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The major ethnic groups of Pakistan in numerical size include: Punjabis, Pakhtuns, Sindhis, Siddis, Saraikis, Muhajirs, Balochis, Hindkowans, Chitralis, Gujarati and other smaller groups. Smaller ethnic groups, such as Kashmiris, Kalash, Burusho, Brahui, Khowar, Hazara, Shina, Kalyu and Balti are mainly found in the northern parts of the country.
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Pakistan's census does not include the registered 1.7 million Afghan refugees from neighbouring Afghanistan, who are mainly found in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) areas, with small numbers in the cities of Karachi and Quetta. Many of them were born inside Pakistan in the last 30 years and are counted as citizens, and most of them are ethnic Pakhtuns from southeastern Afghanistan.
About 99% of languages spoken in Pakistan are of the Indo-Iranian branch (sub-branches: 75% of the Indo-Aryan branch and 20% of the Iranian branch), a branch of the Indo-European family of languages.
About 99% of the ethnic groups are part of the Indo-Iranian group. The majority of these belong to the Iranic and Indo-Aryan subgroupings of peoples. The Nuristanis constitute another subgrouping amongst the Indo-Iranian peoples but are not indigenous to Pakistan. Although the Dardic peoples and their languages are often miscategorized as another branch of Indo-Iranian peoples and linguistics, they are actually determined to be a subgrouping within Indo-Aryan; speaking individual archaic Indo-Aryan languages that are derived from proto-Indo-Aryan and not Sanskrit as in the case of most modern-day Indo-Aryan languages.
Punjabis
Punjabis in Pakistan are an Indo-Aryan group of people, and can be divided into sub-clans. Punjabis speak the language called Punjabi, a northwestern Indo-Aryan language. Punjabis have many different dialects and that depends in what region of Punjab they are from. They make up 78.7 million (45%) of Pakistan's total population.
Pashtuns
Pashtuns or Pukhtuns (sometimes Pathans), an eastern Iranic peoples are Pakistan's second largest ethnic group that are native to the land principally northwest of the Indus River but can also be found in many major cities of Pakistan. They speak Pashto (or Pashtun), an eastern Iranic language. They make up an estimated 27.7 million (15%) of Pakistan's total population. The largest urban population of Pashtuns is interestingly found in the southern coastal city of Karachi with a fluctuating population estimated up to 7 million. This is then followed by Peshawar, Quetta, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, and Lahore in descending order. They make up the largest ethnic group in neighboring Afghanistan, forming anywhere between 42 and 60% there. Pashtuns practice a unique code of conduct referred to as Pashtunwali and are known for their tribal structure. They are an indigenous group from the land south of the Hindu Kush in Afghanistan and west of the Indus River in Pakistan.
Sindhis
Sindhis are multi-clan groups of people principally inhabiting the province of Sindh, Pakistan from where the river Indus (in ancient times revered to as Sindhus) runs and subsequently, from which they derive the name Sindh from. Despite being a northwestern Indo-Aryan people, both culturally and genetically, Sindhis are heavily influenced by the adjacent Balochs in Pakistan. Sindhis can also be found in the southern part of Punjab, and there is significant Punjabi influence in the Sindhi population. Sindhis played an influential role in the development of Pakistan, by joining government services specifically in Sindh, however a large number of Sindhis clung to agricultural fields, land owning, politics and establishment.
Muhajirs
Muhajirs are a multi-ethnic group of primarily Indo-Aryan peoples. They are also called "Urdu Speaking". Muhajirs is a collective ethnic group, which emerged by the migration of Indian Muslims from various parts of India to Pakistan starting in 1947, as a result of world's largest mass migration. Majority of Muhajirs are settled in Urban areas of Sindh mainly in Karachi, Hyderabad, Sindh, Sukkur and Mirpur Khas. But there are other parts of Pakistan, including cities like Lahore, Multan, Islamabad, Peshawar where Muhajirs have sizable community. Muhajirs held official offices during the early years of Pakistani nation-building. Most of the politicians of India who took part in the Pakistan movement were Muhajir.
Baloch
The Baloch as an ethnic group are principally found in the east of Balochistan province of Pakistan. Despite living south towards the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian sea for centuries, they are classified as a northwestern Iranic people in accordance to their language which belongs to the northwestern subgroup of Iranic languages. They have also settled in the adjacent provinces of Sindh and Punjab where their historical chief Mir Chakar Khan Rind lies buried in Satghara, Okara District in Central Punjab. The Baloch also inhabit the Iranian Baluchistan as a small ethnic minority and have settled in other areas of the Middle East, notably in Oman, Yemen, and the UAE. These Arabised Baloches are mostly descendants of the Baloches who were sold as slaves and were forced to migrate as labourers during the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries A.D. With the abolition of slavery, they are now free citizens of the countries they have "settled" in. The Arabised Baloches, are now believed to represent almost 30% of the local population of Oman. According to Dr. Akhtar Baloch, Professor at University of Karachi, the Balochis migrated from Balochistan during the Little Ice Age and settled in Sindh and Punjab. The Little Ice Age is conventionally defined as a period extending from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries, or alternatively, from about 1300 to about 1850. Although climatologists and historians working with local records no longer expect to agree on either the start or end dates of this period, which varied according to local conditions. According to Professor Baloch, the climate of Balochistan was very cold and the region was inhabitable during the winter so the Baloch people migrated in waves and settled in Sindh and Punjab.
Kashmiris
Kashmiri are ethnic group are native to the Kashmir Valley and Azad Kashmir. The majority of Kashmiri Muslims are Sunni. They refer to themselves as "Kashur" in their mother language. Kashmiri Muslims are descended from Kashmiri Hindus and are also known as 'Sheikhs'. Presently, the Kashmiri Muslim population is predominantly found in Kashmir Valley. Smaller Kashmiri communities also live in other regions of the Jammu and Kashmir state. One significant population of Kashmiris is in the Chenab valley region, which comprises the Doda, Ramban and Kishtwar districts of Jammu. There are also ethnic Kashmiri populations inhabiting Neelam Valley and Leepa Valley of Azad Kashmir. Since 1947, many ethnic Kashmiri Muslims also live in Pakistan. Many ethnic Kashmiri Muslims from the Kashmir Valley also migrated to the Punjab region during Dogra and Sikh rule. Kashmiri language, or Kashur, belongs to the Dardic group and is the most widely spoken dardic language.
Brahuis
The Brahui or Brahvi people are a Pakistani ethnic group of about 2.2 million people with the vast majority found in Baluchistan, Pakistan. They are a small minority group in Afghanistan, where they are native, but they are also found through their diaspora in Middle Eastern states. They mainly occupy the area in Balochistan from Bolan Pass through the Bolan Hills to Ras Muari (Cape Monze) on the Arabian sea, separating the Baloch people living to the east and west. The Brahuis are almost entirely Sunni Muslims.
Saraikis
The Saraikis also known as Multanis, are an ethnolinguistic group in central and southeastern Pakistan, primarily southern Punjab. Their language is Saraiki.
Hazara
The Hazara people, natives to the present day Bamyan Province, are a Persian-speaking people mostly residing in all Pakistan and specially in Quetta. Some are citizens of Pakistan while others are refugees. Genetically, the Hazara are a mixture of Turko-Mongols and Iranian-speaking peoples, and those of Middle East and Central Asia. The genetic research suggests that they are closely related to the Eurasian and the Uygurs. The Pakistani Hazaras estimated population is believed to be more than 1,550,000.
Burusho people
The Burusho or Brusho people live in the Hunza and Yasin valleys of Gilgit–Baltistan in northern Pakistan. They are predominantly Muslims. Their language, Burushki, has not been shown to be related to any other language. The Hunzakuts or Hunza people, are an ethnically Burusho people indigenous to the Hunza Valley, in the Karakorum Mountains of northern Pakistan. They are descended from inhabitants of the former principality of Hunza. The Hunzas are predominantly Shia Muslims, with many of them Ismaili.