, Pakistan, Northern ...

, a direct Mughal rule was briefly challenged with the rise of the Pashtun Emperor,

Sher Shah Suri Sher Shah Suri ( ps, شیرشاه سوری) (1472, or 1486 – 22 May 1545), born Farīd Khān ( ps, فرید خان) , was the founder of the Sur Empire in India, with its capital in Sasaram in modern-day Bihar. He standardized the silver coin ...

, who began construction of the famous

Grand Trunk Road The Grand Trunk Road (formerly known as Uttarapath, Sarak-e-Azam, Shah Rah-e-Azam, Badshahi Sarak, and Long Walk) is one of Asia's oldest and longest major roads. For at least 2,500 years it has linked Central Asia to the Indian subcontinent. ...

– which links Kabul, Afghanistan with

Chittagong Chittagong ( /ˈtʃɪt əˌɡɒŋ/ ''chit-uh-gong''; ctg, চিটাং; bn, চিটাগং), officially Chattogram ( bn, চট্টগ্রাম), is the second-largest city in Bangladesh after Dhaka and third largest city in B ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

over 2000 miles to the east. Later, local rulers once again pledged loyalty to the Mughal emperor.

Yusufzai The Yusufzai or Yousafzai ( ps, یوسفزی, ), also referred to as the Esapzai (, ) are one of the largest Pashtun tribes, tribes of ethnic Pashtuns. They are natively based in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, to which they migrated to from Sulim ...

tribes rose against Mughals during the Yusufzai Revolt of 1667, and engaged in pitched-battles with Mughal battalions in Peshawar and

Attock Attock ( Punjabi and Urdu: ), formerly known as Campbellpur (), is a historical city located in the north of Pakistan's Punjab Province, not far from the country's capital Islamabad. It is the headquarters of the Attock District and is 61st larg ...

Afridi The Afrīdī ( ps, اپريدی ''Aprīdai'', plur. ''Aprīdī''; ur, آفریدی) are a Pashtun tribe present in Pakistan, with substantial numbers in Afghanistan. The Afridis are most dominant in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal ...

tribes resisted Aurangzeb rule during the Afridi Revolt of the 1670s. The Afridis massacred a Mughal battalion in the

in 1672 and shut the pass to lucrative trade routes. Following another massacre in the winter of 1673, Mughal armies led by Emperor

Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...

himself regained control of the entire area in 1674, and enticed tribal leaders with various awards in order to end the rebellion. Referred to as the "Father of Pashto Literature" and hailing from the city of

Akora Khattak Akora Khattak ( ps, اکوړه خټک , Urdu: اکوڑہ خٹک ) or Sarai Akora is a town in Jehangira tehsil of Nowshera District in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It sits beside the Kabul River, which merges with the Indus River ...

, the warrior-poet

Khushal Khan Khattak Khošāl Khān Khaṭak (1613 – 25 February 1689; Pashto: خوشال خان خټک), also known as Khushal Baba ( ps, خوشال بابا), was a Pashtun poet, chief, and warrior. Khushal Khan served the Mughal Empire protecting them fr ...

actively participated in the revolt against the Mughals and became renowned for his poems that celebrated the rebellious Pashtun warriors.

Afsharid

On 18 November 1738, Peshawar was captured from the Mughal governor Nawab Nasir Khan by the

Afsharid Afsharid Iran ( fa, ایران افشاری), also referred as the Afsharid Empire was an Iranian empire established by the Turkoman Afshar tribe in Iran's north-eastern province of Khorasan, ruling Iran (Persia). The state was ruled by the ...

armies during the Persian invasion of the Mughal Empire under

Nader Shah Nader Shah Afshar ( fa, نادر شاه افشار; also known as ''Nader Qoli Beyg'' or ''Tahmāsp Qoli Khan'' ) (August 1688 – 19 June 1747) was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty of Iran and one of the most powerful rulers in Iranian h ...

Durrani Afghans

The area fell subsequently under the rule of

Ahmad Shah Durrani Ahmad Shāh Durrānī ( ps, احمد شاه دراني; prs, احمد شاه درانی), also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī (), was the founder of the Durrani Empire and is regarded as the founder of the modern Afghanistan. In July 1747, Ahm ...

, founder of the Afghan

Durrani Empire The Durrani Empire ( ps, د درانيانو ټولواکمني; fa, امپراتوری درانیان) or the Afghan Empire ( ps, د افغانان ټولواکمني, label=none; fa, امپراتوری افغان, label=none), also know ...

, following a grand nine-day long assembly of leaders, known as the ''

loya jirga A jirga ( ps, جرګه, ''jərga'') is an assembly of leaders that makes decisions by consensus according to Pashtunwali, the Pashtun social code. It is conducted in order to settle disputes among the Pashtuns, but also by members of other ethnic ...

''. In 1749, the Mughal ruler was induced to cede

, the

Punjab region Punjab (; Punjabi Language, Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also Romanization, romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the I ...

and the important trans

to Ahmad Shah in order to save his capital from Afghan attack. In short order, the powerful army brought under its control the

Tajik Tajik, Tadjik, Tadzhik or Tajikistani may refer to: * Someone or something related to Tajikistan * Tajiks, an ethnic group in Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Uzbekistan * Tajik language, the official language of Tajikistan * Tajik (surname) * Tajik cu ...

, Hazara, Uzbek,

Turkmen Turkmen, Türkmen, Turkoman, or Turkman may refer to: Peoples Historical ethnonym * Turkoman (ethnonym), ethnonym used for the Oghuz Turks during the Middle Ages Ethnic groups * Turkmen in Anatolia and the Levant (Seljuk and Ottoman-Turkish desc ...

, and other tribes of northern Afghanistan. Ahmad Shah invaded the remnants of the Mughal Empire a third time, and then a fourth, consolidating control over the Kashmir and Punjab regions, with

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

being governed by Afghans. In 1757, he captured Delhi and sacked Mathura, but permitted the Mughal dynasty to remain in nominal control of the city as long as the ruler acknowledged Ahmad Shah's suzerainty over Punjab, Sindh, and Kashmir. Leaving his second son

Timur Shah Timur Shah Durrani (; prs, ;), also known as Timur Shah Abdali or Taimur Shah Abdali (December 1746 – May 20, 1793) was the second ruler of the Afghan Durrani Empire, from November 1772 until his death in 1793. An ethnic Pashtun, he was the ...

to safeguard his interests, Ahmad Shah left India to return to Afghanistan. Their rule was interrupted by a brief invasion of the Hindu

Marathas The Marathi people (Marathi: मराठी लोक) or Marathis are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are indigenous to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language. Maharashtra was formed as a M ...

