Tourism in Pakistan
Punjab is the second largest province in Pakistan. It is known for its ancient cultural heritage as well as its religious diversity. The lands of Punjab have been home to a number of religions and civilisations. The Indus Valley Civilization once ruled the region and a significant archaeological find was discovered at the ancient city of Harrapa. The Gandhara civilisation was also quite dominant in the northern region of Punjab at the site of Taxila. Several other civilisations such as Greeks, Central Asians, and Persians ruled Punjab leaving a number of sites which still exist today. The arrival of Islam came about during the rule of the Umayyad Caliphate followed by the Ghaznavids. The Mughals took control of the region and ruled its land for several centuries. The mughal heritage remained quite strong in Punjab with a large number of forts, tombs and monuments still intact today. The Durrani Empire ruled the Punjab at the fall of the Mughal Empire for a short period following the rise of the Sikh Empire. The strong control of the Sikhs also lead to a number of sites still remaining intact throughout Punjab. The British Raj took control of the region until the independence.
Punjab
At the time of partition in 1947, the province was split into East and West Punjab. East Punjab (48%) became part of India, while West Punjab (52%) became part of Pakistan. The Punjab bore the brunt of the civil unrest following the end of the British Raj, with casualties estimated to be in the millions.Ethnic ancestries of modern Punjabis include a mixture of Indo-Aryan and Indo-Scythian. Semitic ancestries can also be found in lesser numbers. With the advent of Islam, settlers from Turkestan, Afghanistan, and Kashmir have also integrated into the Muslim Punjabi society. However, the majority of Punjab is still made up of the Arains, Dalits, Gujjars, Jats, Khatris, Tarkhans, Brahmins, Bhats, Awans, Kambojs, Rajputs Sainis, Kumhars, and others. In the past, the most densely populated area has been the Majha region of Punjab.