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Demographics of present day Pakistan
The 165 million Pakistanis are divided ethnically, linguistically and religiously as follows:
| Religious Affiliation of Pakistanis | |
|---|---|
| Sunni Muslim | 77% |
| Shi'ia Muslim | 20% |
| Hindu, Christian, Ahmadiyyas | 3% |
| Ethnic Affiliation of Pakistanis | |
|---|---|
| Punjabi | 66% |
| Sindhi | 13% |
| Pakhtan (Pathan) | 9% |
| Muhajir | 8% |
| Balochi | 3% |
| Other | 1% |
| Native Language of Pakistanis | |
|---|---|
| Punjabi | 48% |
| Siraiki (Punjabi dialect) | 10% |
| Sindhi | 12% |
| Urdu | 8% |
| Pakhtu (Pashto) | 8% |
| Balochi | 3% |
| Hindko | 2% |
| Brahui | 1% |
| Others | 8% |
It is noteworthy that Urdu is the official language of Pakistan even though it is the native language of only 8 percent of the population. Brahui is a language of the Dravidian family spoken in southern Balochistan.
In addition to the great ethnic diversity of Pakistan there is a major political problem that most of the ethnic groups within Pakistan are fractions of a number of international ethnic groups. That is to say the Pushtans are divided between Pakistan and Afghanistan; the Balochis are divided between Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan and the Punjabis are divided between Pakistan and India.