Located about 95km south of Multan, there has been a settlement here for thousands of years, but the present town traces its name and origins to 1748 when it was made capital of the newly founded state of Bahawalpur. This state was headed by Nawab Bahawal Khan Abbasi I, of a dynasty claiming descent from the Prophet Mohammed’s uncle, Abbas. The state was ruled by the Abbasi nawabs with little outside interference until the 20th century and was only merged with Pakistan by treaty in 1954, when it became Bahawalpur Division.
The people of the region have had long associations with Sufism and pirs (holy men), whose shrines are often maintained by their families in perpetuity.
Most people in this district speak Saraiki, which is a variant of Punjabi.
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