This presentation gives an introduction to the lifestyle of Punjab and its culture.

1. Punjab

2. Punjab
Map of India

3. Punjab
“The Land of the Sikhs”

4. The Sikh Religion
• A progressive religion well ahead of its time when it
was founded over 500 years ago, The Sikh religion
today has a following of over 20 million people
worldwide and is ranked as the world’s 5th largest
religion. Sikhism preaches a message of devotion
and remembrance of God at all times, truthful living,
equality of mankind and denounces superstitions
and blind rituals. Sikhism is open to all through the
teachings of its 10 Gurus enshrined in the Sikh Holy
Book, Sri Guru Granth Sahib.

6. Demographics of Punjab
• Area: 50,362 sq Km
• Capital: Chandigarh
• Language: Punjabi
• Districts: 17
• Population : 20,281,969
• Males : 10,695,136
• Females : 9,495,659
• Literacy : 57.14%

7. Location
• Punjab is in Northern India and east side of
Pakistan. It has a long history and rich cultural
heritage.
• Punjab is said to have derived its name from the
five rivers that flow through it. The Indus, Ravi,
Beas, Sutlej and Ghaggar rivers. Pung means
five and aab means water so Punjab means five
waters.
• The people of Punjab are called Punjabis and
speak the language called Punjabi.

8. Places of Interest in Punjab
• Amritsar-Sacred city of the Sikhs, The Golden
Temple, Gardens, Fort, Museums.
• Taran Taran-Sikh Shrine.
• Dera Baba Nanak/Govindwal/Kiratpur-
Sikh pilgrim center.
• Pathankot-Gateway to Jammu and Kashmir
and the Valleys of Himachal.
• Patiala- Palace and Museum, National
Institute of Sports.
• Major Towns- Chandigarh, Amritsar, Patiala,
Ludhiana, Jalandhar.

9. The people of this state are very hospitable,
enterprising and industrious. Today, this is one
of the most developed states in India. The
contribution of Punjab in the field of "green
revolution", industrial development, sports and
armed forces has been unique and unparalleled.
Punjab is dotted with places of historical and
cultural interest.
This land is inhabited by the brave people who
fought battles with invaders for centuries, and is
very aptly called "Sher-e-Punjab" or the land of
lions.
People

10. Place of worship
•The Sikh place of worship is
called a gurdwara, which
means house of God.
Wherever Sikhs go, they build
a gurdwara as a place to
worship and meet each other.
•Sri Harimandir Sahib,
commonly referred to as the
"Golden Temple," is the
world's most famous
gurdwara.

11. Sikhs Articles of
Faith•Sikhs have a way to show their commitment to their religion:
they wear five articles of faith, called kakkars or "5 K's." Many
Sikhs who have not taken amrit (similar to baptism) do not
keep all five. Almost all Sikhs wear the kara, or silver bangle.
•These are the 5 K's:
•Kachhera: The kachhera, a cotton undergarment, reminds
sikhs of their modesty
•Kanga: The kanga, a small wooden comb, represents
claenliness and taking care of yourselves
•Kara: The kara, a steel bangle, is worn on the wrist. Since we
use our hands for almost everything we do, the bracelet is a
constant reminder of good deeds.
•Kesh: The kes, long uncut hair, has become the most visible
way to identify Sikhs. Sikhs do not cut their hair in order to
maintain the way their bodies were given to them. Most men
and some women wrap their long hair in a turban. Almost all
people you see wearing turbans in the United States are Sikhs.
•Kirpan: The kirpan, a small religious sword, represents a
commitment to justice.

13. FoodImagine a table of steel plates and
saucers full of rich spicy dishes –
vegetables and meats and yogurts and
breads. Punjabi main dishes use rich
masalas, or spices, cooked with ghee,
or butter. Punjabis cook vegetables,
meat and lentils in the spices and
serve them with rice or a flatbread
called roti, similar to tortillas. To help
ease the spices, they serve a side dish
of yogurt or a glass of buttermilk.
Punjabis usually drink hot milky chai,
or tea, with every meal.

14. Clothing
•Punjabi Girls. Punjabi girls
traditionally wear salwar kameez
with bright colored chunnis. The
salwar kameez has two pieces: the
kameez, or long shirt, and salwar, or
pants. A chunni is a long colorful
cloth that women wear around their
necks. Some clothes are simple and
made out of cotton, and some are
elaborate made out of silk. Though
some women wear turbans, most
use a long thin scarf to cover their
heads.

15. Clothing
•Punjabi Boys. Punjabi men and
boys wear loose pants or slacks
with a collared shirt or t-shirt.
Some also wear a kurta pajama,
a shirt and pant outfit which is
very popular amongst Punjabi
farmers. On their heads, many
Sikh men wear turbans, called
pagris. Sikh boys wear a patka,
or a small cloth that wraps
around their head, and then
choose to wear the turban when
they get older.

16. Music and Dance
• Bhangra is a lively form of music and dance that
originated in Punjab. As many Bhangra lyrics reflect
the long and often tumultuous history of Punjab,
knowledge of Punjabi history offers important
insights into the meaning of the music. While
Bhangra began as a part of harvest festival
celebrations, it eventually became a part of such
diverse occasions as weddings and New Year
celebrations. Moreover, during the last thirty years,
Bhangra has enjoyed a surge in popularity
worldwide, both in traditional form and as a fusion
with genres such as hip-hop and reggae.

