History of Punjab

Founded in 1577 by Guru Ram Das, the fourth Sikh Guru, who dug the sacred pool (amrit sarovar) that gives the city its name; his successor Guru Arjan Dev completed the Harmandir Sahib. Amritsar became the spiritual capital of Sikhism, the seat of the Akal Takht, and a key city of Maharaja Ranjit Singh's empire. In 1919 it was the site of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. Today it is a great centre of pilgrimage, trade and textiles on the Wagah border.

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Created as a district in 2006 from Amritsar. The town was founded by Guru Arjan Dev in 1596 and named after the sacred tank Tarn Taran Sahib, the "pool that ferries across", a major Sikh pilgrimage site. It lies in the fertile Majha belt near the Khem Karan sector, an area of strategic importance in the 1965 India-Pakistan war.

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Named after Guriya, its founder, this border district contains many historic towns: Batala, a centre of Sikh learning and iron foundries; Qadian, birthplace of the Ahmadiyya movement founded by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad in 1889; Kalanaur, where Akbar was crowned in 1556; and Dera Baba Nanak on the route of the Kartarpur corridor. Numerous gurdwaras here are linked to the Sikh Gurus.

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Carved out of Gurdaspur in 2011, Pathankot is an ancient town once associated with the Audumbara republic and known historically as Aceves, a crossroads where Punjab meets Himachal Pradesh and Jammu. It has long been an important military cantonment and airbase and a trading gateway to the hills.

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One of the oldest cities of the region, named in legend after the demon Jalandhara. It was important under the Kushans and later linked to the Lodhi dynasty, whose founder Bahlol Lodhi came from this area. Sitting in the Doaba between the Beas and Sutlej, modern Jalandhar is a hub of industry, sports-goods manufacturing, Punjabi publishing and culture.

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Capital of the former Kapurthala princely state ruled by the Ahluwalia Sardars and Rajas, celebrated for elegant French-inspired architecture such as the Jagatjit Palace. In the Doaba, the district includes Sultanpur Lodhi, where Guru Nanak Dev spent much of his life, and Phagwara, a busy commercial town.

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One of the oldest continuously inhabited parts of Punjab, with Stone-Age and Harappan-era sites and legendary links to the Pandavas. Set at the edge of the Shivaliks in the Doaba, it is famed for wood-inlay craft, nearby pilgrim centres such as Chintpurni, and as a hub of education and military recruitment.

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Formerly Nawanshahr, renamed in 2008 to honour Shaheed Bhagat Singh, whose ancestral village Khatkar Kalan lies in this district. A Doaba region known for agriculture, the shrine at Banga, and as the homeland of many families who later migrated abroad.

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Ropar, on the Sutlej, is famous for the Indus Valley (Harappan) site excavated here, among the first in independent India. It was where Maharaja Ranjit Singh met Lord William Bentinck in 1831. The great Bhakra-Nangal dam, one of the largest in the world, lies in this district, along with the sacred towns of Anandpur Sahib and Chamkaur Sahib.

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Named after Sahibzada Ajit Singh, the eldest son of Guru Gobind Singh, this district borders Chandigarh and grew rapidly from the planned city of Mohali. It combines historic areas linked to Anandpur with modern hubs such as Kharar, Dera Bassi and Zirakpur, and is a centre of IT, education and industry.

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Named for the "fort of victory", this district marks where Guru Gobind Singh's two younger sons, Sahibzada Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh, were martyred around 1704-05; Gurudwara Fatehgarh Sahib and Joti Sarup commemorate them. It includes the historic towns of Sirhind, an important Mughal provincial capital, and Amloh.

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Punjab's largest city, founded in the late 15th century by the Lodhi dynasty, from whom it takes its name. It became a major British cantonment and is today famous for hosiery, bicycles and machine tools. The historic town of Machhiwara nearby saw battles of the Sikh struggle against Mughal authority.

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Capital of the Patiala princely state founded in the 18th century by Baba Ala Singh of the Sidhu Jat dynasty. Patiala is celebrated for its Sikh architecture — the Qila Mubarak, Sheesh Mahal and Moti Bagh — its Patiala gharana of classical music, and its polo and sporting heritage. It hosts Punjabi University and the historic town of Samana.

