Punjabi Christians[edit]

See also: Punjabi Christians

Missionaries accompanied the colonising forces from Portugal, France, and Great Britain.
Christianity was mainly brought by the British rulers of India in the later 18th and 19th century[citation
needed]
.
The total number of Punjabi Christians in Pakistan is approximately 2,800,000 and 300,000 in Indian
Punjab. Of these, approximately half are Roman Catholic and half Protestant. Many of the modern
Punjabi Christians are descended from converts during British rule; initially, conversions to
Christianity came from the "upper levels of Punjab society, from the privileged and prestigious",
including "high caste" Hindu families, as well as Muslim families.[108][109][110] However, other modern
Punjabi Christians have converted from the Chuhra group. The Churas were largely converted to
Christianity in North India during the British raj. The vast majority were converted from the Mazhabi
Sikh communities of Punjab, and to a lesser extent Hindu Churas; under the influence of
enthusiastic British army officers and Christian missionaries. Consequently, since the independence
they are now divided between Pakistani Punjab and Indian Punjab. Large numbers of Mazhabi
Sikhs were also converted in the Moradabad district and the Bijnor district[111] of Uttar
Pradesh. Rohilkhand saw a mass conversion of its entire population of 4500 Mazhabi Sikhs into
the Methodist Church.[112] Sikh organisations became alarmed at the rate of conversions among high
caste Sikh families,[113] and as a result, they responded by immediately dispatching Sikh missionaries
to counteract the conversions[citation needed].

Culture[edit]
Main article: Punjabi culture

Punjabi culture is the culture of the Punjab region. It is one of the oldest and richest cultures in world
history, dating from ancient antiquity to the modern era. The Punjabi culture is the culture of the
Punjabi people, who are now distributed throughout the world. The scope, history, sophistication and
complexity of the culture are vast. Some of the main areas include Punjabi poetry, philosophy,
spirituality, artistry, dance, music, cuisine, military weaponry, architecture, languages, traditions,
values and history. Historically, the Punjab/Punjabis, in addition to their rural-agrarian lands and
culture, have also enjoyed a unique urban cultural development in two great
cities, Lahore[114] and Amritsar.[115]

Role of women[edit]
Sophia Duleep Singh, a prominent British Punjabi Suffragette and granddaughter of Maharaja Ranjit
Singh of Punjab (1876–1948)

In the traditional Punjabi culture women look after the household and children. Also women in
general manage the finances of the household. Moreover, Punjabi women fought in the past along
with the men when the time arose. There are notable poets and painters among Punjabi women
including Amrita Pritam and Amrita Shergill.[116][117]