Kalat, Balochistan
Kalat
Qalāt قلات Kalat-e-Baloch (Kalat of Baloch)[1] | |
|---|---|
Town | |
 Outer wall of Kalat city | |
  Kalat Qalāt Location of Kalat  Kalat Qalāt Kalat Qalāt (Pakistan) | |
| Coordinates: 29°01′48″N 66°35′20″E / 29.030°N 66.589°E | |
| Country |  Pakistan |
| Province | Balochistan |
| District | Kalat |
| Government | |
| • Type | Town |
| Area | |
• Total | 489 km2 (189 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 2,007 m (6,585 ft) |
| Population (2023)[2] | |
• Total | 44,440 |
| Time zone | UTC+5 (PST) |
| Area code | +92844 |
Kalāt or Qalāt (Brahui/Balochi: کلات), historically known as Qīqān,[3][4] is the historical capital of Kalat State[5] in Kalat district, in Balochistan. The town of Kalat is the headquarter of Kalat District and was also known in the past by the historical names Kalat-e-Baloch[1][6] and Kalat-e-Sewa.[5]
Qalat, formerly Kalat, is located roughly in the center of the Balochistan province, and in the past, the capital of Balochistan[1][7] (in Kalat State[5]). The Khan of Kalat is presently a ceremonial title held by Mir Suleman Dawood Jan, and the Pakistan government has made efforts to reconcile with him; his son, Prince Mohammed, who is next in line to be the Khan of Kalat, is pro-Pakistan.[8]
Name
[edit]In the Balochi language word Kalat is applied to a fort in general[1] and the town became known as Kalat-e Baloch after the formation of the first Baloch rule over Kalat in the 15th century[9] to distinguish it from Kalāt-e Ghilzai in Afghanistan, and Kalat-e Sewa after its legendary founder.[6][5] During the reign of Mir Nasir Khan, the royal castle Miri (Miri meaning, "place of the Mir"), which was a magnificent building in the center of the city and where the Khan resided, was known as Kalat-e-Nasseer, and appellation it at present retains.[1][10]
History
[edit]It has been known in earlier times as Kalat-i-Seva (from a legendary Hindu king) and Kalat-i Nichari which connects it with the Brahui Speaking tribes of Nichari, which is generally accepted as belonging to the oldest branch of the indigenous Brahois[11]
The town of Kalat is said to have been founded by the Hindu Sewa dynasty(Qalat-e Sewa) before the Brahuis rule in the 15th century.[9][12][10]
Six battles of Kikan (Six battles of Kikanan/Kizkanan): The legendary battles of Kinan parallel the battle of Thermopylae, where a small contingent of pastoral Jat warriors defeated a massive Muslim army. Despite facing a vastly superior Muslim military in numbers, training, and weaponry, Jats inflicted a crushing defeat on Arabic invaders, a humiliation so profound it was taken personally by the Muslim Caliph. Chach Nama reports that during the Arab Muslim invasion of Sindh, the mountain-dwelling brave and agile Jats of Kikan or Kikanan or Kizkanan,[13] likely present-day Kalat,[14][15] near Bolan Pass in Balochistan summarily defeated invading Arabic Muslim forces of Haras and killed Haras in 662 CE, only a small portion of Muslim forces returned to Umayyad Caliphate. The impact of Muslim defeat was so significant that for next 20 years each successive caliph made Kikan a special target for attack and sent 6 expeditions of which 5 "failed miserably" and "failed to make any permanent impression" in Sindh.[13]
"The Bolan Pass was protected by the brave Jats of Kikan or Kikanan. The long-drawn struggle of the Arabs with these powers [Jats] ... marks their [Muslim's] steady but fruitless endeavours to enter India ... The hardy mountaineers [Jats] of these regions, backed by the natural advantage of their hilly country, offered stubborn resistance to the conquerors of the world ... If there had been a history of India written without prejudices and predilections, the heroic deeds of these [Jat] people, who stemmed the tide of Islam for two centuries, would certainly have received the recognition they so richly deserve [emphasis added]".[13]
In the 15th century Kalat was conquered by the Brahui Balochis (Mirwari) of the Hindu Sewa dynasty and they established a large kingdom,[9][12][10] but it soon declined and the region fell to Mughals for a short period. The brahui speaking Khans of Qalat were dominant from the 17th century onwards until the arrival of the British in the 19th century. A treaty was signed in 1876 to make Qalat part of the British Empire.
