North West Frontier Province is a province of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, located on both banks of the river Indus and stretches from the Himalayas in the north to the deserts in the south where it is bordered by the Baluchistan and Punjab provinces. On its western flank is the rugged terrain of neighboring country Afghanistan, which is accessed via the historic Khyber Pass through the mountains of the Suleiman Range. Its borders touch or are close to those of China, the Tajikistan and the disputed territory of the state of Jammu and Kashmir in the north. The capital of the province is the city of Peshawar.

It covers an area of 74,521 sq. km. According to the 1998 census, the total population of N.W.F.P. was approximately 14 million out of whom 52% are males and 48% females. The density of population is 187 per sq. km and the intercensal change of population is of about 30 percent. Geographically the province could be divided into two zones: the northern one extending from the ranges of the Hindukush to the borders of Peshawar basin; and the southern one extending from Peshawar to the Derajat basin. The northern zone is cold and snowy in winters with heavy rainfall and pleasant summers with the exception of Peshawar basin which is hot in summer and cold in winter. It has moderate rainfall. The southern zone is raid with hot summers and relatively cold winters and scantly rainfall. Its climate varies from very cold (Chitral in the north) to very hot in places like D.I. Khan.

Its snow-capped peaks and lush green valleys of unusual beauty attract tourists and mountaineers from far and wide while its art and architecture no less known than the historic Khyber Pass. Once the cradle of Gandhara civilization, the area is now known for its devout Muslims who jealously guard their religion and culture and the way of life which they have been following for centuries.

The warlike Pukhtoons, who live in NWFP and the adjoining areas of Afghanistan, making them a race apart, a chosen people, and no one, has ever managed to subdue them. The Mughals, Afghans, Sikhs, British and Russians have suffered defeat at their hands. The Pukhtoons are divided into numerous sub-tribes and clans, each defending its territory and honor. In addition, the Pukhtoons serve as Pakistan's first line of defense along the Durand Line, the border drawn in 1893 by Sir
Mortimer Durand, then foreign secretary of British India

HISTORY

The North-West Frontier Province, or NWFP, runs for over 1,100 kilometers (680 miles) along the border with Afghanistan. A historic gateway to South Asia and once heart of ancient Gandhara Kingdom - maintain a unique heritage. The legendry route from Peshawar to Kabul in Afghanistan is the feature of the province’s most widely known (and infused with romance) in the world beyond. In the days of Kushan kings the land was called Lotus Land. The classical Gandhara territory was the Peshawar valley including hilly areas of Swat, Dir extending to the east and beyond the Indus to Taxila. Rudyard Kipling had set his books in this land and one of his glamorous character is Murad Ali, "who came from that mysterious land beyond the passes of the north."

The region has been historically and strategically important due to passes leading into India (before partition), through which the invaders came from central Asia. Alexander the Great conquered the region 326 B.C., but his garrisons were unable to hold the region. In the early centuries A.D., Kanishka and his Kushan dynasty ruled the area. The Pukhtoons arrived in the 7th century, and by 10th century the conquerors from Afghanistan had made Islam the dominant religion of the region. In 12th century, Babar annexed it to his Mughal Empire, the region paid nominal allegiance to the Mughals in the 16th and 17th century. After Nadir Shah's invasion in 1738, it became a feudatory of the Afghan Durrani’s kingdom. The Sikhs later on held the area, which passed over to Great Britain in 1849. The British maintained large military forces and paid heavy subsidies to pacify the Pukhtoon resistance.

Britain separated the region from the Punjab of India in 1901 and constituted the North-West Frontier Province, whose people voted to join newly independent Pakistan in 1947.

From 1955 to 1970 the North-West Frontier Province was a section of the consolidated province of West Pakistan. In 1970, the region was once again granted provincial status.
The province has many archaeological remains, engaging buildings as well as human cultures, native tribes and folklore that are the assets of rich archives augmented by the natural beauty of the diverse panorama in the region. The heritage carries with it a sense of identity, place and purpose that successive generations derive from these assets, which has inspired living traditions and customs.
Culture & People

Pakhtoon designates a person who speaks Pashto. Pathan is a Hindi term adopted for them by the British. The racial composition of the Pukhtoons is less than clear. The tribes who dwelled in the area in the days of the Greek historians are believed to be part of the great Aryan horde which had moved down from Central Asia a millennium earlier. Over the course of centuries, the Greek, Persian, Turk, and Mongol invaders who passed through the Frontier have added their blood.

Nearly one-third of the population of NWFP is non-Pakhtoon. In the tribal areas, they are called Hamsaya or Kadwal. In the border areas of Hazara and Derajat, social norms more closely resembling those in Punjab and Kashmir may be discerned. Clan groups remain important, but mainly as social networks, particularly for marriages. Chitral has a separate language and culture of its own; a visible difference crossing over from Dir is that the carrying of arms is uncommon. Most distinct are the indigenous Kalash, people now confined to three small valleys in Chitral. Their way of life is rooted in the worship of ancestral spirits and trees. Their unique customs attract a lot of attention from visitors. However, due to the conversions of the Kalash to Islam, their age-old traditions are rapidly becoming extinct.

Around 68 per cent of the households in NWFP are Pukhtu speaking, eighteen per cent are Hindko speaking while Seraiki is the mother tongue of four per cent. Around eight per cent of households speak local languages, such as Kohwar in Chitral district, while Urdu and Punjabi speaking migrants account for only two per cent of the households

Favorite Places
NWFP is exceptionally rich in variegated sights for tourist attraction. The gorgeous plains, snow capped high mountains, gushing springs, splendid waterfalls, spell bound lakes and charming networks of rivers are the valuable sources of aesthetic as well as visual beauty for the tourists.

The mountains to the north, particularly the Himalayas, Hindu Kush and Karakoram are amongst the most spectacular in Pakistan, offering some of the best opportunities for trekking and climbing in the world. The north half of the province consists of five river valleys running roughly parallel, north to south namely Chitral, Dir , Swat , Hazara and Kaghan. These valleys are on the northern edge of the monsoon belt, which is why they are fairly green and partly wooded in their southern sections.

The contiguity of province with the Central Asian region and Xingjian province of China attracted many immigrants, businessmen, warriors and fortune seekers in different ages. Among them some used to settle while some moved towards the other sides of the river Indus.

Peshawar valley and its surrounding areas had been the melting spot for different civilizations, the interaction among different races and their co-existence led to a rich cultural heritage. The glimpses of which are evident from the Ghandhara archaeological sites at Gur Ghattree Peshawar, Takht-Bhai(Mardan), Shahbaz Ghari(Mardan), Nimo Gram Buddhist Stupa (Swat), and collection of Ghandhara Art preserved at Swat Museum, Chakdara Museum(Dir Lower) and Peshawar Museum.

 

Source: NWFP Government