Kotli District

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Kotli (Urdu: کوٹلی) is a district of Azad Kashmir, (also called Azad Jammu and Kashmir), which the Pakistani-administered part of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. Kotli is the chief town of the district.

There are two theories about the origin of the name "Kotli". One school of thought claims that in ancient times Prince Raja Shahswar Khan built a small residence here and called it "Kot", which became "Kotli". Another theory states that the name is derived from the Sanskrit word Kotli which means to reside or take up residence. (The two theories are not, of course, mutually exclusive.) At one stage the area was inhabited by the Mangran and Solhan peoples, and was called Kotli Solwhan. Kotli is well known for its mosques, and is often referred to as Madina-al-Masajed ("city of mosques").

1 Geography
2 People
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] Geography

About 300 years ago, there was a thick forest at the present site of the Kotli along with the other parts of Jammu & Kashmir. A true and pious Muslim Raja Sawar Khan with the council inhabited a town with the Name of “KET ” on the Halakari at Dakhari. In 1849 The British handed over the territory to Gulab Singh, a Hindu Dogra a sale deed for a small sum of Rs.705 million.

In the Same year Gulab Singh sent a message to Raja Shah Sawar Khan to obey his supremacy, which he refused. After that the forces of Raja Gulab Singh attacked the Town and destroyed it. Shah Sawar Khan again inhabited another town at bottom of mountain at the present place and gave the name “ Kot Tali” which is now the headquarter of District Kotli.

The Kotli district was carved out of the Mirpur district in 1975. Prior to the present status, the district was a sub-division of the Mirpur district. The district is bounded by occupied Kashmir in the east, and by the Mirpur district in the south. Rawalakot lies to its north and it is bounded by Pakistan in the west. The district is divided into three sub-divisions/tehsils covering a total area of 1862 square kilometres. The total population of the district according to a 1998 census stands at 558000 and its population according to 1999 projections is approximately 570,000. District Kotli is now the largest city by population (656,000) and tehsils (Kotli, Sehnsa, Nakyal & Charhoi).

The Kotli district is a hilly area rising gradually towards the high mountains of Poonch district. Its climate is more moderate than that of Mirpur due to the sub-mountainous topography. The River Poonch passes through Kotli to be joined by a smaller river called the Baan at Brahli, a short distance from Kotli. Kotli City serves as the headquarters of the district. The district is linked to Mirpur by two metalled roads, one via Gulpur and Rajdhani, and the other via Dhungi and Charohi. It is also directly linked with Islamabad/Rawalpindi via Sehnsa and Holar.

[edit] People

Kotli now has a diverse mix of people. The major tribes residing in the district are Rathore, Malik, Syed, Gujar, "Jat", Rajput,Awan, Sudhan and Khawaja. The native languages spoken in this district are Pahari and Punjabi. The major tribe 'Malik' belongs to the first Sub-Continent victorious "Qotub-Ud-Din Aibak".