In 1947, the Khan of Kalat reportedly acceded to the dominion of Pakistan. In 1948, Qalat became part of Pakistan when the British withdrew. The last Khan of Qalat was formally removed from power in 1955, but the title is still claimed by his descendants. The current Khan of Qalat is Mir Suleman Dawood Khan Ahmadzai.
Climate
[edit]Kalat features a cold desert climate (BWk) under the Köppen climate classification. The average temperature in Kalat is 14.1 °C (57.4 °F), while the annual precipitation averages 163 mm (6.4 in). June is the driest month with 1 mm (0.039 in) of rainfall, while January, the wettest month, has an average precipitation of 36 mm (1.4 in).
July is the warmest month of the year with an average temperature of 24.8 °C (76.6 °F). The coldest month January has an average temperature of 3.4 °C (38.1 °F). The all-time lowest recorded temperature in Kalat was −17 °C (1 °F) on 20 January 1978,[16] while the highest temperature ever recorded was 38 °C (100 °F) on 19 June 1977.
| Climate data for Kalat | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 10.3 (50.5) |
12.1 (53.8) |
17.1 (62.8) |
22.1 (71.8) |
27.4 (81.3) |
31.9 (89.4) |
32.6 (90.7) |
31.7 (89.1) |
28.6 (83.5) |
23.3 (73.9) |
17.5 (63.5) |
13.1 (55.6) |
22.3 (72.2) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 3.4 (38.1) |
5.3 (41.5) |
9.8 (49.6) |
14.3 (57.7) |
18.9 (66.0) |
22.7 (72.9) |
24.8 (76.6) |
23.4 (74.1) |
19.4 (66.9) |
13.8 (56.8) |
8.6 (47.5) |
4.9 (40.8) |
14.1 (57.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −3.5 (25.7) |
−1.5 (29.3) |
2.6 (36.7) |
6.6 (43.9) |
10.5 (50.9) |
13.5 (56.3) |
17.0 (62.6) |
15.2 (59.4) |
10.3 (50.5) |
4.3 (39.7) |
−0.2 (31.6) |
−3.3 (26.1) |
6.0 (42.7) |
| Source: Climate-Data.org[17] | |||||||||||||
Demographics
[edit]Population
[edit]| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1951 | 2,009 | — |
| 1961 | 5,321 | +10.23% |
| 1972 | 6,481 | +1.81% |
| 1981 | 11,037 | +6.09% |
| 1998 | 22,646 | +4.32% |
| 2017 | 36,864 | +2.60% |
| 2023 | 44,440 | +3.16% |
| Source: [18] | ||
As of the 2023 census, Kalat has population of 44,440.[19]
Languages
The population is mostly Muslim (97 percent), with a Hindu population of three percent,[21] out of which many are Hindkowan merchants who regard Kalat as their homeland.[22][23]
"The Hindus of Kalat town — undoubtedly among the oldest in the community — claim to be offshoots of the mysterious Sewa dynasty that ruled in Kalat centuries before the Brahui Confederacy took shape. But though the Bhatia of Las Bela punctiliously refer their advent to the year 708 A.D., and the Hindus of Lahri tell in all good faith of their journeyings from Aleppo with Chakar the Rind, the early history of these old Hindu families is hopelessly befogged. Everything, however, seems to point to the western Panjab and Sind as the countries from which most of them came, though isolated families in Nushki may have immigrated by way of Afghanistan, and a few others may have wandered in from the far corners of India. Originally they may have been as diverse as the villages from which they came and the dates of their coming. Today the old Hindu families form a more or less homogeneous community. In particular customs no doubt they vary considerably; but common environment has set its common mark on them all. And it is in the effect of an alien environment on Hindus and Hindu caste that the main interest in these old trading families of Baluchistan is centred."
