Pakistan

From ArticleWorld

Pakistan is an Islamic Republic located in Southern Asia. It borders the Arabian Sea, India, Iran, China and Afghanistan. The country is the sixth largest in the world under a population number criteria and second largest Muslim country.

History

Pakistan was established as a country on August 14, 1947. The history of the region dates for a long time before that and can be split in several timeframes:

• Ancient History – Even during the Neolithic period people inhabited the region. An ancient settlement in Southern Asia is known to have been Mehrgarh. The city was abandoned around three millennia BC. It is now known that around that time the Indus Valley Civilization appeared. After that the Vedic Civilization was formed and inhabited the area that now is India. These people formed most of the Southern Asiatic populations. The Persians conquered the region around 540 BC. A famous battle was held there in 326 BC between Alexander the Great and king Porus. Later the Indo-Greek Kingdom was formed and lasted until 10 BC. The 1st century AC showed several Asian tribes conquering the area.
• Islam – Regions from Southern Punjab were conquered in 712 AC by the Umayyad Dynasty. It was an Arab-Muslim army and this is when the first boundaries of the nowadays Pakistan were laid out. Islamic rule started to spread through South Asia. The timeframe between 1526 and 1739 saw the region under the rule of Mughals. Missionaries played an important part in the area because they converted the majority of the population to Islam. The following period, from 1739 to the 19th century, showed the rule of Nadir Shah and then Afghan. Balochis and Sikhs controlled Punjab and Sindh.
• British Influence – The British East India Company was formed when the British arrived in Southern Asia. The United Kingdom tried to be as influential as possible but this wasn’t about to happen until the 19th century. Because of the “Great Game” rivalry with the Soviet Union they were able to annex the entire region under their command. As time passed the creation of modern day Pakistan became a reality.
• Post-Independence – This timeframe marked the official appearance of Pakistan as a country on August 14, 1947. The British influence became smaller and eventually independence became a reality. The region was divided in West Pakistan and East Pakistan, with the remaining territory that was in the past a British colony becoming India. In 1971 a civil war started because of the separation of the two areas and also the Indo-Pakistani war took place. East Pakistan eventually became Bangladesh.

Nowadays the country lacks some territories that were included in the original structure: Junagadh, Manavadar, Gurdaspur and Kapurthala. These areas were occupied by India and the supremacy in the region led to three wars between the two countries (1948, 1965, and 1971).