Indus Kohistan
کوہستان | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Location of the former Kohistan District (highlighted in red) in Pakistan | |
| Coordinates: 35°15′N 73°30′E / 35.250°N 73.500°E / 35.250; 73.500 | |
| Country | Pakistan |
| Province | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
| Division | Hazara |
| Established | 1 October 1976-2014 |
| Headquarters | Dasu |
| Area | |
• Total | 7,492 km2 (2,893 sq mi) |
| Population (2017)[1] | |
• Total | 784,711 |
| • Density | 104.7/km2 (271.3/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+5 (PST) |
Kohistan District, also known as Indus Kohistan (Indus Kohistani and Kohistani Shina: سندھُ کوستَیں)[2][3] and Hazara Kohistan,[4][5] was a district within the Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Consisting of eastern portion of the larger Kohistan region, it was bifurcated into two districts in 2014: Upper Kohistan and Lower Kohistan. In 2017, the Lower Kohistan District was further bifurcated and a district Kolai-Palas was established.[6][7] It has an area of 7,492 square kilometres (2,893 sq mi) and a population of 472,570 according to the 1998 Census.[8]
Geographically, Kohistan stretched from Gilgit-Baltistan in the north to the Mansehra District in the east to the Battagram District and Shangla and Swat districts in the west.[9]
History
The Kohistan region is mainly inhibited by the speakers of Dardic languages, commonly known as Kohistani people. Until 1 May 1934 Indus Kohistan was included in the Gilgit Agency, when its control was transferred to the North Western Frontier Province.[10] However, its area continued to be counted in the total area of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir.[11] After independence, Indus Kohistan became part of NWFP, and after it was renamed, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Geography
The district lies between 34° 54′ and 35° 52′ north latitudes and 72° 43′ and 73° 57′ east longitudes.[9] It was bounded by the Diamer District of Gilgit-Baltistan in the north, Manshera District in the southeast, Kaghan Valley of the Mansehra District in the southeast, Battagram District in the south and Shangla and Swat Districts in the west .[9]
Kohistan is the point of convergence for the Hindukush, Karakorum, and Himalayan mountain ranges, acting as a natural boundary delineating distinct environmental regions within the expanse of the Himalayas, Karakoram, and Hindu Kush mountain chains.[9] This uniqueness of the mountain system also results in rich flora and fauna, thus providing a habitat for unique species such as the Western Tragopan pheasant and the snow leopard.[9]
Education
The literacy rate of the district among the population aged 10 years and older is 11.1%: male 17.23% and female 2.95%. The proportion of the working or employed population to the population aged 10 years and older is 26.47%, which is 70.53% of the total labour force. Out of the total employed population, 71.60% are self-employed, 10.68% work as employees, and 17.32% are unpaid family helpers.[citation needed]
Kohistan's literacy rate is among the lowest in Pakistan and hovers around 20%.[12] It has the lowest Human Development Index of all districts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Demographics
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1951 | 18,775 | — |
| 1961 | 54,452 | +11.24% |
| 1972 | 84,826 | +4.11% |
| 1981 | 147,635 | +6.35% |
| 1998 | 280,666 | +3.85% |
| 2017 | 784,711 | +5.56% |
| Sources:[13] | ||
At the time of the 2017 census the district had a population of 784,711, of which 424,643 were males and 360,055 females. The rural population was 706,433 (97.95%) while the urban population was 72,654 (2.05%). The literacy rate was 76.20% - the male literacy rate was 86.40% while the female literacy rate was 65.76%. 3,172 (0.24%) people in the district were from religious minorities, mainly Christians.[14]
Languages
The major language of the area is named Kohistani, which in the 1981 census, was the mother tongue of 92% of households.[15] However the designation is applied to different unrelated languages, including the Kohistani Shina (a Shina dialect), mainly spoken in the eastern side of the Indus River encompassing eastern Upper Kohistan and Kolai-Palas, and Indus Kohistani, mainly spoken in the western side of the Indus River encompassing western Upper Kohistan and Lower Kohistan.[16][5]
See also
References
- ^ "DISTRICT WISE CENSUS RESULTS CENSUS 2017" (PDF). www.pbscensus.gov.pk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 August 2017.
- ^ Frembgen, Jürgen Wasim (1999). "Indus Kohistan An Historical and Ethnographie Outline". Central Asiatic Journal. 43 (1): 70–98. ISSN 0008-9192. JSTOR 41928174.
- ^ Karandashev, Victor (24 December 2016). Romantic Love in Cultural Contexts. Springer. p. 189. ISBN 978-3-319-42683-9.
- ^ "Kohistan Valley". Vertical Explorers. 8 May 2019. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
- ^ a b "The question of 'real' Kohistani language – it's Shina or Indus?". Sujag - سجاگ. Retrieved 23 December 2025.
- ^ "KP govt creates new Kohistan district". DAWN.COM. 16 January 2014.
- ^ "Kolai-Palas notified as new district". www.thenews.com.pk. 26 August 2017.
- ^ "Brochure of District Kohistan NWFP" (PDF). 1998.
- ^ a b c d e Kanga, Shruti; Singh, Suraj Kumar; Meraj, Gowhar; Farooq, Majid (15 February 2022). Geospatial Modeling for Environmental Management: Case Studies from South Asia. CRC Press. p. 287. ISBN 978-1-000-53920-2.
- ^ Commons, Great Britain Parliament House of (1936). Parliamentary Papers. Vol. 20. H.M. Stationery Office. p. 51.
The Indus Kohistan on both banks of the river was transferred on the 1st May 1934 from political control of the Gilgit Agency (Kashmir) to that of the North-West Frontier Administration.
- ^ Census of India 1961. Volume VI: Jammu and Kashmir. PART II-A: GENERAL POPULATION TABLES. Published 1964. pp. 3. Quote: "The resultant decrease of 2213 square miles was ascribed partly to an increase of 112 square miles resulting from the survey conducted during 1931-41 of the north boundary of Gilgit (Leased Area) and partly to the decrease of 2,325 square miles caused by the re-alignment of North-west Frontier Province (Gilgit Agency) in 1934 on the transfer to the North-west Frontier Province of Indus-Kohistan. The State Census Commissioner was however advised by the State Government to repeat the figure of 84,471 square miles in the Census Report of 1941 and action was taken by him accordingly."
- ^ "Literacy-Population 10 Years and Older" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 November 2010. Retrieved 28 September 2010.
- ^ "Population by administrative units 1951-1998" (PDF). Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
- ^ "District Wise Results / Tables (Census - 2017)". www.pbscensus.gov.pk. Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
- ^ 1981 District Census report of Kohistan. Vol. 24. Islamabad: Population Census Organization, Statistics Division, Government of Pakistan. 1983. p. 78. The data is specifically for kohistan District.
- ^ Torwali, Zubair (21 February 2025). "What is 'Kohistani'?". www.thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 23 December 2025.
