Punjabi People

Punjabi people (Punjabi: پنجابی (Shahmukhi), ਪੰਜਾਬੀ (Gurmukhi), पंजाबी (Devanagri), also spelled Panjabi people; are an ethnic group, originating from the Punjab region, found between Pakistan and India. Punjab literally means the land of five-rivers (Persian: panj-āb; "five waters") and is also referred to as the breadbasket of Pakistan and India. Punjabis are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group of North Indian origin; which in modern day besides the Pakistani Punjab and Indian Punjab, also constitutes people from parts of the following regions: Haryana, Kashmir and Rajasthan. Traditionally, Punjabi identity was primarily linguistic, regardless of religious affiliation, heritage or race, referring to those for whom the Punjabi language(s) was the first language and who resided in the Punjab region, and therefor also shared the same culture background. However, in recent times, the definition has been broadened to include people of Punjabi origin, even if they no longer speak the Punjabi language(s), as many have adopted other languages, within and abroad.

The present day Punjab region, has been the location of some of the oldest civilizations in the world, the the Indus Valley Civilization. Following independence from Britain, the Punjab region was divided between the two nations on religious basis.

Punjabi's are besides national and religious affiliation, broken down into clans and/or castes, many of which are shared across religious lines and shared with other ethnic groups of South Asia.