, who ruled over the region following the 1758 Battle of Peshawar for eleven months till early 1759 when the Durrani rule was re-established.Schofield, Victoria, "Afghan Frontier: Feuding and Fighting in Central Asia", London: Tauris Parke Paperbacks (2003), page 47 Under the reign of

, the Mughal practice of using Kabul as a summer capital and Peshawar as a winter capital was reintroduced, Peshawar's Bala Hissar Fort served as the residence of Durrani kings during their winter stay in Peshawar.

Mahmud Shah Durrani Mahmud Shah Durrani (Persian: ; 1769 – 18 April 1829), also known as Shah Mahmud, or Mahmud Shah Abdali, was the ruler of the Durrani Empire between 1801 and 1803, and again between 1809 and 1818. From 1818 to 1829, he was the emir of Herat. An ...

became king, and quickly sought to seize Peshawar from his half-brother,

Shah Shujah Durrani ''Padshah Sultan'' Shah Shuja Durrani (Pashto/Dari: ; November 1785 – 5 April 1842) was ruler of the Durrani Empire from 1803 to 1809. He then ruled from 1839 until his death in 1842. Son of Timur Shah Durrani, Shuja Shah was of the Sadduzai ...

. Shah Shujah was then himself proclaimed king in 1803, and recaptured Peshawar while Mahmud Shah was imprisoned at Bala Hissar fort until his eventual escape. In 1809, the British sent an emissary to the court of Shah Shujah in Peshawar, marking the first diplomatic meeting between the British and Afghans. Mahmud Shah allied himself with the ''Barakzai'' Pashtuns, and amassed an army in 1809, and captured Peshawar from his half-brother, Shah Shujah, establishing Mahmud Shah's second reign, which lasted under 1818.

Sikh

Ranjit Singh Ranjit Singh (13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839), popularly known as Sher-e-Punjab or "Lion of Punjab", was the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, which ruled the northwest Indian subcontinent in the early half of the 19th century. He s ...

invaded Peshawar in 1818 and captured it from the Afghan Empire. The

Sikh Empire The Sikh Empire was a state originating in the Indian subcontinent, formed under the leadership of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who established an empire based in the Punjab. The empire existed from 1799, when Maharaja Ranjit Singh captured Lahor ...

based in Lahore did not immediately secure direct control of the Peshawar region, but rather paid nominal

tribute A tribute (; from Latin ''tributum'', "contribution") is wealth, often in kind, that a party gives to another as a sign of submission, allegiance or respect. Various ancient states exacted tribute from the rulers of land which the state conqu ...

to Jehandad Khan of Khattak, who was nominated by Ranjit Singh to be ruler of the region. After Ranjit Singh's departure from the region, Khattak's rule was undermined and power seized by Yar Muhammad Khan. In 1823, Ranjit Singh returned to capture Peshawar, and was met by the armies of

Azim Khan Sardar Mohammad Azim Khan Barakzai ( ps, عظیم خان) was a Pashtun noble who served as Afghan governor of Kashmir (1812–1819). He was the second son of the Barakzai chief Payinda Sarfaraz Khan, while his elder brother Fateh Khan was kin ...

at Nowshera. Following the Sikh victory at the

Battle of Nowshera The Battle of Nowshera ( ps, د نوښار جګړه; pa, ਨੌਸ਼ਹਿਰ ਦੀ ਲੜਾਈ) was fought in Nowshera in March 1823 between the Yusufzai Afghans, supported by the Peshawar sardars, alongside Azim Khan Barakzai, the Afghan ...

, Ranjit Singh re-captured Peshawar. Rather than re-appointing Jehandad Khan of Khattak, Ranjit Singh selected Yar Muhammad Khan to once again rule the region. The Sikh Empire annexed the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region following advances from the armies of

Hari Singh Nalwa Hari Singh Nalwa (1791–1837) was Commander-in-chief of the Sikh Khalsa Fauj, the army of the Sikh Empire. He is known for his role in the conquests of Kasur, Sialkot, Attock, Multan, Kashmir, Peshawar and Jamrud. Hari Singh Nalwa was respons ...

. An 1835 attempt by

Dost Muhammad Khan Dost Mohammad Khan Barakzai (Pashto/Persian: ; 23 December 17929 June 1863), nicknamed the Amir-i Kabir, Also titled Amir al-Mu'minin, was a member of the Barakzai dynasty and one of the prominent rulers of the Emirate of Afghanistan. His 37-year ...

to re-occupy Peshawar failed when his army declined to engage in combat with the Dal Khalsa. Dost Muhammad Khan's son, Mohammad Akbar Khan engaged with Sikh forces the

Battle of Jamrud The Battle of Jamrud was fought between the Emirate of Afghanistan and the Sikh Empire on 30 April 1837. It was the last effort made by Emir Dost Mohammad Khan to recapture the former Afghan winter capital of Peshawar. Afghan forces confronted the ...

of 1837, and failed to recapture it. During Sikh rule, an Italian named

Paolo Avitabile General Paolo Crescenzo Martino Avitabile (25 October 1791 – 28 March 1850), also known as Abu Tabela ( hnd, ), was an Italian soldier, mercenary and adventurer. A peasant's son born in Agerola, in the province of Napoli near Sorrento (in sou ...

was appointed an administrator of Peshawar, and is remembered for having unleashed a reign of fear there. The city's famous Mahabat Khan, built in 1630 in the Jeweler's Bazaar, was badly damaged and desecrated by the Sikhs, who also rebuilt the Bala Hissar fort during their occupation of Peshawar.

British Raj

British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...

defeated the Sikhs during the

Second Anglo-Sikh War The Second Anglo-Sikh War was a military conflict between the Sikh Empire and the East India Company, British East India Company that took place in 1848 and 1849. It resulted in the fall of the Sikh Empire, and the annexation of the Punjab r ...

in 1849, and incorporated small parts of the region into the Province of Punjab. While Peshawar was the site of a small revolt against British during the

Mutiny of 1857 The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the for ...

, local Pashtun tribes throughout the region generally remained neutral or supportive of the British as they detested the Sikhs, in contrast to other parts of

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

which rose up in revolt against the British. However, British control of parts of the region was routinely challenged by Wazir tribesmen in

Waziristan Waziristan (Pashto and ur, , "land of the Wazir") is a mountainous region covering the former FATA agencies of North Waziristan and South Waziristan which are now districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. Waziristan covers some . ...

and other Pashtun tribes, who resisted any foreign occupation until Pakistan was created. By the late 19th century, the official boundaries of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region still had not been defined as the region was still claimed by the Kingdom of Afghanistan. It was only in 1893 The British demarcated the boundary with Afghanistan under a treaty agreed to by the Afghan king,

Abdur Rahman Khan Abdur Rahman Khan GCSI (Pashto/Dari: ) (between 1840 and 1844 – 1 October 1901) was Emir of Afghanistan from 1880 to his death in 1901. He is known for uniting the country after years of internal fighting and negotiation of the Durand Line Ag ...