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Once the capital of the Jind princely state, Sangrur district includes the historic towns of Sunam (linked in legend to the Pandavas) and Lehra. Malerkotla formed part of Sangrur until it became a separate district in 2021. It is a heartland of Malwa agriculture and Sikh-Jat rural culture.

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Carved out of Sangrur in 2006, Barnala was an important town and pargana seat during the Sikh period. It lies in the fertile central Malwa and is chiefly agricultural, with historic gurdwaras and links to the Namdhari (Kuka) movement of the late 19th century.

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The newest district of Punjab, formed on 14 May 2021 from Sangrur. Malerkotla was a former princely state founded in the 15th century and is unique as Punjab's only Muslim-majority town, renowned for its communal harmony: during the 1947 Partition its ruler and people sheltered Sikh and Hindu refugees.

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Formed in 1995 from Faridkot, Moga is the ancestral home of many prominent Punjabi families and the base of the famous Moga school of wrestling. In the fertile Sutlej belt, it is a major centre of dairy farming (home to an early Nestle dairy) and includes the sacred town of Nihal Singh Wala.

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Capital of the former Faridkot princely state, founded by Raja Farid from whom it takes its name. Its historic town Kot Kapura was founded by Kapura Brar. The district includes Jaito, site of the 1924 Jaito da Morcha, an agitation of the Gurdwara reform (Akali) movement.

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One of Punjab's oldest towns, home to the imposing Qila Mubarak, a fort linked to Rajput and later Sikh rulers and where Razia Sultan was once imprisoned. Guru Gobind Singh's forces fought the nearby Battle of Muktsar in 1705. Today Bathinda is a major industrial, rail and education hub with an oil refinery and the Central University of Punjab.

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Formed in 1992 from parts of Sangrur and Bathinda, Mansa lies in the semi-arid Malwa and is an agricultural district known for cotton. The town grew around a temple of Mansa Devi, and the district includes Budhlada and Sardulgarh.

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A border district on the Sutlej, Firozpur was founded in the 14th century by Sultan Firoz Shah Tughlaq, from whom it takes its name, and became a major British military cantonment. It is associated with the Anglo-Sikh wars, and the Saragarhi memorial nearby commemorates the 1897 last stand of 21 Sikh soldiers.

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Formed in 2011 from Ferozepur, Fazilka is a border district near Pakistan, founded by Jwal Singh. Its towns Abohar — a prosperous citrus and cotton belt — and Jalalabad are important trade centres on the India-Pakistan frontier.

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Renamed in honour of the forty Muktas who attained liberation fighting for Guru Gobind Singh at the Battle of Muktsar (Khidrane di Dhab) in 1705, commemorated by Gurudwara Tuti Gandi. Its tehsil Malout and historic towns are centres of Malwa agriculture in the semi-arid south.

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Bahawalnagar was founded as Rojhanwali and renamed in 1904 after Nawab Bahawal Khan V of the Bahawalpur state. It lies in the fertile Sutlej valley near the Indian border and became a district in 1904 under the princely state, later joining Pakistan in 1947 with the accession of Bahawalpur. Its economy is based on cotton, wheat and sugar.

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Founded in 1748 by Nawab Bahawal Khan I, Bahawalpur was the capital of a large princely state ruled by the Abbasi family. It acceded to Pakistan in 1947 and remained a semi-autonomous state until 1955. The city is famed for its palaces (Noor Mahal, Darbar Mahal), the Lal Suhanra National Park, and its role as a centre of Islamia University and southern-Punjab culture near the Cholistan desert.

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Named after Nawab Rahim Yar Khan of the Bahawalpur state, this large southern district lies along the Indus and the Sutlej. It hosts the historic town of Uch Sharif, renowned for the shrines of medieval Sufi saints, and the Sadiqabad area developed around the canal colonies. It became a separate district in 1932 within the princely state.

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Founded around the 15th century and named after Ghazi Khan, a Baloch chief, the city sits between the Indus and the Suleiman range. It was part of Multan and later the Sikh and British administration, becoming a district in the Dera Ghazi Khan division. The Sakhi Sarwar shrine and the hill-country tombs are notable landmarks.

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Layyah lies in the Sindh Sagar Doab between the Indus and Chenab rivers. It has ancient roots in the region traversed by trade and pilgrimage routes, and became a district in 1982, carved out of Muzaffargarh. Its economy centres on agriculture in the riverine (kachha) belt.