— Excerpt from the Census of India, 1911 AD[12]
| Religious group |
1941[24]: 13–14 | 2017[25][26] | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pop. | % | Pop. | % | |
Islam 
|
2,049 | 83.19% | 35,547 | 96.61% |
Hinduism 
|
381 | 15.47% | 1,234 | 3.35% |
Sikhism 
|
33 | 1.34% | — | — |
Christianity 
|
0 | 0% | 13 | 0.04% |
Ahmadiyya 
|
— | — | 2 | 0.01% |
| Total population | 2,463 | 100% | 36,796 | 100% |
Kalat Kali Temple
[edit]There is a Hindu temple devoted to Kali.[27] On 21 December 2010, the 82 year old chief-priest was abducted in what was reported as part of increasingly routine targeting of minority Hindus in the province.[28] The Kali Temple of Kalat is located at the foot of the ancient city fort of Kalat state. This temple was built before the arrival of Islam in South Asia.
"At that time, the temple was known as Kalat-i-Seba (after a legendary Hindu king) and Kalat-i Nikari (after the Brahui-speaking Baloch Nikari tribe). The Nikaris are generally recognized as the oldest branch of the indigenous Brahuis."[11]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e Bengal, Asiatic Society of (1843). Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. Volume 12, Part 1. p. 472, 474. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
The Afghans know the place merely as Kalat-i-Baloch(Kalat-e-Baloch). Kalat-i-Nasseer, the capital of Balochisthan. In the Balochee language, which is corrupted Persian, Kalat is applied to a fort in ge- neral, and here it is used par excellence as the fort.
- ^ ""Final Results of Census-2017 Table 2: Urban localities by population size and their population by sex, annual growth rate and household size"" (PDF).
- ^ Baig, Zeeshan Muhammad (10 December 2017). "باب الاسلام سندھ ؛ محمد بن قاسم سے قبل سندھ پر حملے کی اسلامی جنگی مہمات". Express.
- ^ Asif, Manan Ahmed (19 September 2016). A Book of Conquest. Harvard University Press. ISBN 9780674660113 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b c d Viking fund publications in anthropology, Issue 43. Viking Fund. 1908. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
Kalat Town.-Capital of the Kalat State in Baluchistan, situated in 29° 2′ N. and 66° 35′ E., 881 miles from Quetta on the south of the Sarawan division. It is known to the natives as Kalat-i-Baloch and Kalat-i-Sewa
- ^ a b "Kalāt Balochistan". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 20 October 2025.
The town, known locally as Kalāt-e Baluch to distinguish it from Kalāt-e Ghilzai (Qalāt-e Ghelzāʾī) in Afghanistan, and Kalāt-e Sewa after its legendary founder, occupies a spur of the Shas-i Mardan Hill at the western end of Kalāt valley.
- ^ Durdana; Dashti, Zahid Hussain (2020). "Historical Background of Khanate of Kala". Bilingual/Bi-annual Pakistan Studies English / Urdu Research Journal VOl.No.12, Issue No. 02. Retrieved 21 October 2025.
The Khanate Kalat is the most important and significant dynasty of Baloch history, how was it formed, who was the founder of the Khanate of Balochistan. Kalat has an important place in history of Balochistan, which has been the capital of Baloch rulers for many centuries.
- ^ Shahid, Saleem (29 June 2015). "Khan of Kalat being persuaded to return home". Dawn.com. Dawn. Retrieved 22 May 2025.
- ^ a b c Khan, Sabir Badal (2013). Two Essays on Baloch History and Folklore: Two Essays on Baloch History and Folklore. Università di Napoli, "l'Orientale". p. 24.
mirwari, ousted teh HinduSewa rulers in about 15th century A.D. and formed the First Baloch rule over Kalat and the surrounding areas.