, following the

Second Anglo-Afghan War The Second Anglo-Afghan War (Dari: جنگ دوم افغان و انگلیس, ps, د افغان-انګرېز دويمه جګړه) was a military conflict fought between the British Raj and the Emirate of Afghanistan from 1878 to 1880, when the l ...

. Several princely states within the boundaries of the region were allowed to maintain their autonomy under the terms of maintaining friendly ties with the British. As the British war effort during

World War One World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

demanded the reallocation of resources from British India to the European war fronts, some tribesmen from Afghanistan crossed the Durand Line in 1917 to attack British posts in an attempt to gain territory and weaken the legitimacy of the border. The validity of the Durand Line, however, was re-affirmed in 1919 by the Afghan government with the signing of the

Treaty of Rawalpindi The Anglo-Afghan Treaty of 1919, also known as the Treaty of Rawalpindi, was a treaty which brought the Third Anglo-Afghan War to an end. It was signed on 8 August 1919 in Rawalpindi by the United Kingdom and the Emirate of Afghanistan. Britain r ...

, which ended the

Third Anglo-Afghan War The Third Anglo-Afghan War; fa, جنگ سوم افغان-انگلیس), also known as the Third Afghan War, the British-Afghan War of 1919, or in Afghanistan as the War of Independence, began on 6 May 1919 when the Emirate of Afghanistan inv ...

– a war in which Waziri tribesmen allied themselves with the forces of Afghanistan's King

Amanullah Amanullah or Amanallah is a male Muslim given name ( ar , أمان الله ) meaning the trust or protection of God. It may refer to: * Amānullāh Khān (1892–1960), ruler of Afghanistan from 1919 to 1929 *Amanullah Khan (disambiguation), seve ...

in their resistance to British rule. The Wazirs and other tribes, taking advantage of instability on the frontier, continued to resist British occupation until 1920 – even after Afghanistan had signed a peace treaty with the British. British campaigns to subdue tribesmen along the Durand Line, as well as three Anglo-Afghan wars, made travel between Afghanistan and the densely populated heartlands of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa increasingly difficult. The two regions were largely isolated from one another from the start of the Second Anglo-Afghan War in 1878 until the start of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

in 1939 when conflict along the Afghan frontier largely dissipated. Concurrently, the British continued their large public works projects in the region, and extended the

Great Indian Peninsula Railway The Great Indian Peninsula Railway (reporting mark GIPR) was a predecessor of the Central Railway (and by extension, the current state-owned Indian Railways), whose headquarters was at the Boree Bunder in Mumbai (later, the Victoria Terminu ...

into the region, which connected the modern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region to the plains of India to the east. Other projects, such as the

Attock Bridge Attock Bridge ( ur, ) is situated between Attock Khurd and Khairabad Kund on Indus river in Pakistan. It is commonly known as "Old Attock Bridge". This bridge is one of the most important strategic and commercial crossing on the Indus River bet ...

Islamia College University Islamia College Peshawar (ICP) ( ur, اسلامیہ کالج پشاور) is a public university located in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.Khyber Railway, and establishment of

cantonments A cantonment (, , or ) is a military quarters. In Bangladesh, India and other parts of South Asia, a ''cantonment'' refers to a permanent military station (a term from the colonial-era). In United States military parlance, a cantonment is, essent ...

Kohat Kohat ( ps, کوهاټ; ur, ) is a city that serves as the capital of the Kohat District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It is regarded as a centre of the Bangash tribe of Pashtuns, who have lived in the region since the late 15th century ...

Mardan Mardān (Pashto and ; Urdu ; Pashto: ) is a city in the Mardan District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, Pakistan. Located in the Valley of Peshawar, Mardan is the second-largest city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (after Peshawar). It is a fast-growing ...

, and Nowshera further cemented British rule in the region. In 1901, the British carved out the northwest portions of Punjab Province to create the Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP), which was renamed "Khyber Pakhtunkhwa" in 2010. Badshah Khan

During this period, North-West Frontier Province was a "scene of repeated outrages on Hindus." During the independence period there was a

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

-led ministry in the province, which was led by secular

Pashtun Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...

leaders, including Bacha Khan, who preferred joining

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

instead of Pakistan. The

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin ''saeculum'', "worldly" or "of a generation"), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. Anything that does not have an explicit reference to religion, either negativ ...

Pashtun leadership was also of the view that if joining India was not an option then they should espouse the cause of an independent ethnic Pashtun state rather than Pakistan. The secular stance of Bacha Khan had driven a wedge between the

ulama In Islam, the ''ulama'' (; ar, علماء ', singular ', "scholar", literally "the learned ones", also spelled ''ulema''; feminine: ''alimah'' ingularand ''aalimath'' lural are the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious ...

of the otherwise pro-

(and pro-Indian unity) Jamiat Ulema Hind (JUH) and Bacha Khan's

Khudai Khidmatgar Khudai Khidmatgar ( ps, خداۍ خدمتګار; literally "servants of God") was a predominantly Pashtun nonviolent resistance movement known for its activism against the British Raj in colonial India; it was based in the country's North-West ...

s. The directives of the ulama in the province began to take on communal tones. The ulama saw the Hindus in the province as a 'threat' to Muslims. Accusations of molesting Muslim women were levelled at

shopkeepers in Nowshera, a town where anti-Hindu sermons were delivered by maulvis. Tensions also rose in 1936 over the abduction of a Hindu girl in

Bannu Bannu ( ps, بنو, translit=banū ; ur, , translit=bannū̃, ) is a city located on the Kurram River in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It is the capital of Bannu Division. Bannu's residents are primarily members of the Banuchi tribe ...

. British Indian court ruled against the marriage of a Hindu-converted Muslim girl at Bannu, after the girl's family filed a case of abduction and forced conversion. The ruling was based on the fact that the girl was a minor and was asked to make her decision of conversion and marriage after she reaches the age of majority, till then she was asked to live with a third party. The verdict enraged the Muslims – especially the

tribesmen. The Dawar Maliks and mullahs left the Tochi far the Khaisora Valley to the south to rouse the Torikhel Wazir. The enraged tribesmen mustered two large lashkars 10,000 strong and battled the

Bannu Brigade The Bannu Brigade was formed after the 1903 reforms of the British Indian Army by Herbert Kitchener when he was Commander-in-Chief, India. The brigade was part of the Northern Army and deployed along the North West Frontier. In 1914 at the start ...

