Punjab - History
he first known documentation of the word ‘Punjab’ is in the writings of Ibn Batuta, who visited the region in the fourteenth century. The term came into wider use in the second half of the sixteenth century, and was used in the book Tarikh-e-Sher Shah Suri (1580), which describes the construction of a fort by ‘Sher Khan of Punjab’.
Reference of ‘Punjab’ can also be found in volume one of “Ain-e-Akbari”, written by Abul Fazal, where ‘Punjab’ describes the territory that can be divided into provinces of Lahore and Multan. Similarly, in the second volume of Ain-e-Akbari, the title of a chapter includes the word ‘Panjnad’ in it.
However, the first mentioning of Sanskrit equivalent of ‘Punjab’ occurs in the great epic, the Mahabharata, where it is described as pancha-nada, which means ‘country of five rivers’. The Mughal King Jahangir also mentions the word Panjab in ‘Tuzk-i-Janhageeri’, derived from Persian and introduced by the Turkic conquerors of India, literally means “five” (panj) “waters” (ab), i.e., the Land of Five Rivers, referring to the five rivers which go through it. It was because of this that it was made the granary of British India.
It is one of the most ancient civilizations in the world with a distinguished culture. Punjabi language has its origins in the Indo-European family of languages which included Persian and Latin. A land of ethnic and religious diversity, it is birth place of a number of religious movements. Some of the prominent ones include Sikhism, Buddhism and many Sufi schools of Islam.
The Jats are among the ancient people in Punjab. They are referred to as Jety by Pliny and Ptolemy. The transformation of the Jats from a pastoral people into peasants is one of the most fascinating stories waiting to be reconstructed. As Jats settled down as peasants, they set up a most elaborate system of relationship based on family, kinship, and a set of patriarchal norms. Wherever they acquired political power, they founded states. They chafed at their status as Shudras in the Brahmanical order inspite of their control over land and their dominance. It is estimated that one third of the Jats became Muslims, one third became Sikhs and one third remained Hindus some of whom entered the fold of Arya Samaj.
The milestones in the history of Punjab are the migration of the Aryans to Punjab between 516 BC to 321 AD, immediately followed by Alexander's invasion, which changed the fate of India as a whole. During the period when the epic Mahabharata was written around 800–400 BCE, Punjab was known as Trigarta and ruled by Katoch kings. The Indus Valley Civilization spanned much of the Punjab region with cities such as Harrapa (modern-day Punjab, Pakistan). The Vedic Civilization spread along the length of the Sarasvati River to cover most of Northern India including Punjab. This civilization shaped subsequent cultures in the Indian subcontinent. The Punjab region was conquered by many ancient empires including the Gandhara, Nandas, Mauryas, Sungas, Kushans, Guptas, Palas, Gurjara-Pratiharas and Hindu Shahis.
The furthest eastern extent of Alexander the Great's exploration was along the Indus River. The last point of Alexander’s entry in India can be seen in Gurdaspur. Agriculture flourished and trading cities such as Jalandhar and Ludhiana grew in wealth.
Chandragupta Maurya, who effected political unification of Punjab and led the people of Punjab in revolt against remnants of the Greek rule. The people of Greek origin left behind by Alexander were thus divested of their political power by the rising Mauryas. Bactrians were followed by the Scythian tribes and the Mongoloid Huns. The Huns were subdued and expelled by the Vardhanas, but Harshvardhan's empire soon disintegrated.
After the Aryans from Central Asia, came the Iranian, Tibetan, Kamboj, Pahlava, Hun, Pathan and Mongol who subsequently settled down as part of the Punjabi community. When Subaktagin and later his son Mehmood of Ghazni tried to cross the borders of Punjab, they were resisted by the Sahi rulers of the Punjab.
Muslim invaders started pouring into the Punjab. Mahmud Ghazni came in A.D. 1001, closely followed by the Afghans, Gori, Tughlak, Suri and Lodhi. The Afghans were followed by Taimur and his descendant Babar, who defeated Ibrahim Lodhi at Panipat in A.D. 1526. Humayun, who succeeded Babar lost and recovered his kingdom by defeating Sikandar Suri at Sirhind. The Mughals were now firmly seated on the throne for the next one and a half centuries till their power saw a decline after the death of Aurangzeb in 1707.
During the reigns of Akbar, Jahangir and Shahjahan, Lahore, the capital of the Punjab, witnessed its heyday, as it was equidistant between Delhi and Kashmir and between Agra and Kabul. Akbar's successors often moved from Delhi to Kashmir via Lahore, Bhimbar and Pir Panjal in order to escape the heat of the northern plains during the summer.
Punjab flourished significantly during the reign of the great Mogul emperor, Babar, whose empire stretched from Delhi in the east to Kabul and Ghazni in the west. The prosperity continued under Maharaja Ranjit Singh's (1780-1838 AD) rule. But it saw a major downfall in 1947, when the partition of the nation shrunk the boundaries of Indian Punjab resulting in a great loss of land and resources. The present state is just a fourth of its original area.
Punjab always ranked high when it comes to courage, might and valour. The state made major contributions to the freedom struggle of India though in the process it had to face its own division. Satyagraha, morchas, Jallianwala Bagh massacre... with names like Kartar Singh Sarabha, Lala Lajpat Rai, Udham Singh, Madan Lal Dhingra, Bhagat Singh instantly evoke the memories of the struggle for Indian independence. The list is endless for Punjab has been one of the most happening places in the struggle. Punjab now is shared by India and Pakistan though the ethos continues to be the same on both ends, divided only in body and not in soul.The partition of Punjab with its brutal riots was one of the most traumatic experiences for some and it continues to have its effect today.
The Indian State of Punjab was created in 1947, when the partition of India split the former Raj province of Punjab between India and Pakistan. During the devastating experience of partition, 5 lakh people were killed and 10 lakh people uprooted, and thousands of women dishonoured of which Punjab bore the brunt. The mostly Muslim western part of the province became Pakistan’s Punjab Province; the mostly Sikh eastern part became India’s Punjab state. The partition saw many people displaced and much intercommunal violence, as many Sikhs and Hindus lived in the west, and many Muslims lived in the east. Several small Punjabi princely states, including Patiala, also became part of Indian Punjab.
In 1950, two separate states were created; Punjab included the former Raj province of Punjab, while the princely states of Patiala, Nabha, Jind, Kapurthala, Malerkotla, Faridkot and Kalsia were combined into a new state, the Patiala and East Punjab States Union (PEPSU). Himachal Pradesh was created as a union territory from several princely states and Kangra District. In 1956, PEPSU was merged into Punjab state, and several northern districts of Punjab in the Himalayas were added to Himachal Pradesh.
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