- ^ a b c Viking fund publications in anthropology, Issue 43. Viking Fund. 1908. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
Commanding the town is the miri or citadel, an imposing structure in which the Khan resides. Kalat fell into the hands of the Mirwāris about the fifteenth century, since which time the place has remained the capital of the Ahmadzai Khāns
- ^ a b E.J. Brill's first encyclopaedia of Islam, 1913-1936, Volume 4 By M. Th. Houtsma, Martijn Theodoor Houtsma Page 678; Quote: “It has been known in earlier times as Kalat-i-Seva (from a legendary Hindu king) and Kalat-i Nicari which connects it with the Brahui Speaking Baloch tribe of Nicari , which is generally accepted as belonging to the oldest branch of the indigenous Brahois.”
- ^ a b c India Census Commissioner (1911). "Census of India 1911. Vol. 4, Baluchistan : pt. 1, Report; pt. 2, Tables". p. 175. JSTOR ssaoa.crl.25393763. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
The Hindus of Kalat town — undoubtedly among the oldest in the community — claim to be offshoots of the mysterious Sewa dynasty that ruled in Kalat centuries before the Brahui Confederacy took shape.
- ^ a b c Sandeep Balakrishna, 2020, Invaders and Infidels (Book 1): From Sindh to Delhi: The 500-year journey of Islamic invasion, Bloomsbury Publishing.
- ^ Baloch, N.A. (1978). "ḲANDĀBĪL". In Van Donzel, E.; Lewis, B.; Pellat, Ch. (eds.). The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Volume IV (IRAN-KHA). Leiden: E.J. Brill. pp. 534–5. ISBN 90-04-05745-5. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
- ^ Le Strange, Guy (1905). The Lands of the Eastern Caliphate: Mesopotamia, Persia, and Central Asia, from the Moslem Conquest to the Time of Timur. New York: Barnes & Noble, Inc. pp. 331–2.
- ^ "Historical Events". rmcbalochistan.pmd.gov.pk. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
- ^ "Climate: Kalat - Climate-Data.org". Retrieved 9 September 2016.
- ^ "AREA & POPULATION OF ADMINISTRATIVE UNITS BY RURAL/URBAN: 1951-1998 CENSUSES" (PDF). Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 14 May 2018.
- ^ "AREA, POPULATION BY SEX, SEX RATIO, POPULATION DENSITY, URBAN POPULATION, HOUSEHOLD SIZE AND ANNUAL GROWTH RATE, CENSUS-2023, BALOCHISTAN" (PDF).
- ^ ""TABLE 11 : POPULATION BY MOTHER TONGUE, SEX AND RURAL/URBAN, CENSUS-2023"" (PDF).
- ^ Encyclopædia Britannica: a new survey of universal knowledge, Volume 3. Encyclopœdia Britannica. 1964. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
Almost all the people are Muslim ; the largest Hindu minorities are in the Sibi (9%) and Kalat (2%) districts.
- ^ Viking fund publications in anthropology, Issue 43. Viking Fund. 1966. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
...is in the hands of a small caste of Hindu merchants. These Hindus are Hindko-speaking and regard Kalat as their homeland, where they generally keep their families and go for some months every year to visit and to obtain supplies. While in the Marri area, they must be under the protection of a local Marri chief or the sardar himself.
- ^ The social organization of the Marri Baluch. Indus Publications. 1977. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
...is in the hands of a small caste of Hindu merchants. These Hindus are Hindko-speaking and regard Kalat as their homeland, where they generally keep their families and go for some months every year to visit and to obtain supplies. While in the Marri area, they must be under the protection of a local Marri chief or the sardar himself.
- ^ "CENSUS OF INDIA, 1941 VOLUME XIV BALUCHISTAN". Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ "Final Results (Census-2017)". Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ "District Wise Results / Tables (Census - 2017) TABLE 9 - POPULATION BY SEX, RELIGION AND RURAL/URBAN" (PDF). Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Notezai, Muhammad Akbar (15 October 2017). "FOOTPRINTS: DESCENDANTS OF ROYALTY". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
- ^ Baabar, Mariana (5 February 2022). "No Country For Kafirs?". Outlook.
External links
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