, with heavy casualties on both sides. Widespread lawlessness erupted as tribesmen blocked roads, overran outposts and ambushed convoys. The British retaliated by sending two columns converging in the Khaisora river valley. They suppressed the agitation by imposing fines and by destroying the houses of the ringleaders, including that of Haji

Mirzali Khan Haji Mirzali Khan Wazir ( oru, حاجي میرزاعلي خان وزیر), commonly known as the Faqir of Ipi (), was a Ormur tribal chief and freedom fighter from North Waziristan in today's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. After performing his ...

(Faqir of Ipi). However, the pyrrhic nature of the victory and the subsequent withdrawal of the troops was credited by the Wazirs to be a manifestation of the power of Mirzali Khan. He succeeded in inducing a semblance of tribal unity, as the British noticed with dismay, among various sections of Tori Khel Wazirs, the

Mahsud The Mahsud or Mehsood ( ps, محسود), also spelled Maseed ( ps, ماسيد), is a Karlani Pashtun tribe inhabiting mostly the South Waziristan Agency in the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) of Pakistan, now merged within Khyb ...

and the

Bettani The Bettani ( ps, بېټني), also spelled Baittani or Bhittani, is a Pashtun tribe located mostly in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Bettani are named after ''Shaykh Beṭ'', their legendary ancestor who is said to be the second son of Qais Abdur ...

. He cemented his position as a religious leader by declaring a ''Jihad'' against the British. This move also helped rally support from Pashtun tribesmen across the border. Such controversies stirred up anti-Hindu sentiments amongst the province's Muslim population. By 1947 the majority of the ulama in the province began supporting the

Muslim League Muslim League may refer to: Political parties Subcontinent ; British India *All-India Muslim League, Mohammed Ali Jinah, led the demand for the partition of India resulting in the creation of Pakistan. **Punjab Muslim League, a branch of the organ ...

's idea of Pakistan.

Bannu Resolution

In June 1947,

(Faqir of Ipi),

, and other

Khudai Khidmatgars Khudai Khidmatgar ( ps, خداۍ خدمتګار; literally "servants of God") was a predominantly Pashtuns, Pashtun nonviolent resistance movement known for its activism against the British Raj in colonial India; it was based in the country's ...

declared the

Bannu Resolution The Bannu Resolution ( ps, د بنو فیصله), or the Pashtunistan Resolution ( ps, د پښتونستان قرارداد), was a formal political statement adopted by Pashtun tribesmen who had wanted an independent Pashtun state on 21 June 1947 ...

, demanding that the Pashtuns be given a choice to have an independent state of Pashtunistan composing all Pashtun majority territories of British India, instead of being made to join the new state of

. However, the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

refused to comply with the demand of this resolution, as their departure from the region required regions under their control to choose either to join India or Pakistan, with no third option. By 1947 Pashtun nationalists were advocating for a united India, and no prominent voices advocated for a union with Afghanistan.

1947 NWFP referendum

Immediately prior to 1947

Partition of India The Partition of British India in 1947 was the Partition (politics), change of political borders and the division of other assets that accompanied the dissolution of the British Raj in South Asia and the creation of two independent dominions: ...

, the British held a referendum in the NWFP to allow voters to choose between joining India or Pakistan. The polling began on 6 July 1947 and the referendum results were made public on 20 July 1947. According to the official results, there were 572,798 registered voters, out of which 289,244 (99.02%) votes were cast in favor of Pakistan, while 2,874 (0.98%) were cast in favor of India. The Muslim League declared the results as valid since over half of all eligible voters backed the merger with Pakistan. The then

Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

Dr. Khan Sahib Dr. Khan Sahib ( ps, ډاکټر خان صیب ) (born 1883, Utmanzai, Charsadda – 9 May 1958, Lahore), mistakenly named as Khan Abdul Jabbar Khan (), was a pioneer in the Indian Independence Movement and a Pakistani politician. He was the eld ...

, along with his brother

and the

s, boycotted the referendum, citing that it did not have the options of the NWFP becoming independent or joining Afghanistan. Their appeal for boycott had an effect, as according to an estimate, the total turnout for the referendum was 15% lower than the total turnout in the 1946 elections, although over half of all eligible voters backed merger with Pakistan. Bacha Khan pledged allegiance to the new state of Pakistan in 1947, and thereafter abandoned his goals of an independent Pashtunistan and a united India in favor of supporting increased autonomy for the NWFP within Pakistan. He was subsequently arrested several times for his opposition to the strong centralized rule. He later claimed that "Pashtunistan was never a reality". The idea of Pashtunistan never helped Pashtuns and it only caused suffering for them. He further claimed that the "successive governments of Afghanistan only exploited the idea for their own political goals".

After the creation of Pakistan

After the creation of

in 1947, Afghanistan was the sole member of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

to vote against Pakistan's accession to the UN because of Kabul's claim to the Pashtun territories on the Pakistani side of the

Durand Line The Durand Line ( ps, د ډیورنډ کرښه; ur, ), forms the Pakistan–Afghanistan border, a international land border between Pakistan and Afghanistan in South Asia. The western end runs to the border with Iran and the eastern end to th ...

. Afghanistan's

Loya Jirga A jirga ( ps, جرګه, ''jərga'') is an assembly of leaders that makes decisions by consensus according to Pashtunwali, the Pashtun social code. It is conducted in order to settle disputes among the Pashtuns, but also by members of other ethnic ...

of 1949 declared the Durand Line invalid, which led to border tensions with Pakistan, and decades of mistrust between the two states. Afghan governments have also periodically refused to recognize Pakistan's inheritance of British treaties regarding the region. As had been agreed to by the Afghan government following the

and after the treaty ending

, no option was available to cede the territory to the Afghans, even though Afghanistan continued to claim the entire region as it was part of the Durrani Empire prior the conquest of the region by the Sikhs in 1818. In 1950, Afghan-backed separatists in the Waziristan region declared the independence of Pashtunistan as an independent nation o dr the entirety of the NWFP. A Pashtun tribal

jirga A jirga ( ps, جرګه, ''jərga'') is an assembly of leaders that makes decisions by consensus according to Pashtunwali, the Pashtun social code. It is conducted in order to settle disputes among the Pashtuns, but also by members of other ethnic ...

, held in

Razmak Razmak (Pashto and ur, ) is one of the three subdivisions of North Waziristan District in Pakistan, the other two being Mir Ali and Miran Shah. The inhabitants are almost exclusively Wazir Pashtuns, along with a few from the Mahsud tribe. The ...

, appointed

as the President of the National Assembly for Pashtunistan. His popularity among the people of Waziristan declined over the years. He died a natural death in 1960 in

Gurwek Gūrwēk ( ur, , ps, ګوروېک) is a town in North Waziristan in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan, on the border with Afghanistan. Gurwek is located about southwest of Miramshah, the capital of North Waziristan. Gurwek is ...

