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Pakistanis

پاكستانى قوم
Flag of Pakistan
Total population
c. 221 million[1]
Regions with significant populations
Pakistan not specific	212,742,631
Saudi Arabia	1,900,000+
United Kingdom	1,174,983
United Arab Emirates	1,200,000+[2]
United States	563,699[3]
Canada	156,865[4]
Kuwait	150,000[5]
Italy	100,000+[6][7]
Qatar	90,000[8]
Oman	85,000
Spain	80,000[9]
Greece	80,000
France	60,000
Malaysia	56,000
China	54,000[10]
Scotland	49,381[11]
Germany	49,000
Bahrain	45,000
Norway	39,134
Australia	61,913
Libya	30,000
Belgium	14,500+
Denmark	14,324[12]
Sweden	12,450
Japan	10,000+
Languages
Urdu, Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashto, Balochi, Saraiki, Kashmiri, Brahui, Balti and others
Religion
Islam 97% (majority Sunni, while 20% being Shia, and <1% being Ahmadiyya) Other Religions: Christianity, Buddhism, Bahai Faith, Hinduism, Kalash Faith, Sikhism, Zoroastrianism

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Pakistanis (Urdu: پاكِستانى قوم‬‎; Pakistani Qaum) are the people who are citizens of the modern Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan is a multi-ethnic and multilingual state: the majority of its people belong linguistically to the Indo-Aryan and Iranian groups while the remaining minority mainly belongs to a small amount of other language groups and families. As per the 2017 Census, the estimated population of Pakistan was over 207 million making it the world's fifth most-populous country.^[13] In terms of overseas Pakistanis, there are an estimated 2.4 million Pakistanis living in Europe. ^[14]

Ethnic sub-groups

Pakistan has one of the world's fastest growing populations. As the country is located in South Asia, Pakistani people belong to different ethnic groups as the country is a transitional zone between Aryan and Iranic peoples. The country is situated between Afghanistan, North India, and Persia.

Specific-linguistic groups: Punjabi, Sindhi, Saraiki, Pashtun, Balochi, and Kashmiri, with substantial numbers of Brahui, Hindko language , Pahari, Shin, Burusho, Wakhi, Balti, Chitrali and other minority ethnic groups in the remote north of the country.

Main Groups of Pakistan: the Punjabi people, the Pashtun people, the Sindhi people, the Balochi people, the Urdu speaking people and the Kashmiri people.

Culture

Pakistan has a rich culture, with all of the provinces maintaining differing social mores. However, Islam is the driving force behind the unity of varying ethnic groups from different parts of the country, and has significantly shaped the values and traditions of Pakistanis. Pakistani culture falls in the category of high context, and Pakistani wear the Shalwar Qamiz that is the culture of Pakistan.

Languages

Pakistan's main language is Urdu. Urdu was chosen as a token of unity and as a lingua franca so as not to give any native Pakistani language preference over the other. It is mostly learned as a second language, with nearly 93% of Pakistan's population having a mother tongue other than Urdu. Urdu is spoken as a first, second or at times third tongue by almost all Pakistani people. Numerous regional and provincial languages are spoken as first languages by the ethno-linguistic groups making up the country, with Punjabi having a plurality of native speakers with 45% of the total population. English is spoken at an official level.

Languages spoken in Pakistan: Most languages spoken are Punjabi, Pashto and Urdu. Followed by Balochi, Kashmiri, Saraiki and Sindhi.

Religion

The largest religion practiced in Pakistan is Islam. Islam is main religion of Pakistan. Other religious groups are Zoroastrianism, Hinduism, the Kalash faith, and Christianity. 95% people are Muslims (majority Sunni, while 20% being Shia, 2% people are Hindus , 2% people are Christians and less than 1% of people are Zoroastrian, Kalash, Bahai and Sikh. Irreligion and atheism <2% and 1% of people are Ahmidiyah.

Diaspora

There are large populations of Pakistani ancestry around the world, due to emigration. The population of Pakistanis abroad is considered to exceed seven million and can be found in the Middle East, North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.

See also

• Ethnic groups in Pakistan


• List of Pakistanis

References

Further reading

• Abbasi, Nadia Mushtaq. "The Pakistani diaspora in Europe and its impact on democracy building in Pakistan." International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (2010).


• Awan, Shehzadi Zamurrad. "Relevance of Education for Women's Empowerment in Punjab, Pakistan." Journal of International Women's Studies 18.1 (2016): 208+ online
  


• Bolognani, Marta, and Stephen Lyon, eds. Pakistan and its diaspora: multidisciplinary approaches (Springer, 2011).


• Eglar, Zekiya. A Punjabi Village in Pakistan: Perspectives on Community, Land, and Economy (Oxford UP, 2010).


• Kalra, Virinder S., ed. Pakistani Diasporas: Culture, conflict, and change (Oxford UP, 2009).


• Lukacs, John, ed. The people of South Asia: the biological anthropology of India, Pakistan, and Nepal (Springer, 2013).


• Marsden, Magnus. "Muslim village intellectuals: the life of the mind in northern Pakistan." Anthropology today 21.1 (2005): 10-15.


• Mughal, M. A. Z. "An anthropological perspective on the mosque in Pakistan." Asian Anthropology 14.2 (2015): 166-181.


• Rauf, Abdur. "Rural women and the family: A study of a Punjabi village in Pakistan." Journal of Comparative Family Studies (1987): 403-415.