Nankana Sahib (Punjabi language / ) is a city and capital of Nankana Sahib District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is named after the first Guru of the Sikhs, Guru Nanak, who was born in the city and first began preaching here. Nankana Sahib is among the most important religious sites for the Sikhism.[ Historical Gurudwaras:Nankana Sahib . Sgpc.net. Retrieved on 2011-11-15.] It is located about west of Lahore and about east of Faisalabad.[ Nankana Sahib . Nha.gov.pk. Retrieved on 2011-11-15.] According to the census of 2017 the city has a population of 110,135 inhabitants.
History
Originally, the locality was founded by a Hindu ruler named Raja Vairat and was originally named Raipur but it was destroyed during the Muslim conquests in the Indian subcontinent.
A town on the site of the first settlement was founded during the
Delhi Sultanate rule by Rai Bhoi, a
Rajput of
Bhati stock whose Hindu ancestor had converted to Islam under the influence of Sufism, and thus was known as Rai-Bhoi-Di-Talwandi.
His great-grand son Rai Bular Bhatti, renamed it
Nankana Sahib after the birth of Guru Nanak. The Gurdwara Nankana Sahib, originally constructed by the Sikhs during the
Mughal Empire-era in around 1600 CE was renovated in 1819–20 CE by the Sikh Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
During the Akali movement, on 20 February 1921, Narain Das, the Udasi mahant (clergy) of the gurdwara at Nankana Sahib, ordered his men to fire on Nihang protesters, leading to the Nankana massacre. The firing was widely condemned, and an agitation was launched until the control of this historic Janam Asthan Gurdwara was restored to the Sikhs.
Geography
Nankana Sahib and it surroundings were formerly a tehsil of Sheikhupura District. In May 2005, the provincial government raised the status of Nankana Sahib to a district
[ Nankana becomes a district . Dawn.com. Retrieved on 2011-11-15.] for promoting development in the area. The present District has three
Tehsil: Nankana Sahib, Shah Kot, and Sangla Hill. Before December 2008, District Nankana Sahib also included Safdarabad Tehsil.
There are plans to construct a university as well as hospitals and health care facilities by the district government with mutual interest of local communities and family of Rai Bular.
In 2007, the Pakistan government announced a plan to set up a university on Sikh religion and culture at Nankana Sahib, the birthplace of Guru Nanak. Chairman of Pakistan's Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB), Gen (R) Zulfikar Ali Khan, said that "The international Guru Nanak University planned at Nankana Sahib would have the best architecture, curricula and research centre on Sikh religion and culture".
Notable places
-
Quba Masjid (A replica of Quba Masjid of Madina)
-
Gurdwara Janam Asthan
-
-
Residency of Baba Guru Nanak
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Gurdwara Patti Sahib
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Gurdwara Bal Leela
-
Gurdwara Mal Ji Sahib
-
Gurdwara Kiara Sahib
-
Gurdwara Tambu Sahib
And other historical
of
Sikhism.
Notable people
Demographics
The partition of India and Pakistan significantly changed the demographic composition of Pakistan's cities with the vast majority of Hindus and Sikhs having to leave Pakistan and vice versa for Muslims in India.
[http://faculty.washington.edu/brass/Partition.pdf Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 April 2021.] The 2023 Pakistani Census however showed that while still overwhelmingly Muslim at 97%, there is now a re-established Sikh community in the holy city their founder was born in. This can be attributed to the migration of the Pashtun Sikhs to the city fleeing from the Taliban insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Data from the 2023 census shows that the city of Nankana Sahib has a Sikh population of 1,875 out of a total population of 130,041. Nankana Sahib is the only city in Pakistan where Sikhs are the largest minority religion comprising just under 1.5% of the population. There is also a significant Christian population of 1,734 in the city making up 1.3% of the population.
The city is overwhelmingly Punjabi speaking, with Punjabi language speakers comprising over 96.3% of the population. 2.5% also stated Urdu as their mother tongue.
The average household size in 2023 was 6.3 per household while the 2017-2023 average annual growth rate was 2.82%.
Education
Universities/Higher Education Institutes
-
Virtual University of Pakistan Nankana Sahib Campus
-
Baba Guru Nanak University
Colleges
Education
Nankana Sahib is home to several educational institutions, including:
-
Government College of Commerce, Nankana Sahib
-
Government G.N. Degree College, Nankana Sahib
-
Government G.N. Degree College for Women, Nankana Sahib
-
Punjab Group of Colleges, Nankana Sahib
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Superior College, Nankana Sahib
Schools
Nankana Sahib is home to several schools. A notable institution is:
-
Allied Schools (Pakistan)
See also
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Sikhism in Pakistan
-
Gurdwara Janam Asthan
-
Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur
-
Harmandir Sahib
-
Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib
