Awan (tribe) - Geographical Distribution

Geographical Distribution

The bulk of the Awan tribe is to be found in the Punjab (Pakistan). Its population is concentrated in the districts of Rawalpindi, Attock, Chakwal, Jhelum, Sargodha, Khushab (particularly the Soon Valley), Mianwali (Awan clans residing here are believed to have been almost the sole occupants of the Mianwali Salt Range Tract for over six hundred years), Gujranwala, Hafizabad, Gujrat, Sialkot, Narowal and Layyah, and is also scattered throughout the rest of Punjab.

Tracts in regions such as Attock, Jhelum and Mianwali are so heavily populated by Awans, that they have long been referred to as Awankari. Pre-Partition, an Awankari existed in Jalandhar and an Awan bara in Hoshiarpur. Awankari is also a dialect of Punjabi. Though these areas are their ancestral homelands and many own farms and other property there, numerous Awans live in the major cities of Pakistan such as Lahore (where a section of the Awan tribe has established a settlement, aptly named Awan Town), Islamabad, and Karachi.

The Awan tribe is also to be found in great numbers in Khyber Pukhtunkhwa, particularly in the Hazara Division, Peshawar valley and the districts of Nowshera, Kohat, Abbottabad, Haripur, Mansehra, Bannu, Swat, and Mardan. A smaller portion of the tribe resides in Azad Kashmir, and to a lesser extent is also present in the Pakistani provinces of Sindh and Balochistan. In addition, Awans can also be found in Afghanistan and some parts of India.