The land of five waters gave the world its first cities, its saints and its songs. Broken by every empire that crossed it, it is still ours to remember, and to make whole again.

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PUNJAB WIKIਪੰਜਾਬپنجابCulture
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Englishਪੰਜਾਬੀپنجابی

Land & Ages

The LandRivers, doabs, Harappa and the first cities, seasons, numbersAgesEight ages of the Punjab, from the Soan to todayTimelineEvery dated event on one lineAtlasEvery place on one map, age by agePlacesCities, ancient sites, temples, mosques and gurdwaras, battlefieldsLanguage & scriptsPunjabi, its dialects, Gurmukhi and Shahmukhi

People & Faiths

PeopleSaints and teachers, poets and singers, rulers, rebels, the people of both PunjabsPeople of the landJats, Rajputs, Arains, Khatris, Dalit communities and more, across every faithFaithsHindu traditions, Islam and the Sufis, Sikhi, and the Punjab's other faiths

Kingdoms & Struggles

Kingdoms & WarsWho ruled the Punjab, the Kingdom of Lahore, and the battles fought over itWho ruled the PunjabEvery ruling power, 518 BCE to todayWars & BattlesFrom the Hydaspes to BasantarStruggles & Partitions1849, 1919, 1947, 1966, 1984, 2020

Culture & Museum

CulturePoets, qisse, songs, music, dance, festivals, foodMuseumSculpture, coins, manuscripts, painting, arms, buildings, and where to see themChronicles & ProphecyThe poetry of the old chroniclesAboutWhat this atlas is, its sources, and every word explainedHelp maintain this siteCorrections, pictures, sources and new entries
Punjab WikiCulture
12 entries

Music forms

Kirtan in the Gurus' ragas, the dhadi's war ballad, the village boli and the Sufi kafi.

Traditions

Gurus and Mughals

1469 – 1708
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Kafi and qawwali
Kafi and qawwaliFrom Shah Hussain, 1500s

The Sufi song of the Punjab, created by Shah Hussain and perfected by Bulleh Shah.

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Gurmat Sangeet: kirtan in the ragas
Gurmat Sangeet: kirtan in the ragasFrom Guru Nanak and Bhai Mardana, c. 1500

The Guru Granth Sahib is arranged by raga, not by author: the scripture was meant to be sung.

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The Sham Chaurasia gharana
The Sham Chaurasia gharanaFrom the 16th century, by tradition

The singing family of Sham Chaurasi near Hoshiarpur, whose greatest masters, Salamat Ali and Nazakat Ali Khan, moved to Pakistan in 1947.

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Dhadi vaar
Dhadi vaarFrom Guru Hargobind, c. 1610s

The heroic ballad of the Sikhs, sung to the small dhad drum and sarangi in front of the Akal Takht.

The Kingdom of Lahore

1799 – 1849
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Kavishri
KavishriMalwa, 1800s onward

Unaccompanied verse sung at speed by two or three voices, the Malwa cousin of the dhadi ballad.

Colonial Punjab

1849 – 1947
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The Patiala gharana
The Patiala gharanaFrom the mid-19th century

The school of classical singing born at the court of the Maharajas of Patiala, famous for its daring, fast and ornate style.

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Jugni
JugniFolk, popularised from the 1880s

The firefly-spirit who wanders the land in song, reporting what she sees.

Through the ages

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Wedding songs: ghoriyan, suhag and sithniyan
Wedding songs: ghoriyan, suhag and sithniyanFolk tradition

The songs women sing through a Punjabi wedding: ghoriyan for the groom, suhag for the bride leaving home, and sithniyan to tease the other side.

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Tappe and Mahiya
Tappe and MahiyaFolk, ancient

Three-line verses of love and longing, sung in duet between lovers or friends.

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Lullabies and children's rhymes
Lullabies and children's rhymesFolk tradition

The loriyan sung to babies and the rhymes of the courtyard, the first poetry every Punjabi child hears.

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Boliyan
BoliyanFolk, ancient

The short, witty couplets that fly back and forth during giddha and bhangra.

Vaen and siapa: the songs of mourning
Vaen and siapa: the songs of mourningFolk tradition

The laments women sing for the dead, and the ritual mourning in which they beat their breasts in a circle.

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