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Kashmiris
کٲشُر لُکھ
कॉशुर लुख

Regions with significant populations
India	5,527,698 (2001)*
Pakistan	132,450 (1998)*
Languages
Kashmiri Hindi, Urdu, also spoken widely as second language
Religion
Predominantly: Islam Minorities: Hinduism Sikhism
Related ethnic groups
Other Dard people
*The population figures are only for the number of speakers of the Kashmiri language. May not include ethnic Kashmiris who no longer speak Kashmiri language.

The Kashmiris (Template:Lang-ks) are a Indo-Aryan Dardic ethnic group living in or originating from the Kashmir Valley, located in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. The bulk of Kashmiri people predominantly live in the Kashmir Valley and also form a majority of the population in the Chenab region's Doda, Ramban and Kishtwar districts. There are also ethnic Kashmiri populations inhabiting Neelam Valley and Leepa Valley of Azad Kashmir. Smaller populations of Kashmiris also live in the remaining districts of the Jammu and Kashmir state. Most Kashmiris today are Sunni Muslim but a sizable Hindu community also exists. Since 1947, many ethnic Kashmiris and their descendants are also found in Pakistan.

Other ethnic groups living in the Jammu and Kashmir state include Gujjars, Dogras, Paharis and Ladakhis.

Origins

The archaeological and scientific evidence of life in Kashmir goes back to the Neolithic and the Pre-Historic times. The most important piece of evidence for this is the Burzahom archaeological site located on a 'karewa' between the banks of the Dal Lake and the Zabarvan hills, about five kilometers from the famous Mughal garden of Shalimar. After the discovery and excavation of Burzahom, other Neolithic sites were discovered in Kashmir at places such as Begagund, Brah, Gofkral, Hariparigom, etc. all located on karewas mainly in the south-east parts of the Kashmir valley. Burzahom translates as 'place of birch ' in Kashmiri. Burnt birch found in the excavations showed that birch trees must have been common in the area in the Stone Age. Plentiful food from the forests on the Himalayan foothills, an abundant water supply from the lake, and a raised location protected from seasonal inundation ensured that the Burzahom plateau remained continuously settled from the New Stone Age to the Early Historical period.

Language

Kashmiri (/kæʃˈmɪəri/) (कॉशुर, کأشُر), or Koshur, is spoken primarily in the Kashmir Valley and Chenab regions of Jammu and Kashmir. According to many linguists, the Kashmiri language is a northwestern Dardic language of the Indo-Aryan family, descending from Middle Indo-Aryan languages. The label "Dardic" indicates a geographical label for the languages spoken in the northwester mountain regions, not a linguistic label. UCLA estimates the number of speakers as being around 4.4 million, with a preponderance in the Kashmir Valley, whereas the 2001 census of India records over 5.5 million speakers. According to the 1998 Census there were 132,450 Kashmiri speakers in Azad Kashmir, Pakistan. According to Professor Khawaja Abdul Rehman the Kashmiri language is on the verge of dying out in the Neelum Valley.

Kashmiri is believed to be the only one among the Dardic languages that has a written literature. Kashmiri literature dates back to over 750 years, comparable to that of most modern languages.

Religion and migration

Islam arrived to Kashmir starting with the conversion in 1323 of Rinchan, at the hands of the saint, Bulbul Sha. After conversion to Islam he called himself Malik Sadur-ud-Din and was the first Muslim ruler of Kashmir. He was subsequently killed by the Kashmiris. Since the arrival of invaders and the start of religious conflicts, before the Partition of India, many Kashmir Hindus and Buddhists migrated to other regions.

Drought of 19th century

A large number of Muslim Kashmiris migrated from the Kashmir Valley to the Punjab in the late 19th century because they faced natural disasters and oppression by the Dogra Hindu rulers of Kashmir. According to the 1911 Census there were 177,549 Kashmiri Muslims in the Punjab. With the inclusion of Kashmiri settlements in NWFP this figure rose to 206,180. Common Kashmiri krams (surnames) found amongst the Kashmiris in Kashmir Valley and amongst the Kashmiri emigres in Punjab include Butt/Bhat, Dar, Lone, Wani/Wain, Mir and Shaikh.

