Kashmiri people
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Kashmiri People |
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| Total population | ||||||
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'6,000,000' |
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| Regions with significant populations | ||||||
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| Languages | ||||||
| Kashmiri Hindi,[3] Urdu,[3] or English[3] also spoken widely as second languages |
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| Religions | ||||||
| Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism [4] | ||||||
| Related ethnic groups | ||||||
| Other Dardic peoples |
The Kashmiri people have never been referred to as Dards. The Darks live outside the borders of Kashmir Valley andare Aryan like the Kashmiris. The Kashmiri people (Kashmiri: कॉशुर, کٲشُر Koshur) are a Dardic ethnic group living in the central valley of Kashmir in India. However, an indeterminate number have left the region and now live elsewhere. The Kashmiris speak as their mother tongue the Kashmiri language, a Dardic language known as Koshur.
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[edit] History
Originally, the Kashmiris were mostly Buddhist and Hindu. Islam was introduced by Sufi saints from Central Asia, Saint Bulbul Shah of Turkey being the most prominent of them. Prince Rinchin of Ladakh, a Buddhist who was living in Jammu & Kashmir at the time came under the influence of Saint Bulbul Shah and converted to Islam. Later on after the defeat of the Hindu ruler Suhadeva by Dulchu, Suhadeva fled Kashmir, and Rinchin became King of Jammu & Kashmir and adopted the name Malik Saduruddin. Eventually the majority of Kashmiris adopted Islam and became Muslim, although there are still small communities of Hindus and Sikhs living in the Kashmir Valley, the former being known as Kashmiri Pandits.
[edit] Ethnic variation as shown by linguistics
The population living in the Valley of Kashmir is primarily homogeneous, despite the religious divide between Muslims (94%), Hindus (4%), and Sikhs (2%). The people of the Valley, share common ethnicity, culture, language and customs, which is no doubt the basis of "Kashmiriyat".
The people living in Jammu that profess Hindu and Muslim faiths are ethnically different from those living in the Valley in terms of ethnicity, language and culture. The people living in Azad Kashmir, share common religion with their counterparts along the line of control, but are not ethnically and culturally related to the people living in the Valley who are Dardic. The predominant language of Azad Kashmir is Pahari and the people of Azad Kashmir are not ethnic Kashmiris but are ethnic Potwhari's. The Kashmiri language is not even spoken in Azad Kashmir save in a few border areas of Neelum District. [5]The people living in Ladakh are primarily Buddhist and are of Tibetan origins. The Muslim minority in Ladakh belongs to the Shia sect. The Kashmir Valley is ethnically homogeneous with ethnic Kashmiris of all religions residing mainly in the Kashmir Valley, with Srinagar as its capital.
[edit] References
- ^ Abstract of speakers’ strength of languages and mother tongues – 2001, Census of India (retrieved 14 May 2008)
- ^ Kashmiri: A language of India, Ethnologue (retrieved 14 May 2008)
- ^ a b c Kashmiri: A language of India. Ethnologue. Retrieved on 2008-05-14.
- ^ BBC News | SOUTH ASIA | Safety fears for Kashmir's Sikhs
- ^ HRW Culture and Ethnicity-Kashmir
[edit] Further reading
- Kashmir Return of Democracy By Yodhishter Kahul, Yudhistar ed Kahol
- The Crisis in Kashmir: Portents of War, Hopes of Peace By Šumit Ganguly