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Founded in 1794 by Nawab Muzaffar Khan of Multan, who laid out the town and its fort. It lies between the Chenab and Indus and became a district under British rule. The Kot Addu area is a major centre of power generation and irrigation on the Indus.

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Rajanpur was founded in 1732 by Raja Jahan Khan, an ancestor of the Dajal nawabs, and lies at the foot of the Suleiman range on the Indus. It includes the tribal hill country and the historic town of Dajal. It became a district in 1982, separated from Dera Ghazi Khan.

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Chiniot is an ancient town on the Chenab, celebrated for its woodcarving, furniture and the historic Omar Hayat Mahal. Traditions link its name to Chandan Bibi; it flourished under the Mughals and Sikh rule. It was made a district in 2009, separated from Jhang.

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Founded in 1892 by the British as Lyallpur, after Sir James Lyall, on the canal-colony lands of the Chenab. It grew into Punjab's great textile and industrial city and was renamed Faisalabad in 1979 after King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. Its eight bazaars radiate from the central Clock Tower (Ghanta Ghar).

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Jhang was founded in 1462 and became the seat of the Sial chiefs who ruled the region between the Chenab and Jhelum. The old town of Jhang Saddar and the shrine of Sultan Bahu at Shorkot are historic landmarks. It has long been a centre of the Chenab valley's agriculture and pastoral life.

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Toba Tek Singh takes its name from a well (toba) dug by the Sikh Sardar Tek Singh on the old Sherkot–Kamalia road. Developed under the British canal colonies, it became a district in 1982, separated from Faisalabad. The town is immortalised in Saadat Hasan Manto's Partition short story "Toba Tek Singh".

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Gujranwala was founded in the 18th century and is the birthplace of Maharaja Ranjit Singh (1780), founder of the Sikh Empire, who was born in the area now marked by his birthplace shrine. It grew into a major industrial city of cutlery, ceramics and engineering. It has been a district headquarters since British times.

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Gujrat is an ancient city whose modern form dates to the Mughal period; it is famed as the site of the 1849 Battle of Gujrat, where the British defeated the Sikh army and annexed the Punjab. The city is a centre of fan-making, pottery and export industries, and hosts many overseas-origin families.

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Hafizabad was founded during the Sikh period by Maharaja Ranjit Singh and named after a Muslim saint, Hafiz. It lies in the fertile rice-growing belt between the Chenab and Ravi and became a district in 1991, separated from Gujranwala.

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Mandi Bahauddin lies in the Chaj Doab between the Jhelum and Chenab. It grew around a market town and takes part of its name from the Sufi saint Bahauddin. It became a district in 1993, separated from Gujrat, and is known for agriculture and the Rasul barrage.

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Narowal is a border district said to be named after Naru Singh. It lies in the Rechna Doab near the Ravi and the Kashmir border, and includes the historic Shakargarh tehsil, once part of the Jammu region. It became a district in 1991, separated from Sialkot.

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Sialkot is one of Punjab's oldest cities, associated in legend with Raja Salivahan, and it is the birthplace of the poet-philosopher Allama Iqbal (1877). Under the Sikhs and the British it became a great industrial and export centre, world-famous for sports goods, surgical instruments and cutlery.

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Lahore is the cultural heart of Punjab, its history reaching back through the Mughal era when it was an imperial capital of Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan, who built the Lahore Fort, Shalimar Gardens, Wazir Khan and Badshahi mosques. It was the capital of Maharaja Ranjit Singh's Sikh Empire from 1799 and remained a great centre of learning under the British. After Partition it became the capital of Pakistan's Punjab.

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Kasur is the resting place of the great Sufi poet Bulleh Shah, whose shrine draws pilgrims. Founded in the 16th century by Pashtun settlers, it grew under the Mughals and Sikhs and lies on the road between Lahore and the Indian border. It became a district in 1976, separated from Lahore.

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Nankana Sahib is one of the holiest places in Sikhism — the birthplace of Guru Nanak Dev, founder of the Sikh faith, in 1469. Originally known as Rai Bhoi di Talwandi, it was renamed after Rai Bular Bhatti's descendant and holds Gurdwara Nankana Sahib and several related shrines. It was the site of the tragic 1921 Nankana Sahib massacre during the Gurdwara Reform movement. It became a district in 2005.

