Pakistanis

Pakistanis ( ur, , translit=Pākistānī Qaum, ) are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. According to the 2017 Pakistani national census, the population of Pakistan stood at over 213 million people, making it the world's fifth-most populous country. The majority of Pakistanis natively speak languages belonging to the Indo-Iranic family ( Indo-Aryan and Iranic subfamilies).

Located in South Asia, the country is also the source of a significantly large diaspora, most of whom reside in the Arab countries of the Persian Gulf, with an estimated population of 4.7 million. The second-largest Pakistani diaspora resides throughout both Northwestern Europe and Western Europe, where there are an estimated 2.4 million; over half of this figure reside in the United Kingdom (see British Pakistanis).

Ethnic subgroups

Having one of the fastest-growing populations in the world, Pakistan's people belong to various ethnic groups, with the overwhelming majority being speakers of the Indo-Iranic languages. Ethnically, Indo-Aryan peoples comprise the majority of the population in the eastern provinces of Pakistani Punjab and Sindh while Iranic peoples comprise the majority in the western provinces of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. In addition to its four provinces, Pakistan also administers two disputed territories known as Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit–Baltistan; both territories also have an Indo-Aryan majority with the exception of the latter's subregion of Baltistan, which is largely inhabited by Tibetan peoples. Pakistan also hosts a significant population of Dravidian peoples, the majority of whom are South Indians who trace their roots to historical princely states such as Hyderabad Deccan and are identified with the multi-ethnic community of Muhajirs (), who arrived in the country after the partition of British India in 1947.

Major ethnolinguistic groups in the country include Punjabis, Pashtuns, Sindhis, Saraikis, and Baloch people; with significant numbers of Kashmiris, Brahuis, Hindkowans, Paharis, Shina people, Burusho people, Wakhis, Baltis, Chitralis, and other minorities.

Culture

The existence of Pakistan as an Islamic state since 1956 has led to the large-scale injection of Islam into most aspects of Pakistani culture and everyday life, which has accordingly impacted the historical values and traditions of the Muslim-majority population. Marriages and other major events are significantly impacted by regional differences in culture, but generally follow Islamic jurisprudence where required. The national dress of Pakistan is the shalwar kameez, a unisex garment widely-worn, and national dress, of Pakistan. When women wear the shalwar-kameez in some regions, they usually wear a long scarf or shawl called a dupatta around the head or neck. The dupatta is also employed as a form of modesty—although it is made of delicate material, it obscures the upper body's contours by passing over the shoulders. For Muslim women, the dupatta is a less stringent alternative to the chador or burqa (see hijab and purdah).

Languages

Urdu

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