, Waziristan. The growing participation of Pashtuns in the Pakistani government, however, resulted in the erosion of the support for the secessionist Pashtunistan movement by the end of the 1960s. All the princely states within the boundaries of the NWFP were allowed to maintain certain autonomy following independence in 1947, but In 1969, the autonomous

princely states A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, subject to ...

Swat In the United States, a SWAT team (special weapons and tactics, originally special weapons assault team) is a police tactical unit that uses specialized or military equipment and tactics. Although they were first created in the 1960s to ...

, Dir,

Chitral Chitral ( khw, , lit=field, translit=ćhitrār; ur, , translit=ćitrāl) is situated on the Chitral River in northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It serves as the capital of the Chitral District and before that as the capital of Chitral ...

, and

were fully merged into the province. For travelers, the area remained relatively peaceful in the 1960s and '70s. It was the usual route on the

Hippie trail Hippie trail (also the overland) is the name given to the overland journey taken by members of the hippie subculture and others from the mid-1950s to the late 1970s between Europe and South Asia, mainly from Turkey through Iran, Afghanistan ...

overland from Europe to India, with buses running from Kabul to Peshawar. While waiting to cross at the border visitors were however cautioned not to stray from the main road. As a result of the

Soviet invasion of Afghanistan The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

in 1979, over five million Afghan refugees poured into Pakistan, mostly choosing to reside in the NWFP (, nearly 3 million remained). The North-West Frontier Province became a base for the Afghan resistance fighters and the

Deobandi Deobandi is a revivalist movement within Sunni Islam, adhering to the Hanafi school of law, formed in the late 19th century around the Darul Uloom Madrassa in Deoband, India, from which the name derives, by Muhammad Qasim Nanautavi, R ...

ulama of the province played a significant role in the Afghan 'jihad', with Madrasa Haqqaniyya becoming a prominent organizational and networking base for the anti-Soviet Afghan fighters. The province remained heavily influenced by events in Afghanistan thereafter. The 1989–1992 Civil war in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of Soviet forces led to the rise of the Afghan

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

, which had emerged in the border region between

, and

FATA , conventional_long_name = Federally Administered Tribal Areas , nation = Pakistan , subdivision = Autonomous territory , image_flag = Flag of FATA.svg , image_coat = File:Coat of arms ...

as a formidable political force. In 2010, the province was renamed "Khyber Pakhtunkhwa." Protests arose among the local Hindkowan, Chitrali, Kohistani, and Kalash populations over the name change, as they began to demand their own provinces. The Hindkowans, Kohistanis, and Chitralis are the last remains of ancient

Gandhari people This is a list of ancient Indo-Aryan peoples and tribes that are mentioned in the literature of Indic religions. From the second or first millennium BCE, ancient Indo-Aryan peoples and tribes turned into most of the population in the northern ...

and they jointly protested for the preservation of their culture. Seven people were killed and 100 injured in protests on 11April 2011. The

sought to rename the province "Pakhtunkhwa", which translates to "Land of Pashtuns" in the

Pashto language Pashto (,; , ) is an Eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family. It is known in historical Persian literature as Afghani (). Spoken as a native language mostly by ethnic Pashtuns, it is one of the two official languages ...

. The name change was largely opposed by non-Pashtuns, and by political parties such as the

Pakistan Muslim League-N The Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) ( ur, , translit=Pākistān Muslim Līg (Nūn) PML(N) or PML-N) is a centre-right and liberal conservative political party in Pakistan. Alongside the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Peoples Party ...

, who draw much of their support from non-Pashtun regions of the province, and by the Islamist

Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal The Muttahida Majlis–e–Amal (MMA; Urdu: , "United Council of Action") is a political alliance consisting of conservative, Islamist, religious, and far-right parties of Pakistan. Naeem Siddiqui (the founder of Tehreek e Islami) proposed suc ...

coalition.

War and militancy

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has been a site of militancy and terrorism that started after the attacks of

11 September 2001 The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...

, and intensified when the

Pakistani Taliban The Pakistani Taliban (), formally called the Tehreek-e-Taliban-e-Pakistan (Urdu/ ps, , lit=Student Movement of Pakistan, TTP), is an umbrella organization of various Islamist armed militant groups operating along the Afghan–Pakistani bor ...

began an attempt to seize power in

starting in 2004. Armed conflict began in 2004, when tensions, rooted in the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...

's search for

al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...

fighters in Pakistan's mountainous Waziristan area (in the

), escalated into armed insurgency.[Pakistan Primer Pt. 1
/nowiki> The Rise of the Pakistani Taliban">akistan Primer Pt. 1">[Pakistan Primer Pt. 1
/nowiki> The Rise of the Pakistani Taliban," Global Bearings, 27 October 2011. Fighting is ongoing between the Pakistani Army and armed militant groups such as the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Jundallah (Pakistan), Jundallah, Lashkar-e-Islam (LeI), Tehreek-e-Nafaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi (TNSM),

, and elements of

organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

Varun Vira and Anthony Cordesma
"Pakistan: Violence versus Stability: A Net Assessment."
''

Center for Strategic and International Studies The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) is an American think tank based in Washington, D.C. CSIS was founded as the Center for Strategic and International Studies of Georgetown University in 1962. The center conducts polic ...

,'' 25 July 2011. have led to the deaths of over 50,000 Pakistanis since the country joined the

U.S The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

-led

War on Terror The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international Counterterrorism, counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campa ...

, with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa being the site of most of the conflict. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is also the main theater for Pakistan's

Zarb-e-Azb Operation Zarb-e-Azb (Pashto/ ur, ALA-LC: ) was a joint military offensive conducted by the Pakistan Armed Forces against various militant groups, including the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, the East ...

operation – a broad military campaign against militants located in the province, and neighboring

FATA , conventional_long_name = Federally Administered Tribal Areas , nation = Pakistan , subdivision = Autonomous territory , image_flag = Flag of FATA.svg , image_coat = File:Coat of arms ...

. By 2014, casualty rates in the country as a whole dropped by 40% as compared to 2011–2013, with even greater drops noted in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, despite the province being the site of a large massacre of schoolchildren by terrorists in December 2014.

Geography

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa sits primarily on the

Iranian plateau The Iranian plateau or Persian plateau is a geological feature in Western Asia, Central Asia, and South Asia. It comprises part of the Eurasian Plate and is wedged between the Arabian Plate and the Indian Plate; situated between the Zagros ...

and comprises the junction where the slopes of the

mountains on the

Eurasian plate The Eurasian Plate is a tectonic plate that includes most of the continent of Eurasia (a landmass consisting of the traditional continents of Europe and Asia), with the notable exceptions of the Indian subcontinent, the Arabian subcontinent and ...

give way to the Indus-watered hills approaching

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...

