Peshawar
Peshawar
| |
|---|---|
Metropolis | |
Islamia College University City Exteriors Bala Hissar Mahabat Khan Mosque Sethi Mohallah Cunningham Clock Tower University of Peshawar Bab-e-Khyber | |
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Flag | |
| Nickname: City of Flowers[1] | |
Peshawar Location within Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Peshawar Location within Pakistan | |
| Coordinates: 34°00′52″N 71°34′03″E / 34.01444°N 71.56750°E | |
| Country | Pakistan |
| Province | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
| District | Peshawar District |
| Union councils | 92 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor–council |
| • Body | District government |
| • Mayor | Zubair Ali[2] (JUI-F) |
| • Commissioner | Muhammad Zubair[3] |
| • Deputy Commissioner | Aafaq Wazir[4] |
| Area | |
• City | 215 km2 (83 sq mi) |
| • Metro | 1,257 km2 (485 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 331 m (1,086 ft) |
| Highest elevation | 450 m (1,480 ft) |
| Population (2023)[7] | |
• City | 1,905,975 |
| • Rank | 8th, Pakistan |
| • Density | 8,900/km2 (23,000/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Peshawari |
| Time zone | UTC+5:00 (PKT) |
| Postal code | 25000 |
| Area code | 091 (+92) |
| Languages | Pashto, Hindko, Urdu |
| Website | cmgp |
Peshawar[a] is the capital and largest city of the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the eighth-most populous Pakistani city, with a population of over 1.9 million.[9][10] It is situated in the north-west of the country, lying in the Valley of Peshawar, a broad area situated east of the Khyber Pass.
Peshawar's recorded history dates back to at least sixth century BC, making it one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in South Asia.[11][12] One of the principal cities of the ancient Gandhara, Peshawar served as the capital of the Kushan Empire during the rule of Kanishka the Great, in the second century CE.[13][14][15] A variety of Muslim empires ruled the city following the conquest of Peshawar by the Ghaznavids from the Hindu Shahis, in 1001 CE. It was an important trading centre in the Mughal Empire, later serving as the winter capital of the Durrani Empire from 1776 until the capture of the city by the Sikh Empire in 1823. In 1849, the city was captured by the East India Company and subsequently became part of British Raj. In 1901, Peshawar became capital of the North-West Frontier Province after it was created from the northwestern districts of Punjab Province. Following the Partition of British India it became part of Pakistan, in 1947.
Peshawar is a major cultural, political and economic centre of the region. During the colonial period and well into the early years after independence, the lingua franca of Peshawar was Hindko;[16] in the succeeding decades, the rapid urbanization and the high rate of migration from the rural and tribal areas of the province, as well as the influx of Afghan refugees following the Soviet-Afghan War, transformed Peshawar from Hindko to a Pashto-speaking city.[17][16][18] Today Peshawar is largely populated by Pashtuns, although the original urban population, known as Peshoris, still has a significant presence in the central areas of the old Walled City.[19][18][20]
- ^ "Peshawar – The city of flowers". The Nation. 2 March 2018. Archived from the original on 16 October 2021. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
- ^ "Major upset for PTI as JUI-F wins Peshawar mayor seat". Dawn. Pakistan. 21 December 2021. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
- ^ "Hayatabad jogging track set to open". The Express Tribune (newspaper). 2 December 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
- ^ "DC For Timely Completion Of Arrangements For General Elections". UrduPoint. 19 December 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
- ^ "KP's new LG system: structure, powers, and voting process". SAMAA TV. 17 December 2021. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
- ^ "District Peshawar". Department of Local Government, Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Archived from the original on 18 January 2022. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
- ^ "Pakistan: Provinces and Major Cities – Population Statistics, Maps, Charts, Weather and Web Information". citypopulation.de. Archived from the original on 4 October 2018. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
- ^ "Peshawar". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 18 May 2021.
- ^ "2023 Census KP" (PDF). Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
- ^ "NWFP Introduction". Government of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. Archived from the original on 30 October 2007. Retrieved 12 December 2007.
- ^ "Peshawar: Oldest Living City in South Asia". Dawn. 3 July 2010. Archived from the original on 8 May 2021. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
- ^ Nadiem, Ihsan H. (2007). Peshawar: Heritage, History, Monuments. Sang-e-Meel Publications. ISBN 978-969-35-1971-6.
- ^ Baloch, Sikandar Khan (2004). In the Wonderland of Asia, Gilgit & Baltistan. Sang-e-Meel Publications. p. 124. ISBN 9789693516142.
Within the next decade, emerged the great kingdom of Gandhra under the great Kushan king Kaniskha (125-160 AD). The seat of his central government was Purushpura which is today known as Peshawar.
- ^ Chaurasia, Radhey Shyam (2002). History of Ancient India: Earliest Times to 1000 A.D. Atlantic Publishers & Dist. p. 148. ISBN 9788126900275.
Kanishka's coins have been found as far as Ghaznipur and Gorakhpur. These point to the wide extent of his Indian dominion which stretched from Gandhara to Banaras. The eastern portion of this empire was governed by Mahakshatrapa and a Kshatrapa while the northern portion by military governors. He fixed his capital at Purushpura or Peshawar which he adorned with many noble buildings.
- ^ The Listener, Volume 39. British Broadcasting Corporation. 1948. p. 27.
Of course the Kushan capital established by Kanishka in India was at Purushpura — Peshawar — not Mathura, where the Saka satraps had held sway and probably continued under the overlordship of the Kushans.
- ^ a b Dani, Ahmad Hasan (1995). Peshawar: Historic City of the Frontier. Sang-e-Meel Publications. p. 12. ISBN 978-969-35-0554-2.
The Afghan migration to the city of Peshawar has completely changed the character of the city. Peshawar, which was regarded as a 'Khar' (city) — a home of town dwellers engaged in trade and business — by the rurally oriented Pathans, is no longer the same today. The Pathans, or rather the Afghans, have made Peshawar as their own city. The Hindko language, which was the common lingua franca of the Peshawaris, as it was the language of the business class, has almost lost its place. Pashto has now become more dominant and so has increased the number of Pathans in the city.
- ^ Nadiem, Ihsan H. (2007). Peshawar: Heritage, History, Monuments. Sang-e-Meel Publications. p. 15. ISBN 978-969-35-1971-6.
With the influx of these refugees the language pattern of the Peshawar City also changed drastically as they managed to assimilate in the local populace with comparative ease... Pashto-speaking population overwhelmingly dominating the Hindko or Peshawari-speaking populace (also known as Khaari–urban) in the city.
- ^ a b Alimia, Sanaa (2022). "Peshawar's Afghan Transformation". Refugee Cities: How Afghans Changed Urban Pakistan. University of Pennsylvania Press. pp. 85–9. ISBN 978-1-5128-2279-3.
- ^ "PAKISTAN: THE PASHTUN LOSE PATIENCE". a2globalrisk.com. Archived from the original on 28 October 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
- ^ "Languages". Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Official Web Portal. Retrieved 21 August 2025.
Hindko, (a Punjabi dialect) is spoken in the majority in Hazara Division and also in the central old city areas of Nowshera, Kohat, and Peshawar city.
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