Pakistan is to rename a province called the North West Frontier in the belief that its title is neither historically or chronologically fitting.
It is hoped that the measure will bring an end to “British colonial anachronism”, as the current name was chosen by British troops in the early 1900s as part of an effort to suppress aggressive Pukhtun tribes.
The leading government party, the Pakistan People’s Party, has agreed on the new name of Pukhtunkhwa in accordance with the wishes of the Awami National Party (ANP), which currently governs the province.
The name, translated as “land of the Pukhtun”, was decided upon because of its common use by local poets.
The Pukhtun society is the world’s largest patriarchal tribal society, made up of an estimated 42 million people.
But the proposals have been controversial and have received opposition from other tribes.
Non-Puktun ethnic minorities such as the groups of Chitralis and Hazara believe that the current name is fitting because it simply means ‘the points of the compass’.
The Province is the smallest of the four main provinces in Pakistan and covers approximately 28,800 square miles.
It was a province of British India from 1901-47.
The leader of the ANP Zahid Khan said: “Sixty years after our independence our demand will be met.”
He added: “The change will be very good for us.”
But Arbab Khan, a public figure from Peshawar, an important military and communications centre in the province, suggested that the name should instead be “Curzonistan”.
This would mean it is named after Lord Curzon, the viceroy of India who originally created the province in 1901 when he eliminated it from the Punjab’s rule in 1901.