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Sheikhupura was founded in the early 17th century by the Mughal emperor Jahangir, who built the striking Hiran Minar to honour his pet antelope Mansraj. The town grew as a Mughal hunting and pleasure retreat and later an industrial city. It became a district in 1992, separated from Lahore.

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Multan is one of the oldest cities of South Asia, known as the "City of Saints" for the shrines of Bahauddin Zakariya, Shah Rukn-e-Alam and Shams Tabrez. It was famed for its sun temple and later a great centre of Islamic learning and Sufism, conquered in turn by Arabs, the Delhi Sultanate, the Mughals, the Sikhs and the British. It is a major city of southern Punjab.

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Khanewal developed around a major railway junction on the Karachi–Peshawar line and grew as an agricultural market centre in the Chenab valley. It was named after the Khera clan and became a district in 1985, separated from Multan.

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Lodhran lies on the north bank of the Sutlej in southern Punjab and takes its name from the Lodha tribe. It is an agricultural district of cotton and wheat and became a district in 2000, separated from Multan.

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Vehari lies in the Sutlej valley and grew as an agricultural centre of cotton and citrus after the canal colonies were developed under British rule. It became a district in 1976, separated from Multan, and includes the towns of Burewala and Mailsi.

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Rawalpindi lies near the ruins of Taxila (Takshashila), one of the ancient world's great centres of learning on the Gandhara trade route. The modern city grew under Sikh and British rule, becoming a major military cantonment and, from 1959, the interim seat of Pakistan's capital while Islamabad was built. It is a busy twin city with the capital.

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Attock lies at the historic crossing of the Indus, long the gateway between Central Asia and the Punjab. The Mughal emperor Akbar built the Attock Fort here in the 16th century to guard the river crossing. The town of Campbellpur (now Attock) was founded under British rule and became a district in 1978.

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Chakwal lies on the Potohar plateau near the Salt Range, an area known for the historic Katas Raj temples and its recruitment tradition. It grew as a market town and became a district in 1985, separated from Jhelum and Rawalpindi. The Talagang area was elevated to a separate district after 2022.

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Jhelum lies on the river of the same name and is near the ruins of Rohtas Fort, built by Sher Shah Suri in the 16th century, and the Mangla Dam. The region has ancient links to Alexander's campaign and the battle near the Hydaspes (Jhelum) river. It became a district under British rule and is known for its military tradition.

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Sahiwal was founded in 1865 as Montgomery, after Sir Robert Montgomery, on the canal-colony lands. It lies close to Harappa, one of the great cities of the Indus Valley Civilisation, and was renamed Sahiwal in 1967. The district is a centre of agriculture and the Sahiwal breed of cattle.

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Okara developed on the canal-colony lands under British rule and takes its name from the Okara tree. The historic Depalpur tehsil was an important medieval town, once a seat of governors under the Sultanate and Mughals. Okara became a district in 1982, separated from Sahiwal.

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Pakpattan, anciently Ajodhan, is revered as the seat of the Sufi saint Baba Fariduddin Ganjshakar, whose shrine draws millions. It was an important town on the Delhi–Multan route and its name means "pure ferry" across the Sutlej. It became a district in 1998, separated from Sahiwal.

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Sargodha was founded in 1903 by the British on the Lower Jhelum canal colony and grew into a planned agricultural and air-force city. The old town of Bhera nearby is a historic trading centre with Mughal-era links. Sargodha has been a district headquarters since the early 20th century.

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Bhakkar lies on the left bank of the Indus and has an old town founded in the 16th century. The historic Mankera fort nearby was the seat of a branch of the Baloch and later rulers. It became a district in 1982, separated from Mianwali.

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Khushab lies between the Jhelum and the Indus, stretching into the Thal desert, and takes its name from the "land of sweet water". It grew around a market town founded under the Sikh period and became a district in 1982, separated from Sargodha.

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Mianwali sits at the edge of the Thal and the Salt Range, near the Indus, and takes its name from the Sufi saint Mian Ali. It became a district headquarters under British rule and is known for the Kundian and Kalabagh areas along the Indus.

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