Umerkot (

Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...

: ; Dhatki : عمرڪوٽ; Sindhi: عمرڪوٽ; IPA: �mərkoːʈ formerly known as Amarkot) is a city in the

Sindh Sindh ( ; ; , ; abbr. SD, historically romanized as Sind (caliphal province), Sind or Scinde) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, southeastern region of the country, Sindh is t ...

province of

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

. The Mughal emperor Akbar was born in Amarkot in 1542. The Hindu folk deities Pabuji and Ramdev married in Umerkot. The local language is Dhatki, one of the

Rajasthani languages The Rajasthani languages are a group of Western Indo-Aryan languages, primarily spoken in Rajasthan and Malwa, and adjacent areas of Haryana, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh in India and South Punjab and the adjacent areas of Sindh in Pakistan. ...

of the Indo-Aryan language family. It is most closely related to Marwari. Sindhi,

and Punjabi are also understood by this.

Etymology

The city is named after a local ruler of

, Umer Soomro (of Soomra dynasty) of the Umar Marvi folk tale, which also appears in '' Shah Jo Risalo'', one of the popular tragic romances of Sindh.

History

According to tradition, it was founded by a branch of the Soomra who later lost it to Sodhas in 1226. Sodhas were expelled by the Soomra in 1330 but again rose to power in 1439. In 1590, it became a part of the

Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an Early modern period, early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to ...

. In 1599, Abu ’l-Ḳāsim Sulṭān, an Arghun dynasty prince drove out the Mughal commander. In 1736, Noor Mohammad Kalhoro expelled the last Sodha chief and took control of it. Amarkot province was ruled by the Sodha Rajput clan during the medieval period. Rana Parshad, the Sodha Rajput ruler of Umarkot, gave refuge to Humayun, the second Mughal Emperor when he was ousted by Sher Shah Suri, and the following year Mughal Emperor, Akbar, was born here. Later on, Akbar brought northwestern India, including modern Pakistan, under Mughal rule. After the disintegration of the Mughal Empire, Amarkot was captured by several regional powers, including the

Persians Persians ( ), or the Persian people (), are an Iranian ethnic group from West Asia that came from an earlier group called the Proto-Iranians, which likely split from the Indo-Iranians in 1800 BCE from either Afghanistan or Central Asia. They ...

, Afghans, Kalhora and Talpur Balochs of Sindh, Rathore Rajputs of Jodhpur and finally by the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

. Amarkot was annexed by Jodhpur State in 1779 from the Kalhora nawab of Sindh. Umerkot and its fort was traded to the British in 1843 by the Maharaja of Jodhpur in return for a Rs.10,000 reduction in the tribute imposed on Jodhpur State. The British appointed Syed Mohammad Ali governor of the province. In 1847,

Rana Ratan Singh Rana Ratan Singh was a hereditary land owner in Umerkot Umerkot (Urdu: ; Dhatki language, Dhatki : عمرڪوٽ; Sindhi language, Sindhi: عمرڪوٽ; International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: Help:IPA/Hindi and Urdu, �mərkoːʈ formerly known ...

was hanged at the fort by the British, for killing Syed Mohammad Ali in a tax protest. After the British conquered Sindh, they made it part of the Bombay Presidency of

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

. In 1858, the entire area around Tharparkar became part of the Hyderabad District. In 1860 the region was renamed Eastern Sindh Frontier, with a headquarters at Amarkot. In 1882, it was reorganized as the Thar and Parkar district, headed by a British Deputy Commissioner, with a political superintendent at ''Amarkot''. However, in 1906 the district headquarters moved from Amarkot to Mirpur Khas.

Rana Chandra Singh Rana (title), Rana Chandra Singh (; 1931 – 1 August 2009), also known as Rana Chandar Singh, was a Pakistani politician and a federal minister. He was one of the founding members of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and was elected to the Natio ...

, a federal minister and the chieftain of the

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

Sodha Thakur Rajput clan and the Amarkot Jagir, was one of the founding members of the

Pakistan Peoples Party The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is a political party in Pakistan and one of the three major List of political parties in Pakistan, Pakistani political parties alongside the Pakistan Muslim League (N) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. With a Cent ...

(PPP) and was elected to the

National Assembly of Pakistan The National Assembly of Pakistan, also referred to as ''Aiwān-ē-Zairīñ'', is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Pakistan, with the upper house being the Senate of Pakistan, Senate. As of 2023, the National Assem ...

from Umarkot seven times as a PPP member between 1977 and 1999, when he founded the Pakistan Hindu Party (PHP). Currently, his politician son Rana Hamir Singh claims to be the 26th Rana of Tharparkar, Umarkot and Mithi.Footprints: Once upon a time in Umerkot

Dawn (newspaper) ''Dawn'' is a Pakistani English language, English-language newspaper that was launched in British Raj, British India by Muhammad Ali Jinnah in 1941. It is the largest English newspaper in Pakistan, and is widely considered the country's newspap ...

, 16 January 2015.Pakistan's Umerkot gets a new Hindu ruler

The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded as a weekly publication in 1878 by the Triplicane Six, becoming a daily in 1889. It is one of the India ...

, 30 May 2010.

Points of interest

The city is well connected with the other large cities like

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

, the provincial capital and

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

. Umarkot has many sites of historical significance such as Akbar's birthplace, Umarkot, Umerkot Fort and Momal Ji Mari. There is an ancient temple, Shiv Mandir, Umerkot, as well as a Kali Mata Temple, Krishna Mandir at old Amarkot and Manhar Mandir Kathwari Mandir at Rancho Line.

Education

The city has more than 100 schools, 20 colleges, and one polytechnic college.

Demographics

Population

According to 2023 census, Umerkot had a population of 144,558.

Religion

The Umarkot Shiv Mandir is one of the most ancient and sacred Hindu temples in

Gallery

Umarkot Fort view3.JPG, Umerkot Fort Umarkot museum view.JPG, Umerkot Museum

Notes

References

External links

District government Umerkot official website (English version)
{{Use dmy dates, date=April 2017 Hinduism in Sindh Tehsils of Umerkot District