. This situation has led to seismic activity in the past. The famous

links the province to Afghanistan, while the Kohalla Bridge in Circle Bakote Abbottabad is a major crossing point over the Jhelum River in the east. Geographically the province could be divided into two zones: the northern zone extending from the ranges of the

to the borders of the Peshawar basin and the southern zone extending from Peshawar to the Derajat basin. The northern zone is cold and snowy in winters with heavy rainfall and pleasant summers with the exception of the Peshawar basin, which is hot in summer and cold in winter. It has moderate rainfall. The southern zone is arid with hot summers and relatively cold winters and scanty rainfall. The Sheikh Badin Hills, a spur of clay and sandstone hills that stretch east from the Sulaiman Mountains to the

, separates Dera Ismail Khan District from the ''Marwat'' plains of the Lakki Marwat District, Lakki Marwat. The highest peak in the range is the limestone Sheikh Badin Mountain, which is protected by the Sheikh Badin National Park. Near the Indus River, the terminus of the Sheikh Badin Hills is a spur of limestone hills known as the ''Kafir Kot'' hills, where the ancient Hindu complex of Kafir Kot is located. The major rivers that criss-cross the province are Kabul, Swat, Chitral, Kunar, Siran, Panjkora, Bara, Kurram, Dor, Haroo, Gomal, and Zhob. Its snow-capped peaks and lush green valleys of unusual beauty have enormous potential for tourism.

Climate

The climate of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa varies immensely for a region of its size, encompassing most of the many climate types found in Pakistan. The province stretching southwards from the Baroghil Pass in the

covers almost six degrees of latitude; it is mainly a mountainous region. Dera Ismail Khan is one of the hottest places in South Asia while in the mountains to the north the weather is mild in the summer and intensely cold in the winter. The air is generally very dry; consequently, the daily and annual range of temperature is quite large. Rainfall also varies widely. Although large parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are typically dry, the province also contains the wettest parts of Pakistan in its eastern fringe especially in monsoon season from mid-June to mid-September. Ghabral swatvalley x004

Chitral District

Chitral District, due to its location, is completely sheltered from the monsoon that controls the weather in eastern Pakistan, owing to its relatively westerly location and the shielding effect of the Nanga Parbat massif. In many ways, Chitral District has more in common regarding climate with

than South Asia.Mock, John and O'Neil, Kimberley; ''Trekking in the Karakoram and Hindukush''; p. 15 The winters are generally cold even in the valleys, and heavy snow during the winter blocks passes and isolates the region. In the valleys, however, summers can be hotter than on the windward side of the mountains due to lower cloud cover: Chitral can reach frequently during this period. However, the humidity is extremely low during these hot spells and, as a result, the summer climate is less torrid than in the rest of the Indian subcontinent. Most precipitation falls as thunderstorms or snow during winter and spring, so that the climate at the lowest elevations is Köppen climate classification, classed as Mediterranean climate, Mediterranean (''Csa''), continental Mediterranean climate, continental Mediterranean (''Dsa'') or semi-arid climate, semi-arid (''BSk''). Summers are extremely dry in the north of Chitral district and receive only a little rain in the south around Drosh. At elevations above , as much as a third of the snow which feeds the large Karakoram and Hindukush glaciers comes from the monsoon since these elevations are too high to be shielded from its moisture.

Central Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

On the southern flanks of Nanga Parbat and in Upper Dir District, Upper and Lower Dir Districts, rainfall is much heavier than further north because moist winds from the Arabian Sea are able to penetrate the region. When they collide with the mountain slopes, winter depressions provide heavy precipitation. The monsoon, although short, is generally powerful. As a result, the southern slopes of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are the wettest part of Pakistan. Annual rainfall ranges from around in the most sheltered areas to as much as in parts of Abbottabad and Mansehra Districts. This region's climate is classed at lower elevations as humid subtropical climate, humid subtropical (''Cfa'' in the west; ''Cwa'' in the east); whilst at higher elevations with a southerly aspect, it becomes classed as humid continental climate, humid continental (''Dfb''). However, accurate data for altitudes above are practically nonexistent here, in Chitral, or in the south of the province. The seasonality of rainfall in central Khyber Pakhtunkhwa shows very marked gradients from east to west. At Dir, March remains the wettest month due to frequent frontal cloud bands, whereas in Hazara more than half the rainfall comes from the monsoon.See Wernsted, Frederick L.; ''World Climatic Data''; published 1972 by Climatic Data Press; 522 pp. 31 cm. This creates a unique situation characterized by a bimodal rainfall regime, which extends into the southern part of the province described below. Since cold air from the Siberian High loses its chilling capacity upon crossing the vast Karakoram and Himalaya ranges, winters in central Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are somewhat milder than in Chitral. Snow remains very frequent at high altitudes but rarely lasts long on the ground in the major towns and agricultural valleys. Outside of winter, temperatures in central Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are not so hot as in Chitral. Significantly higher humidity when the monsoon is active means that heat discomfort can be greater. However, even during the most humid periods the high altitudes typically allow for some relief from the heat overnight.

Southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

As one moves further away from the foothills of the Himalaya and Karakoram ranges, the climate changes from the humid subtropical climate of the foothills to the typically arid climate of

and southern

. As in central Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the seasonality of precipitation shows a very sharp gradient from west to east, but the whole region very rarely receives significant monsoon rainfall. Even at high elevations, annual rainfall is less than and in some places as little as . Temperatures in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are extremely hot: Dera Ismail Khan in the southernmost district of the province is known as one of the hottest places in the world with temperatures known to have reached . In the cooler months, nights can be cold and frosts remain frequent; snow is very rare, and daytime temperatures remain comfortably warm with abundant sunshine.

National parks

There are about 29 List of national parks of Pakistan, National Parks in Pakistan and 7 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Demographics

The current province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had a population of 35.5 million at the time of the 2017 Census of Pakistan. Over 83% of the population lived in rural areas. The largest ethnic group are the

, who historically have been living in the areas for centuries. Around 1.5 million Afghans in Pakistan, Afghan refugees also remain in the province, the majority of whom are Pashtuns followed by Tājik people, Tajiks, Hazara people, Hazaras, Gurjar, Gujjar and other smaller groups. Despite having lived in the province for over two decades, they are registered as demography of Afghanistan, citizens of Afghanistan. The Pashtuns of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa observe tribal code of conduct called Pashtunwali which has four high value components called ''nang'' (honor), ''badal'' (revenge), ''melmastiya'' (hospitality) and ''nanawata'' (rights to refuge).

