Punjabi Sikhs are ethnic Punjabis who adhere to

Sikhism Sikhism is an Indian religion and Indian philosophy, philosophy that originated in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent around the end of the 15th century CE. It is one of the most recently founded major religious groups, major religio ...

. They are the second-largest religious group amongst Punjabis after the Punjabi Muslims, who predominantly inhabit Pakistani Punjab. Punjabi Sikhs form the largest religious community in the

Indian state India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories, for a total of 36 subnational entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into 800 districts and smaller administrative divisions by the respe ...

of Punjab.

is an

indigenous religion Indigenous religion or native religion is a category used in the study of religion to demarcate the religious belief systems of communities described as being " indigenous". This category is often juxtaposed against others such as the " world r ...

that originated in the

Punjab region Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

South Asia South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...

during the 15th century. Mostly all of the world's

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

population are Punjabis. Punjabi Sikhs primarily inhabit the Indian state of Punjab, the only Sikh-majority

administrative division Administrative divisions (also administrative units, administrative regions, subnational entities, or constituent states, as well as many similar generic terms) are geographical areas into which a particular independent sovereign state is divi ...

on Earth. Punjabi Sikhs make up 57.69% of the state’s population. Many have ancestry from the greater Punjab region, an area that was partitioned between

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

in 1947. In the contemporary era, apart from Indian Punjab, Punjabi Sikhs are found in large numbers across the Indian states of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Chandigarh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra. Large numbers are also found in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

and Britain, due to various immigration waves over the centuries.

History

The Sikh religion founder, Guru Nanak (1469–1539), was roughly a contemporary of the founder of

Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an Early modern period, early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to ...

Babur in

. Guru Nanak Dev Ji was born in a Punjabi Hindu Khatri family, which was initially a community of scribes and traders. In un-divided

, the eldest son of every Punjabi Hindu families was nominated and was represented as Sardars and had protected their family and Indic communities from the tyrannies of Mughal rulers and their torture. A huge number of peasants from

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

and

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

backgrounds in Punjab have converted to Sikhism for various motives (such as conviction, fear, or economic) since the starting of new faith.

Militarism

Soldier Sikh LI INF of the Indian Army practices aim during MALABAR 2006

The militarization of Punjabi Sikhs began after the execution of Guru Arjan Dev (5th Guru in

). Following his execution, a conflict erupted between the

and Sikhs which led to the last guru, Gobind Singh, establishing a militarized order known as the Khalsa, in 1699. Punjabi Sikhs were regarded as one of the toughest and fiercest warriors by the British during their rule in the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

. Punjabi Sikh soldiers constituted a significant chunk of the British Indian Army due to their distinguished service in action. Despite being only around 2% of India's population, Punjabi Sikhs constitute around 20% of the

Indian Armed Forces The Indian Armed Forces are the armed forces, military forces of the India, Republic of India. It consists of three professional uniformed services: the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force.—— Additionally, the Indian Ar ...

, with the Punjab province being the 2nd largest contributor for manpower after

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

Language

Punjabi Sikhs speak the

Punjabi language Punjabi, sometimes spelled Panjabi, is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language native to the Punjab region of Pakistan and India. It is one of the most widely spoken native languages in the world, with approximately 150 million native sp ...

as their mother tongue. Various dialects of the Punjabi language such as Bagri, Bilaspuri, Bhateali, Majhi, Doabi, Malwai, and Puadhi etc are spoken by Punjabi Sikhs across India and abroad as their mother tongue. In Indian Punjab, Punjabi is written in Gurmukhi script. In Pakistani Punjab, Shahmukhi script is used. Gurmukhi is written from left to right, while Shahmukhi is written from right to left. The use of Gurmukhi script generally started and developed during the time of second Sikh guru, Guru Angad Dev (1504–1552) who standardized it. It is commonly regarded as a Sikh script. The Shahmukhi script has been used by Punjabi Muslims since the 12th century, when it was used by Punjabi Sufi poets. Shahmukhi is a Perso-Arabic alphabet script.

Culture

Festivals

The Punjabi Sikhs observe historic festivals such as Lohri, Basant and Vaisakhi as seasonal and cultural festivals in Punjab and outside of it. Other seasonal Punjabi festivals in India include Maghi and Teeyan respectively. Teeyan is also known as festival of females, as women enjoy it with their close friends. On the day of maghi, people fly kites and eat their traditional dish Punjabi dish khichdi. Other festivals observed by Punjabi Sikhs includes the festivals of

like- Gurupurab, Bandi Chhor Divas, etc.

Separatism

The demand for Khalistan as a separate homeland for Sikhs is championed by a segment of the Punjabi Sikh population, various advocacy groups, and certain Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) who demand secession of Indian Punjab from India. This movement, rooted in historical, political, and religious factors, emerged prominently in the 1970s and 1980s. Key advocates include local organizations in Punjab and Sikhs abroad, particularly in

, the UK, and the US. They seek to safeguard

identity, achieve political autonomy, and address historical grievances such as Operation Blue Star and the

1984 anti-Sikh riots The 1984 anti-Sikh riots, also known as the 1984 Sikh massacre, was a series of organised pogroms against Sikhs in India following the assassination of Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards. Government estimates project that about 2,800 Sikhs w ...

. However, not all Sikhs support this idea, with many preferring integration within India to address issues through democratic means. While the Khalistan movement does not dominate mainstream Sikh politics today, it remains a contentious issue with varying levels of support.https://www.britannica.com/place/India/Sikh-separatism

History

Militarism

Language

Culture

Festivals

Separatism

Notes

References

Further reading