Culture

Kashmiri cuisine and culture has been greatly influenced by Central Asian and Persian culture. Kashmiri culture is defined in terms of religious values, Kashmiri language, literature, cuisine and traditional values of mutual respect. The overwhelming majority of Kashmiris are Muslims and Islamic identity plays a very important role in the daily lives of people. Kashmiris across the religious divide have for centuries shared cordial and friendly ties. Kashmiri poets and writers like Mehjoor, Abdul Ahad Azad, etc. enriched the literature with their poetry. Kashmiri cuisine holds a unique place among different world cuisines. Salted tea or Noon Chai is the traditional drink and is cooked in a samavar, a Kashmiri tea-pot. Kashmir has been noted for its fine arts for centuries, including poetry and handicrafts. Shikaras, traditional small wooden boats, and houseboats are a common feature in various lakes and rivers across the Valley. Kehwa, traditional green tea with spices and almond, is served on special occasions and festivals. Kashmiri weddings are regarded incomplete without the Kashmiri traditional food known as wazwan, which is typically spicy food cooked by the traditional cooks (waz). Wazwan is a multi-course meal in which almost all the dishes are meat-based.

See also

• Kashmiriyat
• Hurriyat and Problems before Plebiscite
• Kashmir conflict
• Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly election, 2014
• List of Kashmiris
• Theory of Kashmiri descent from lost tribes of Israel
• Tibetan Muslims
• Kashmiri diaspora
• Kashmiri language

References

1. ^ Abstract of speakers' strength of languages and mother tongues – 2000, Census of India, 2001
2. Mohsin Shakil, Languages of Erstwhile State of Jammu Kashmir (A Preliminary Study), Unpublished, 2012
3. ^ "Kashmiri: A language of India". Ethnologue. Retrieved 2 June 2007.
4. ^ Munshi, S. (2010), "Kashmiri", Concise Encyclopedia of Languages of the World, Elsevier, pp. 582–, ISBN 978-0-08-087775-4
5. ^ Snedden, Christopher (2015). Understanding Kashmir and Kashmiris. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9781849046220.
6. Snedden, Christopher (2015). Understanding Kashmir and Kashmiris. Oxford University Press. p. 7. ISBN 9781849046220. As in Pakistan, Sunni Muslims comprise the majority population of Kashmir, whereas they are a minority in Jammu, while almost all Muslims in Ladakh are Shias.
7. http://www.fao.org/ag/agp/AGPC/doc/Publicat/TAPAFON/TAP_10.PDF
8. Minahan.J.B., (2012), Dogras, Ethnic Groups of South Asia and the Pacific: An Encyclopedia
9. http://www.jktourism.org/index.php/cultural/ethnic-groups
10. Renfrew, Colin. The Cambridge World Prehistory. Cambridge University Press. pp. 872–876. ISBN 1107647754.
11. "UCLA Languages Project: Kashmiri". UCLA International Institute. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
12. Shakil, Mohsin (2012). "Languages of Erstwhile State of Jammu Kashmir (A Preliminary Study)".
13. "Up north: Call for exploration of archaeological sites". 5 June 2015.
14. Ghulam Rasool Malik, Kashmiri Literature, Muse India, June 2006.
15. Troll, C. (1982). Mahmud of Ghori never entered Kashmir he was defeated soundly by Hindu Kashmir. Islam in india: Studies and commentaries. Stosius Inc/Advent Books Division.
16. Gottschalk, P. (2012). Religion, science, and empire: Classifying hinduism and islam in british india. (pp. 400, 234-354). USA: Oxford University Press.
17. Hees, P. (2002). Indian religions: A historical reader of spiritual expression and experience. NYU Press
18. Bayly, S. (2001). Caste, society and politics in india from the eighteenth century to the modern age (The New Cambridge History of India). (1st & 4th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
19. Bose, Sumantra (2013). Transforming India. Harvard University Press. ISBN 9780674728202.
20. Bahl, Arvin (2007). From Jinnah to Jihad: Pakistan's Kashmir Quest and the Limits of Realism. Atlantic Publishers & Dist. p. 76. ISBN 9788126907212.
21. Jalal, Ayesha (2002). Self and Sovereignty: Individual and Community in South Asian Islam Since 1850. Routledge. p. 352. ISBN 9781134599387.
22. A Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province. Nirmal Publishers and Distributors. Retrieved 25 March 2007.
23. Poetry and renaissance: Kumaran Asan birth centenary volume. Sameeksha. Retrieved 12 August 2015.

External links

Template:Ethnic groups in India

• Dardic peoples
• Ethnic groups in India
• Social groups of Jammu and Kashmir
• Kashmiri people
• Ethnic groups divided by international borders