Language

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

The most widely spoken language is Pashto, native to 78.89% of the population and spoken throughout the province. Other languages with significant numbers of speakers include

(9.87%) and Saraiki language, Saraiki (3.21%). Hindko is spoken in the southern part of Hazara division in the northeast, and a Hindko dialect was once the predominant language of the Peshawar Valley before Pashtun settlement in the area. Saraiki-speakers are found in Dera Ismail Khan district in the far south of the province. Languages that the census recorded as 'Other' were 5.19% of the population, overwhelmingly Dardic languages spoken in the mountainous northeast of the province including Chitral, Kohistan and the upper parts of Manshera, Dir and Swat valleys. The most prominent of these are Khowar language, Khowar, spoken in Chitral, and Indus Kohistani, Kohistani, spoken in the Kohistan region. In 2011 the provincial government approved in principle the introduction of Pashto, Saraiki, Hindko, Khowar and Kohistani as compulsory subjects for schools in the areas where they are spoken.

Religion

The overwhelming majority of the residents of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa follows and professes the Sunni Islam while the small number of Shia Islam, Shias of Islam are found among the Ismaili Islam, Isma'ilis in the Chitral district. The tribe of Kalash people, Kalasha in southern Chitral still retain an ancient form of Hinduism mixed with Animism, a faith once dominant in the mountainous upper northeast of the district. There are very small numbers of residents who are the adherents of Catholic Church in Pakistan, Roman Catholicism Christian denomination, denomination of Christianity, Hinduism in Pakistan, Hinduism and Sikhism, mainly living in Peshawar and other urban centres.

Government and politics

Districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

;Political leanings and the Legislative branch The Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Provincial Assembly is a Unicameralism, unicameral legislature, which consists of 145 members elected to serve for a constitutionally bounded term of five years. Historically, the province perceived to be a stronghold of the

(ANP); a pro-Russian, by Procommunism, procommunist, Socialism in Pakistan, left-wing and nationalist party. Since the 1970s, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) also enjoyed considerable support in the province due to its Socialism in Pakistan, socialist agenda. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was thought to be another leftist region of the country after

. After the nationwide 2002 Pakistani general election, general elections held in 2002, a plurality voting Swing (politics), swing in the province elected one of Pakistan's only religiously-based provincial governments led by the Conservative Islam, ultra-conservative

(MMA) during the administration of President Pervez Musharraf. The United States invasion of Afghanistan, American involvement in neighboring

contributed towards the electoral victory of the Islamic coalition led by Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan (JeI) whose social policies made the province a ground-swell of Anti-American sentiment in Pakistan, anti-Americanism. The electoral victory of MMA was also in context of guided democracy in the Musharraff administration that barred the mainstream political parties, the leftist Pakistan Peoples Party and the centre-right

(PML(N)), whose chairmen and presidents having been barred from participation in the elections. Policy enforcement of a range of social restrictions, though the implementation of strict Shariah was introduced by the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal government the law was never fully enacted due to objections of the Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa backed by the President Pervez Musharaff, Musharraff administration. Restrictions on public musical performances were introduced, as well as a ban prohibiting music to be played in public places as part of the "Prohibition of Dancing and Music Bill, 2005" – which led to the creation of a thriving underground music scene in Peshawar. The Islamist government also attempted to enforce compulsory ''hijab'' on women, and wished to enforce gender segregation in the province's educational institutions. The coalition further tried to prohibit male doctors from performing ultrasounds on women, and tried to close the province's cinemas. In 2005, the coalition successfully passed the "Prohibition of Use of Women in Photograph Bill, 2005," leading to the removal of all public advertisements that featured women. At the height of Taliban insurgency in Pakistan, the religious coalition lost its grip in the 2008 Pakistani general election, general elections held in 2008, and the religious coalition was swept out of power by the leftist

which also witnessed the resignation of President Musharraf in 2008. The ANP government eventually led the initiatives to repeal the major Islamist's social programs, with the backing of the Government of Pakistan, federal government led by Pakistan Peoples Party, PPP in Islamabad. Public disapproval of Awami National Party, ANP's leftist program integrated in Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, civil administration with the sounded allegations of corruption as well as popular opposition against Religious Conservatism, religious program promoted by the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, MMA swiftly shifted the province's leniency away from the left in 2012. In 2013, the provincial politics shifted towards populism and nationalism when the PTI, led by Imran Khan, was able to form the minority government in coalition with the Jamaat-e-Islami, JeI; the province now serves as the stronghold of the PTI and is perceived as one of the more right wing areas of the country. After the 2018 Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial election, 2018 election, PTI increased their seat share and formed a majority government. In non-Pashtun areas, such as Abbottabad District, Abbottabad, and

, the Pakistan Muslim League (N), PML(N), the centre-right party, enjoys considerable public support over economical and public policy issues and has a substantial vote bank. ;Executive Branch The Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, executive branch of the Kyber Pakhtunkhwa is led by the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Chief Minister elected by popular vote in the Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Provincial assembly while the Governor, a ceremonial figure representing the Government of Pakistan, federal government in Islamabad, is appointed from the necessary advice of the Prime Minister of Pakistan by the President of Pakistan. The provincial cabinet is then appointed by the Chief Minister who takes the Oath of office from the Governor. In matters of civil administration, the Chief Secretary (Pakistan), Chief Secretary assists the Chief Minister on executing its right to ensure the writ of the government and the constitution. ;Judicial Branch The Peshawar High Court is the province's High Court, highest court of law whose judges are appointed by the approval of the Supreme Judicial Council of Pakistan, Supreme Judicial Council in Islamabad, interpreting the laws and overturn those they find unconstitutional.

Administrative divisions and districts

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is divided into seven Divisions – Bannu, Dera Ismail Khan, Hazara, Kohat, Malakand, Mardan, and Peshawar. Each division is split up into anywhere between two and nine districts, and there are 36 districts in the entire province. Below you can find a list showing each district ordered by alphabetical order. A full list showing different characteristics of each district, such as their population, area, and a map showing their location can be found at the main article. * Abbottabad District * Bajaur District * Bannu District * Battagram District * Buner District * Charsadda District, Pakistan, Charsadda District * Dera Ismail Khan District * Hangu District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Hangu District * Haripur District * Karak District * Khyber District * Kohat District * Kolai-Palas District * Kurram District * Lakki Marwat District * Lower Chitral District * Lower Dir District * Lower Kohistan District * Lower South Waziristan District * Malakand District * Mansehra District * Mardan District * Mohmand District * North Waziristan District * Nowshera District * Orakzai District * Peshawar District * Shangla District * Swabi District * Swat District * Tank District * Tor Ghar District * Upper South Waziristan District * Upper Chitral District * Upper Dir District * Upper Kohistan District

Major cities

Peshawar is the capital and largest city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The city is the most populous and comprises more than one-eighth of the province's population.

