Iranians in Pakistan
Encyclopedia
There are a large number of Iranians in Pakistan, the vast majority of whom live in Karachi
and Lahore
. Other colonies can be found in Quetta
, Islamabad
, Peshawer and in the city of Multan
. Most Iranians in Pakistan are Shia Muslims, although a number of Sunnis and Parsi
s in Pakistan claim Iranian origins. By many other estimations there are around 1,377,000 - 2,000,000 people of Iranian descent in Pakistan, majority of whom practice Shia Islam. And most them have been settled in the country before the Independence of Pakistan
in 1947.
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
and Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
. Other colonies can be found in Quetta
Quetta
is the largest city and the provincial capital of the Balochistan Province of Pakistan. Known as the "Fruit Garden of Pakistan" due to the diversity of its plant and animal wildlife, Quetta is home to the Hazarganji Chiltan National Park, which contains some of the rarest species of wildlife in the...
, Islamabad
Islamabad
Islamabad is the capital of Pakistan and the tenth largest city in the country. Located within the Islamabad Capital Territory , the population of the city has grown from 100,000 in 1951 to 1.7 million in 2011...
, Peshawer and in the city of Multan
Multan
Multan , is a city in the Punjab Province of Pakistan and capital of Multan District. It is located in the southern part of the province on the east bank of the Chenab River, more or less in the geographic centre of the country and about from Islamabad, from Lahore and from Karachi...
. Most Iranians in Pakistan are Shia Muslims, although a number of Sunnis and Parsi
Parsi
Parsi or Parsee refers to a member of the larger of the two Zoroastrian communities in South Asia, the other being the Irani community....
s in Pakistan claim Iranian origins. By many other estimations there are around 1,377,000 - 2,000,000 people of Iranian descent in Pakistan, majority of whom practice Shia Islam. And most them have been settled in the country before the Independence of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
in 1947.
Notable people
Notable Pakistani people of Iranian descent include:- Aga Khan IIIAga Khan IIISir Sultan Muhammed Shah, Aga Khan III, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, GCVO, PC was the 48th Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims. He was one of the founders and the first president of the All-India Muslim League, and served as President of the League of Nations from 1937-38. He was nominated to represent India to...
- Nusrat BhuttoNusrat BhuttoBegum Nusrat Bhutto was an Iranian-Pakistani who was the wife of the 9th Prime Minister of Pakistan Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, serving as the First Lady of Pakistan during his premiership from 1971 until Bhutto's removal in 1977. She became her husband's successor as the chairman of the Pakistan Peoples...
- Benazir BhuttoBenazir BhuttoBenazir Bhutto was a democratic socialist who served as the 11th Prime Minister of Pakistan in two non-consecutive terms from 1988 until 1990 and 1993 until 1996....
- Murtaza BhuttoMurtaza BhuttoDr. Mir Ghulam Murtaza Bhutto was a Pakistani politician and the Member of the Parliament of Pakistan, representing Pakistan People's Party from the Larkana constituency...
- Shahnawaz BhuttoShahnawaz BhuttoShahnawaz Bhutto Sindhi: شاھنواز ڀٽو was the son of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and Begum Nusrat Bhutto. Shahnawaz Bhutto was the youngest of Bhutto’s four children...
- Sanam BhuttoSanam BhuttoSanam Bhutto Sindhi: صنم ڀٽو in Karachi city is the younger sister of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. She is the only surviving child of the late former Prime Minister of Pakistan Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and Begum Nusrat Bhutto and the only one whom Nusrat did not outlive...
- Lady Abdullah HaroonLady Abdullah HaroonLady Abdullah Haroon , real name Nusrat Khanum, was a supporter of female education and female rights in the province of Sindh. She was born in a Shia family in Iran but later settled in Karachi where in 1914 she was married to local business man and politician Sir Abdullah Haroon...
- Hussain HaroonHussain HaroonAbdullah Hussain Haroon is the current Pakistan Ambassador to the United Nations since September 2008. A scion of the Haroon family, he is a businessman, social activist and a former Sindh Assembly speaker who was a board member of various educational institutes, sports associations and charity...
- Hameed HaroonHameed Haroon-Introduction:Hameed Haroon is Chief Executive Officer of Dawn Media Group , Pakistan’s leading media conglomerate. The Group comprises Pakistan Herald Publications Limited, the printers and publishers of the Dawn newspaper and three leading magazines, the Herald Spider and Aurora ;...
- Zeba BakhtiarZeba BakhtiarZeba Bakhtiar is a Pakistani film and television actress and director. She made her television debut with a PTV Karachi centre play, Anarkali. She gained a lot of fame through her Bollywood debut, Henna...
- Muhammad Ali Shehki
- Nahid Mirza - wife of Iskander Mirza