Pakistan
Find a premier Hotel & Resort at
Hilton Hotels.
or book Sheraton Hotels and Resorts
|
Location:
|
Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea, between
India on the east and Iran and Afghanistan on the
west and China in the north |
|
Background:
|
The
separation in 1947 of British India into the Muslim
state of Pakistan (with two sections West and East)
and largely Hindu India was never satisfactorily
resolved. A third war between these countries in
1971 resulted in East Pakistan seceding and becoming
the separate nation of Bangladesh. A dispute over
the state of Kashmir is ongoing. In response to
Indian nuclear weapons testing, Pakistan conducted
its own tests in 1998. |
|
Languages:
|
Punjabi 48%, Sindhi 12%, Siraiki (a Punjabi variant)
10%, Pashtu 8%, Urdu (official) 8%, Balochi 3%,
Hindko 2%, Brahui 1%, English (official and lingua
franca of Pakistani elite and most government
ministries), Burushaski, and other 8% |
|
Exchange rates:
|
Pakistani rupees per US dollar - 59.72 (2002), 61.93
(2001), 53.65 (2000), 49.12 (1999), 44.94 (1998)
|
|
