Punjab, or PANJAB (pānj-ab, 'five rivers'; the Pentapotamia of the Greeks), a separate province of India, occupying the north-west corner, is watered by the Indus and its five great affluents—the Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej. It is bounded on the W. by Afghanistan, on the N. by Cashmere, on the E. by the Jumna and the North-western Provinces, and on the S. by Rajputana and Sind. The area under direct British administration is 106,632 sq. m.; that of the native states, thirty-four in number, under British control is 35,817 sq. m. Pop. (1881) 18,850,437 in British province and 3,861,683 in the dependent states; (1891) 20,803,000 in British territory and 4,256,670 in the feudatory states. The capital is Lahore, but both Delhi (formerly in North-western Provinces) and Amritsar (the religious capital of the Sikhs) are larger. The whole of the northern parts are traversed by spurs from the Himalayas, which enclose deep valleys. On the west the Sulaiman Mountains run parallel to the Indus. In the south the surface is not broken by any important eminence, except the Salt Range, varying from 2000 to 5000 feet high, between the Indus and the Jhelum. The country, divided into six doabs, or interfluvial tracts, and frequently spoken of as the plains of the Indus, has a general slope towards the south-west. The climate in the plains is most oppressively hot and dry in summer, reaching in May 87.4° to 116.6° F. in the shade at several stations; but is cool, and sometimes frosty, in winter. Little rain falls except in the districts along the base of the Himalayas. The soil varies from stiff clay and loam to sand; but, in general, is sandy and barren, intermixed with fertile spots. Rivers and canals afford ample means of irrigation.
The indigenous vegetation is meagre. Trees are few in number and small, and fuel is so scarce that cow-dung is much used in its stead. Wheat of excellent quality is produced in considerable quantities, and indigo, sugar, cotton, tobacco, opium, tea, rice, barley, millet, maize, and numerous vegetables and fruits are grown. The manufacturing industry—cottons, wood-work, iron, leather, gold and silver lace, silk, and shawls—is very considerable, and is carried on for the most part in the great towns, as Amritsar, Lahore, Multan, &c. Punjab exports indigo, grain, salt, metals, spices, tea, tobacco, manufactured cottons, hides, and leather to Kabul, Cashmere, Turkestan, and Tibet; and imports dyes, goats' wool, raw silk, fruits, ghee, horses, furs, timber, and shawl cloth. The total value of this trade reaches annually £2,299,900. The inhabitants are of various races, chiefly Sikhs, Jats, Rajputs, and Pathans. Of the whole population, nearly 56 per cent. are Mohammedans; Hindus constitute nearly 38 per cent.; and Sikhs 6 per cent. The Jats are the most prominent race, and are said to have formed the 'core and nucleus' of the Sikh nation and military force. For the history of the Punjab, see SIKHS.