17. Bhangra

18. Fairs and Festivals

19. Baisakhi is celebrated on the 13th of April every year, marking the
new year of Punjab. In Punjab, a primarily agricultural area, this
day is especially important as it commemorates the first day of
harvest. The fields are full and beautiful with nature's bounty, all
ready to be cut and collected on this day. Traditionally, the men
and women perform Bhangra and Giddha to the pounding rhythm
of the dhol (drum).
Baisakhi

20. After the death of Guru Teg Bahadur, his son, Guru Gobind Singh became the next Guru
of the Sikhs. Guru Gobind Singh wished to instill courage and strength to sacrifice among
his fellow men. To fulfil his dream, Guru Gobind Singh called on the historic Baisakhi Day
congregation of Sikhs at Keshgarh Sahib near Anandpur on March 30, 1699.
When thousands of people assembled for Guru’s blessing, Guru Gobind Singh came out
of the tent carrying an unsheathed sword. He gave a powerful speech to infuse courage
amongst fellowmen. At the end of the speech he said that every great deed was preceded
by equally great sacrifice and demanded that anyone prepared to give his life come
forward. On the Guru’s third call, a young man offered himself. The Guru took the man
inside a tent and reappeared alone with a bloodied sword. Guru Gobind Singh asked for
another volunteer. This was repeated another four times until a total of five Sikhs had
gone into the tent with the Guru. Everyone present was worried and though that Guru
Gobind Singh has killed five Sikhs. At this point Guru presented all the five men before the
people. Every one present was surprised to see all five men alive and wearing turbans
and saffron-coloured garments.
History of Baisakhi

22. Lohri marks the end of winter, celebrated on the 13th of
January. This festival is celebrated as a harvest fair, marked with
gaiety and feasting. This festival commemorates more than the
harvest, though; it honors the spirit of Punjab. The day that follows
Lohri is an auspicious one for the Sikh community. It is the first
day of the Punjabi month called 'mangh' or 'manghi'. This is a
holy month, and it is honored with 'daan-punya' (acts of physical
and material charity). In the Sikh community, clothes worn the
night before, are given away and all the young girls receive
'punya' in the form of money.
Lohri

24. Anniversaries associated with the lives of Sikh Gurus are
referred to as Gurpurabs
Gurpurab literally means 'festival of the guru'. The Sikhs celebrate
10 Gurpurabs in a year.All Gurpurabs are considered auspicious
and important but special significance is accorded to the birth
anniversary of Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh religion. This
falls in the month of Kartik (October / November).
Gurpurabs

25. Education in Punjab
• A uniform structure of school education
the “10+2” system has been adopted.
• Minimum age for admission to class 1 in
primary school is generally 5+ years.
• The medium of instruction is Hindi, Punjabi
and English.

26. School Structures
• In Punjab there are three different types of
schools. They are all boys, all girls, or co-ed
schools.
• Depending on the families, boys and girls may
sometimes work together on projects.
• Boarding schools are also common throughout
India.

27. Teachers
• Teachers are respected a great deal in India.
• They are respected in the same way Gurus are.
• Teachers praise the kids in the same ways as here.
• Barriya means good
• Shabaash means very good.
• Bahut Acchha means very nice.

28. Punjabi language
• Punjabi is a language (what we speak). Gurmukhi is a
script (how we write Punjabi)
• In the Punjabi language, the total number of alphabets
are 40, vowels are 10,consonants are 5 and dependent
vowels (Matraas) are 10.

29. Punjabi Language
• Gurmukhi script is written from left to write, and
read from left to right.
• Paragraphs have indentions.
• Various letters/sounds in the Punjabi alphabet
have no English equivalents.
• Sentences are written with the subject first,
sentence parts in the middle, and the verb last.
• Helping verbs such as “to be” are not usually
used in Punjabi.
• There is no capitalization of words.

30. Some differences betweenEnglishand Punjabi language
In Punjabi:
• 1. We use one word for 'is' and 'are'.
• 2. One word for 'was' and 'were'.
• 3. One word for 'between‘,'among' and 'into'.
• 4. One word for 'it' and 'this'.
• 5. One word for 'down‘,'below' and 'under'.
• 6. One word for 'he' and 'she‘,or 'his' and 'her'. Gender is
identified by the verb.
• 7. One word for 'has' and 'have'. Singular or Plural are identified
by verb.
• 8. One word for 'at', 'on‘, 'above', 'up' and 'over'.
• 9. One word for 'do' and 'does'.
• 10. One word for 'will' and 'shall'.

31. Punjabi/Hindi words used in English
• Many Punjabi/Hindi words are used in English
today.
• Some words were borrowed because they
sounded different and trendy like pundit, guru,
and dharma.
• The Punjabi word khand, meaning sugar lump,
is a likely origin for the word “candy”.
• Currently the Oxford English Dictionary lists over
700 words of Indian origin.

32. Structure/Vocabulary
• Structure - Grammar of Punjabi is similar to
Hindi and Urdu with some relatively minor
differences.
• Vocabulary - Like Hindi and Urdu, Punjabi has a
substantial number of loan words from Arabic
and Persian.

33. Genders
• Punjabi Language has 2 genders - masculine
and feminine. The masculine and feminine
genders are not only decided by the sex (as for
humans or animals) but also by the size and
usage. Larger inanimate objects are denoted by
the masculine form, smaller by the feminine.
Genders of inanimate objects are denoted by
the word ending, i.e. an object ending in ‘a’ is
masculine, e.g. kamra (room), while an object
ending in ‘i’ is feminine, e.g. kursi (chair).

34. •The culture of Punjab is unique. Punjabis show a
zest for life. They are known for their hard work and
bravery. They do well in all types of work, from
farming to information technology.