The Indigenous People of Jammu and Kashmir
The Indigenous People of Erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir.
This is a graphical representation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir made by Arsalan Khan and Rajja Sourav Singh Sarmal. A brief description of each by me to help in better understanding (Clockwise from top) :
The Hunza : The Hunza or the Burusho people inhabit the Hunza Valley and neighboring Valleys in the extreme North of the state. They speak the Burushaski language which as a language has not been identified with any language Group. The Hunzai now mostly follow different schools of Islam.
The Baltis : The Baltis are the inhabitants of the Baltistan and are of Tibetan origin with Dardic admix. Their language is Balti, which is a part of the Tibetan language Group. Infact it has the greatest similarity to old Tibetan. The Baltis follow Islam.
The Ladakhis : The Ladakhis are the inhabitants of the Ladakh region and are of Tibetan descent. The Ladakhi language is from the Tibetan family. Ladakhis are Buddhists as well as Muslim.
The Kargilis : The Kargilis or the Purigpas as they are called inhabit the Western part of Ladakh at the crossroads with Baltistan and Kashmir. Their language Purigi is a dialect of Balti and as such they are also a part of the Tibetan family. Purigis are mostly Muslim.
The Bakarwals : The Bakarwals and their close cousins the Gujjars are traditionally nomadic pastoral people who inhabited the foothills of the Himalayas and moved to the Mountains in the Summers with their livestock. They (Gujjars/ Bakarwals) form the majority in the Poonch Rajouri region and spread among the Jammu Division and in Kashmir as well. They follow Islam.
The Dogras : The traditional dwellers of the Jammu region or the “Duggar” as the region was known. They live in the foothills of Jammu and are spread into Himachal Pradesh as well. The Dogras speak the Dogri language which is from the Western Pahari Group of languages. The Dogras are mostly Hindu though a significant number converted to Islam and were referred to as Chibalis.
The Potohari : The Potohari/ Pahari are the most Punjabic people of Jammu and Kashmir and live across the Potohar Plateau which stretches well beyond Rawalpindi. They are in sizeable numbers in Poonch. Their language Pahari-Pothwari belongs to the Lhanda Family of Punjabi. They are majorly Muslim but there is a strong Hindu minority as well.
The Kashmiri : The people of the Kashmir area found mostly in the Kashmir Valley. They are the biggest Indegenous Group of people in the state. They speak Kashmiri language which belongs to the Dardic family of languages. Kashmiris are mostly Muslim though a small minority of Kashmiri Hindus also exists.
The Gilgiti : The Gilgiti or the Dards are the inhabitants of the vast Gilgit Valley in the North West of the state. They speak the Shina language. They (Dards) are also found in other areas of the state like Gurez and Drass where they have said to have migrated from Gilgit. They follow Islam though a few follow Buddhism as well in Ladakh.
The Kalash : The Kalash inhabit three Valleys in the Chitral Region now in KPK though at one time the Chitral Kingdom paid tribute to the Kingdom of Jammu and Kashmir. The Kalsha speak the Kalasha language which is a part of the Dardic family of languages. They have a distinct culture which has been under threat. Most Kalasha have converted to islam though a small number (3000 app) still follow traditional Animist beliefs.
Hi Res of Graphic can be downloaded from the link in the first comment.