Economy

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has the List of Pakistani provinces by GDP, third largest provincial economy in Pakistan. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's share of Pakistan's GDP has historically comprised 10.5%, although the province accounts for 11.9% of Pakistan's total population. The part of the economy that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa dominates is forestry, where its share has historically ranged from a low of 34.9% to a high of 81%, giving an average of 61.56%. Currently, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa accounts for 10% of Pakistan's GDP, 20% of Pakistan's mining output and, since 1972, it has seen its economy grow in size by 3.6 times. Agriculture remains important and the main cash crops include wheat, maize, tobacco (in Swabi), rice, sugar beets, as well as fruits are grown in the province. Some manufacturing and high-tech investments in Peshawar have helped improve job prospects for many locals, while trade in the province involves nearly every product. The bazaars in the province are renowned throughout Pakistan. Unemployment has been reduced due to the establishment of industrial zones. Workshops throughout the province support the manufacture of small arms and weapons. The province accounts for at least 78% of the marble production in Pakistan.

Infrastructure

The Sharmai Hydropower Project is a proposed power generation project located in the Upper Dir District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on the Panjkora River with an installed capacity of 150MW.

Social issues

The

sought to rename the province "Pakhtunkhwa", which translates to "Land of Pakhtuns" in the

. This was opposed by some of the non-Pashtuns, and especially by parties such as the

(PML-N) and

(MMA). The PML-N derives its support in the province from primarily non-Pashtun Hazara regions. In 2010 the announcement that the province would have a new name led to a wave of protests in the Hazara region. On 15 April 2010 Senate of Pakistan, Pakistan's senate officially named the province "Khyber Pakhtunkhwa" with 80 senators in favour and 12 opposed. The MMA, who until the elections of 2008 had a majority in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government, had proposed "Afghania" as a compromise name. After the 2008 Pakistani general election, 2008 general election, the Awami National Party formed a coalition provincial government with the Pakistan Peoples Party. The Awami National Party has its strongholds in the Pashtun areas of Pakistan, particularly in the Peshawar valley, while Karachi in

has one of the largest Pashtun populations in the world—around 7 million by some estimates. In the 2008 election, the ANP won two Sindh assembly seats in Karachi. The Awami National Party has been instrumental in fighting the Taliban. In 2013 Pakistani general election, the 2013 general election Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf won a majority in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, provincial assembly and has now formed their government in coalition with Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan.

Non-government organisations

The following is a list of some of the major NGOs working in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: * Al-Khidmat Foundation * Aurat Foundation * Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre * Sarhad Rural Support Programme * Human Rights Commission of Pakistan * Frontier Education Foundation

Folk music and culture

Pashto folk music is popular in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and has a rich tradition going back hundreds of years. The main instruments are the rubab (instrument), rubab, mangey and Harmonium (hand-pumped), harmonium. Khowar folk music is popular in Chitral and northern Swat. The tunes of Khowar music are very different from those of Pashto, and the main instrument is the Chitrali sitar. A form of band music composed of clarinets (Surnai) and drums is popular in Chitral. It is played at polo matches and dances. The same form of band music is played in the neighbouring Northern Areas.

Education

Math Department Peshawar University Panorama

Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology (viewed from clock tower)

Sources: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has traditionally had a very low literacy rate, although this is changing in recent times. As of the 2017 census, the literacy rate for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (including FATA) is 51.66%. In rural areas, the literacy rate is 48.44% of the population while in urban areas it is 66.86%. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has a huge gap in literacy rate between sexes – for men it is 66.67% while the female literacy rate is 34.58%, just over half the male literacy rate. This gap is particularly prominent in the overwhelmingly-Pashto rural areas, where traditional gender norms have generally limited education of women. As of 2021, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has the highest literacy growth rate in the whole country (

) This is a chart of the education market of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa estimated by the government in 1998.

Public medical colleges

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province has 9 government medical colleges: * Khyber Medical University, Peshawar * Bannu Medical College, Bannu * Khyber Girls Medical College, Peshawar * Ayub Medical College, Abbottabad * Bacha Khan Medical College, Mardan * Gajju Khan Medical College Swabi * Gomal Medical College, D.I.Khan * Nowshera Medical College, Nowshera * Saidu Medical College Swat

Engineering universities

* CECOS University of Information Technology and Emerging Science, Peshawar * National University of Sciences and Technology, Islamabad- College of Aeronautical Engineering, Risalpur Campus * COMSATS Institute of Information Technology, Islamabad (Abbottabad Campus) * City University of Science and Information Technology, Peshawar * Gandhara Institute of Science & Technology, PGS Engineering College (University of Engineering & Technology, Peshawar) * Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology, Topi-Swabi * Iqra University Peshawar (Formerly Iqra University, Karachi (Peshawar Campus) * National University of Sciences and Technology, Islamabad- Military College of Engineering (Pakistan), Military College of Engineering, Risalpur Campus * National University of Computer & Emerging Sciences, Islamabad (Peshawar Campus) * University of Engineering & Technology, Peshawar (Main Campus) * University of Engineering and Technology, Peshawar (Mardan Campus) * University of Engineering & Technology, Peshawar (Bannu Campus) * University of Engineering & Technology, Peshawar (Abbottabad Campus) * University of Engineering & Technology, Peshawar (Kohat Campus) * Sarhad University of Science and Information Technology, Peshawar * Abasyn University, Peshawar * University of Science and Technology, Bannu * IMSciences,

*Gomal University, Gomal University, Dera Ismail Khan

Major educational establishments

* Cadet College Kohat * Edwardes College, Peshawar * Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan *

Islamia College University Islamia College Peshawar (ICP) ( ur, اسلامیہ کالج پشاور) is a public university located in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...

Sports

Cricket (sport), Cricket is the main sport played in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It has produced world-class sportsmen like Shahid Afridi, Younis Khan, Khushdil Shah, Fakhar Zaman (cricketer), Fakhar Zaman and Umar Gul. Besides producing cricket players, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has the honour of being the birthplace of many world-class squash (sport), squash players, including greats like Hashim Khan, Qamar Zaman, Jahangir Khan and Jansher Khan.

Tourism

Notes

References

External links

*
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa tourism corporation
{{Authority control Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 2005 Kashmir earthquake Durand Line Pashto-speaking countries and territories Provinces of Pakistan States and territories established in 1970

Etymology

History

Early history

Alexander's conquests

Mauryan rule

Kushan rule

Hindu Shahis

Mughal

Afsharid

Durrani Afghans

Sikh

British Raj

Bannu Resolution

1947 NWFP referendum

After the creation of Pakistan

War and militancy

Geography

Climate

Chitral District

Central Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

National parks

Demographics

Language

Religion

Government and politics

Administrative divisions and districts

Major cities

Economy

Infrastructure

Social issues

Non-government organisations

Folk music and culture

Education

Public medical colleges

Engineering universities

Major educational establishments

Sports

Tourism

See also

Notes

References

External links