British Pakistanis
British Pakistanis (Urdu: برطانیہ میں مقیم پاکستانی; also known as Pakistani British people or Pakistani Britons) are citizens or residents of the United Kingdom whose ancestors came from Pakistan. The community is well into its third generation and consists of around 1.8 million individuals, the second-largest Pakistani population living outside of Pakistan, after the United Arab Emirates. It includes people born in the UK who are of Pakistani descent and Pakistani-born people who have went to the UK. Most British people of Pakistani origin were born in the United Kingdom, as opposed to Pakistan itself. Most British Pakistanis are originally from the Azad Kashmir and Punjab regions, with a smaller number from other parts of Pakistan including Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.
برطانیہ میں مقیم پاکستانی | |
|---|---|
| Total population | |
| 1,174,983 (2011)[1][a] England: 1,112,282 (2011) Scotland: 49,381 (2011) Wales: 12,229 (2011) Northern Ireland: 1,091 (2011) 1.86% of the UK's population (2011)[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| West Midlands, Greater London, Yorkshire and the Humber, North West England | |
| Languages | |
| English (British and Pakistani) · Urdu · Potohari · Punjabi · Kashmiri · Pashto · Saraiki · Sindhi · Balochi · others | |
| Religion | |
| Islam (Sunni, Shi'ite, Sufi) Minority: Christianity · Hinduism · Sikhism · others | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| British Asian |
The UK is home to the largest Pakistani community in Europe, with the amount of British Pakistanis living there exceeding 1.8 million based on the 2011 census. British Pakistanis are the second-largest racial minority population in the United Kingdom and also make up the second-largest sub-group of British Asians. They are also one of the largest overseas Pakistani communities, similar in number to people who have Pakistani heritage in Saudi Arabia.[2][3]
Early history
changePakistanis have been present in the UK since the start of the 19th century, but by far the largest wave of migration occurred right after the Second World War. The historical relations between both countries goes through the British Empire from the region that is now Pakistan started in small numbers in the mid-19th century. Parts of what is now Pakistan was then ruled by the British Raj. People from those regions were soldiers in the British Indian Army. and some were deployed in other parts of the British Empire.
Major Pakistani migration to the United Kingdom began in the early 1900s, the British Empire formally annexed the region in 1850, with the residents of British-ruled Pakistan becoming subjects of The Crown. Some started to immigrate during the colonial rule in the 1920s, but immigration increased during the 1950s and 1960s. After the Second World War, the break-up of the British Empire and the independence of Pakistan made Pakistani immigration to the United Kingdom go up, especially during the 1950s and the 1960s. That was made easier as Pakistan was a member of the Commonwealth.[4] Pakistani immigrants helped to sort out the job shortages in the British steel, textile and engineering industries. Doctors from Pakistan were recruited by the National Health Service in the 1960s.[5]
Amount
changeThe number of British Pakistanis has grown from about 10,000 in 1951 to over 1.1 million in 2011.[1][6] Most live in England, with some in Scotland and smaller numbers in Wales and Northern Ireland. The most diverse group of Pakistani people is in London and has Punjabis, Mirpuri Kashmiris, Pashtuns, Sindhis, Muhajirs, Saraikis, Baloch and others.[2][7]
Religions
changeMost British Pakistanis are Muslim; around 90 percent of those living in England and Wales at the time of the 2011 census said that their religion was Islam.[8][9] Most are Sunni Muslims, but there are also many Shia Muslims. The UK also has one of the largest overseas Christian Pakistani communities; the 2011 census recorded around 17,000 Christian Pakistanis living in England and Wales, which was 1.52 percent of the Pakistanis there.
Social influence
changeSince their settlement, British Pakistanis have had many different contributions and influence on British society, politics, culture, economy and sport. Social issues include high relative poverty rates among the community according to the 2001 census,[10] but some progress has been made in recent years, with the 2011 census showing British Pakistanis as having some the highest levels of home ownership in Britain.[11]
Traditionally, many British Pakistanis have employed themselves, with many working in the transport industry or the retail sector's family-run businesses.[2]
Notes
change- ↑ This census figure may not include people of partial Pakistani ancestry.
References
change- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "2011 Census: Ethnic group, local authorities in the United Kingdom". Office for National Statistics. 11 October 2013. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Britain's Pakistani community". The Daily Telegraph. 28 November 2008. Retrieved 5 December 2010.
- ↑ Werbner, Pnina (2005). "Pakistani migration and diaspora religious politics in a global age". In Ember, Melvin; Ember, Carol R.; Skoggard, Ian (eds.). Encyclopedia of Diasporas: Immigrant and Refugee Cultures around the World. New York: Springer. pp. 475–484. ISBN 0-306-48321-1.
- ↑ Satter, Raphael G. (13 May 2008). "Pakistan rejoins Commonwealth – World Politics, World". The Independent. London. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
- ↑ Butler, Patrick (18 June 2008). "How migrants helped make the NHS". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 December 2010.
- ↑ Nadia Mushtaq Abbasi. "The Pakistani Diaspora in Europe and Its Impact on Democracy Building in Pakistan" (PDF). International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance. p. 5. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 August 2010. Retrieved 2 November 2010.
- ↑ Department for Communities and Local Government. "The Pakistani Muslim Community in England" (PDF). Department for Communities and Local Government. pp. 5–11 (6), 36–41. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 September 2012. Retrieved 2 November 2010.
In London the community is more mixed and includes comparable numbers of Punjabis, Pathans and Kashmiris. There are also small communities of Sindhis and Balochis in London.
- ↑ "2011 Census data - religion". Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- ↑ "2011 census data – religion". The Guardian. 16 May 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2013.
- ↑ Guy Palmer; Peter Kenway (29 April 2007). "Poverty rates among ethnic groups in Great Britain". JRF. Archived from the original on 21 November 2010. Retrieved 20 December 2010.
- ↑ "CoDE Housing Census Briefing" (PDF). University of Manchester. October 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 February 2014. Retrieved 23 November 2017.