Unit-1

History and Culture of Punjab

Ancient Punjab : Physical
features
Punjab : Introduction
• The word ‘Punjab’ Consists of two Persian words : ‘panj’
and ‘aab’. ‘Panj’ means ‘five’ and ‘aab’ means ‘water’ or
‘rivers’.
• The land in the north-west of the vast Indo-Pakistan Sub-
continent is known as the Punjab because therein flow five
tributaries of the Indus River : the Jhelum, the Chenab, the
Ravi, the Beas and the Sutlej.
 Punjab now a Misnomer
• At present, however, this ‘Land of Five Rivers’ or Punjab is not held
by one single State. In 1947 the Predominantly Muslim areas of
this land were given to Pakistan and the Eastern portion of this
land remained a part of India. Thus, a brutal dismemberment of
Punjab took place and it was divided into two Punjabs :the West
Punjab(Pakistan) and the East Punjab (India)
• East Punjab now called the Punjab became an Important frontier
State in north-west of the Indian union.
• In 1966, the later was again divided into two parts, the Punjab and
Haryana.
West Punjab & East Punjab
Divided Punjab
Punjab now a Misnomer
• In the Pakistan-held Punjab, now three

rivers-the Jhelum, the Chenab and the

Ravi-flow, whereas in the Indian Punjab

only two rivers the Beas and the Sutlej-

flow.

• Thus, the word ‘Punjab’ both for the

Pakistan-held Punjab and the Indian

Punjab– is now a misnomer, as neither

of these Punjabs– the Indian and the

Pakistan-held is watered by five rivers.

 Boundaries of the Punjab
Ancient period to Modern Period

• Boundaries of the Punjab have been altered substantially not only in

recent times, but also in various periods of its history. Its boundaries have
been contracting and expanding.
• Rig Vedic period:

In Rig Veda Period the Punjab included all the territory covered by the
seven rivers –the ‘Sapt-sindhus : vitasta (Jhelum), Asuki(Chenab),
Parushni(Ravi), Vipas(Beas), Sutdru (Sutlej),Saraswati and the Sindhu. It
was then Known as ‘Sapt Sindhus’ or Brahmvarata

Tribes: Anus, Purus, Bharats, Yadus and Turvasus

 Boundaries of the Punjab
• Mauryan and Kushan Periods :

In that period boundaries of Punjab extended beyond the Hindukush

Mountain range.

• Delhi Sultanate:

During the period of the Delhi Sultanate, the frontier of the Punjab or
the Lahore Province extended up to Peshawar.

• Early Mughal Period

Punjab extended from the River Sutlej to the River Indus.

 Boundaries of the Punjab
• Later Mughal Period
Punjab was divided into two provinces—the Province of Lahore
and the Multan.
• Sikh Period :
In the days of Maharaja Ranjit Singh the Punjab or the “Lahore
Kingdom” , as it was called, extended right up to the Khyber in
the west and up to the Sutlej River in the east.
• British Period :
When the British finally took over the administration of the
Punjab They added the Haryana Prant and Delhi to the Punjab.
 Boundaries of the Punjab

• 1947 Partition:

In 1947 the very central areas of the Punjab which, for ages together, had
formed a single whole, were given over to Pakistan.
With the separation of Haryana, the size of the Punjab has diminished still
further.
Undivided Punjab
Undivided Punjab Area and Population

• The undivided Punjab was the land of the five rivers.

• Its total area was more than one lakh square miles .
• Its Population on the eve of partition was more than two
crores.
• It consisted of 29 districts and included the important
and the historic Cities of Lahore, Multan ,Sakla or Sialkot
and Dipalpur.
Various Names Given to the Punjab in the
Past
• Sapta-Sindhu : Rig Veda days
• Pentapotamia : Greeks period
• Taki : Taki tribe period
• Lahore Province : Medieval period( under rule
of Ranjit Singh)
• The Province of the Punjab : British Period
• East Punjab : (Indian portion of Punjab After
Independence )
• Punjab State: According the new constitution of India
 Physical Features of the Punjab

• Old Undivided Punjab : The Punjab of olden days was a triangular piece of
land, lying between the Indus and the Yamuna. It was bounded in the
north by the vas Himalayan range : on the west, by the Suleiman and the
Kirthar ranges ; in the east, by the River Yamuna ; and the south, by the

Sindh and the Rajputana deserts.

• Thus Punjab can be divided into three Physical regions :

1. The mountain ranges of the Himalayas & the Suleiman

2. The Plains

3. The submontane regions

 Physical Features of the Punjab

The mountain ranges of the Himalayas & the Suleiman :

• The average elevation of the Greater Himalayas is 20,000 feet, and

always covered with snow.

• chief source of water for Punjab rivers

• heavy source of rainfall in Punjab

• Area of best hill stations ( Shimla , Dalhousie)

• Great source of economic prosperity of Punjab

 Physical Features of the Punjab

The Suleiman ranges :

• Suleiman range is the western part of Punjab boundary. A salient

characteristic of these ranges is that they contain a number of passes

which in the past connected India with Afghanistan.

1 Khyber pass 5. Bolan pass

2. Tochi pass

3. Kurram pass

4. Gomal pass
 Physical Features of the Punjab

• Khyber pass : Khyber pass connects Kabul with Jamrud (Peshawar). Most of the

foreign invaders came to India through this range.

• Kurram , Tochi and Gomal passes connect Kohat , Bannu and Derajat with middle

Afghanistan.

• Bolan pass situated in south, It connects Kandahar and Sar-i-Bolan with sukkar on

the Indus.

• These Passes served as trade routes between India and countries of Central Asia.

It was also through these passes that all the foreign invaders from Alexander ,

Babar, Humayun, Mehmood Gaznavi and Shah Zaman invaded the Punjab.
Khyber pass
Bolan pass