Culture of Gilgit Baltistan

3. CULTURE OF BALTISTAN:
• In 1948, The Republic of G-B emerged on the map of the world.
• People of the region fought their own war against the Dogra
Raj and own Freedom. ( Famous Scout NLI)
• In 2009 G-B became 5th province of Pakistan , not Province but
Provincial Setup.
Capital: Gilgit
Districts: 7th (Skardu, Gilgit, Hunza, Nagar, Diamer, Astor, Ganchy)
(Kharmang, Shigar, Ghizer)
Largest City: Skardu
Population: 1,800,000
Area: 72,496 kilo meter sq

4. People
• The Balti people themselves refer to their native land as Balti-yul (transl. 'Land of Baltis'); the modern
name of Baltistan .
• The Baltis are an ethnic group of Tibetan descent,Due to Same related same as Chinese.
Languages
The originals settlers in this regions speak Shina as their basic language spoken, but the new comers
speak different languages due to various backgrounds of languages and cultures. Urdu and English are
the official languages spoken. In this region because of various cultures, the pattern of living, housing,
food style and life style has become a mixture having various colors. Other key languages spoken in Gilgit
are:
 Brushaski
 Wakhi
 Khowar
 Balti

5. Festivals
Mainly there are two types of festivals in Baltistan i.e. religious
and cultural. Religious festivals include
1. Eid Melad ul Nbi
2. Eid ul Fiter
3. Eid ul azha
4. Eid ul Ghadeer also nclude.
CULTURAL EVENTS
1Navroz
2Jashn-e-Baharan
3Cultural festivals.
4Shandoor Polo Festival
5Babusar Polo Festival
6Harvest time festival

6. 1.Nowroz in Baltistan, Gilgit-
Baltistan, Pakistan
• This festival isobserved
in Baltistan region of Gilgit-
Baltistan, it is the beginning of
the spring and it should be
observed as a good omen to
start the new year.
• It is observed on 21st March
each year.
• You would enjoy the day and
count it as one of the memorable
days of the life if you got a
chance to witness the Nowroz
festival in Skardu.

7. 2. JASHNY MEFANG
• Jashn-e-Mayfang is a festival
celebrated in Baltistan on the
21st of December each year.
It’s a centuries-old festival that
possibly came from Buddism or
before that. It is meant to celebrate
the start of the spring season. 20th
Decembers night is supposed to be
the longest and after that, the day
time starts extending minute by
minute. Mayfang amongs the
number of Balti festivals celebrated
each year.

8. 3.Shandur polo festival
(July)
Not only is it considered
as the games of the kings
but in the minds of the
locals it hold a different
perspective; there it is
considered as a symbol,
strength and power of the
regions participating.

9. 4.Harvest Festival:
This festival celebrates the reaping and
harvesting of plants. This festival is
performed in the same way as the
seeding festival. The villagers thank
“Allah” for the bounty that they are
going to harvest.
The festival is celebrated when Yurk
(Barley) crop is ready to
harvest. Family members visit the
barley field early in the morning with
traditional food to harvest the first
crop.

10. 5.Music and Dances:
The famous trio band music is
played in this region. On the
rhythm of this loud music, men
love to dance in their typical
way. There are some variations
in lyrics from region to region.
The people of Gilgit-Baltistan as
have some unique and very
beautiful dances in different
parts. One of the very famous
dances is sword dance. In this
distinctive dance, the
participants show taking a sword
in right and shield in left and
dance with it.

11. 6.Fruits and Dry fruits
Cherries, apricots and apples are
the most popular fruits widely
available in Baltistan. Cherry gardens
are found in Shigar whereas apricots
are found abundantly in Skardu. The
residents have grown trees in their
gardens and send these fruits as
gifts to their relatives living in other
regions of the country.
Dry fruits are the specialty of all
Northern regions. Almonds, walnuts
and dried apricots (known as
pharing in Balti) are widely available
and also exported to foreign
countries.

12. FOODS
Some of traditional food of Gilgit
Baltistan are
1) MAMTU
Mamtu (dumpling) is steam boiled
dish which is filled with chopped
meat (lamb, beef), onion, chile and
garlic and steamed for several hours
in in a multi layer steamer
2) Chapshuro
Chapshuro is one of the most
delicious dish of Gilgit Balistan. It is
filled with chopped meat (lamb,
beef), onion, chile peppers, tomato
and fresh coriander leaves

13. BALAY/NOODLES
Being a cold mountainous region, there
are few things more warming and
satisfying when it’s cold outside, than
soup. And soup in Baltistan in not a
watery affair, but rather the balay as it’s
known, is thick and hearty and eats
almost like a gravy. It was a great way to
begin our traditional Baltistan food meal
in Skardu.

14. PRAPU (Wheat Noodles with walnut
paste)
• Prapu is a noodle dish thickened with almonds
that have been ground to a powder. The
noodles are hand-made using wheat flour,
then boiled until soft. When ready, they are
covered in a thick paste which includes ground
walnuts and pressed apricot oil, and the whole
pot is then seasoned with local herbs.
• The seasoning includes locally grown high-
plateau herbs, several of which I’ve never seen
anywhere else.
• Most of the dishes here are made entirely
from local ingredients

15. NAAMKEEN CHAI
• One of the backbones of Balti cuisine is actually a
drink. This is not your average tea however, and it is
much more than simply preparing green or black
leaves in hot water. This tea contains salt, butter,
milk, and is made with pre-brewed green tea leaves.
• It is served with a side of fresh ground wheat flour,
and a small dish of pure apricot oil which you add to
personal taste.
• Mix in a spoon each of the brown flour and the
golden apricot oil, and enjoy a warming and thick
mixture of some of the richest liquid imaginable. In
some places it is traditional even for several cups of
butter tea to be an entire breakfast

16. CULTURAL DRESS:

17. What we Gifts to Pakistan:
Glaciers:
The Gilgit Baltistan is famous for its
magnificent glaciers and these glaciers feed
rivers (River Indus) that accounts for 75
percent of the stored water supply in the
country.
Mountain ranges.
Gilgit-Baltistan is home to some of the
world's highest mountain ranges. The main
ranges are the Karakoram and the western
Himalayas.
CPEC Route:
GB is the entry point for CPEC, the flagship
project of China. CPEC provides an
alternative route for China's exports and
imports.

18. DOCUMENTARY
ON SKARDU

19. Season:

20. THANK YOU