Pakistan

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Islamic Republic of Pakistan اسلامی جمہوریہ پاکستان Islāmī Jomhuri-ye Pākistān
Flag State Emblem
Motto: اتحاد، تنظيم، يقين محکم Ittehad, Tanzim, Yaqeen-e-Muhkam (Urdu) "Unity, Discipline and Faith"
Anthem: "Qaumi Tarana"
Capital		Islamabad 33°40′N 73°10′E / 33.667°N 73.167°E / 33.667; 73.167
Largest city		Karachi
Official languages		English and Urdu
Other languages		Punjabi, Pashto, Sindhi, Seraiki, Balochi and others
Demonym		Pakistani
Government		Semi-presidential federal democratic republic
-	President	Asif Ali Zardari (PPP)
-	Prime Minister	Yousaf Raza Gillani (PPP)
-	Chair of Senate	Farooq Hamid Naek (PPP)
-	House Speaker	Fahmida Mirza (PPP)
-	Chief Justice	Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry
Formation
-	Independence	from the British Empire
-	Declared	14 August 1947
-	Islamic republic	23 March 1956
Area
-	Total	803,940 km2 (36th) 340,403 sq mi
-	Water (%)	3.1
Population
-	2008 estimate	172,900,000[1] (6th)
-	1998 census	132,352,279[2]
-	Density	206/km2 (55th) 534/sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2008 estimate
-	Total	$439.558 billion[3]
-	Per capita	$2,738[3]
GDP (nominal)		2008 estimate
-	Total	$167.640 billion[3]
-	Per capita	$1,044[3]
Gini (2002)		30.6 (medium)
HDI (2008)		▲ 0.562 (medium) (139th[4])
Currency		Pakistani Rupee (Rs.) (PKR)
Time zone		PST (UTC+5)
-	Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC+6)
Drives on the		left
Internet TLD		.pk
Calling code		92

Pakistan (Urdu: پاکستان Pākistān pronunciation (help·info)), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia.^[5][6] It has a 1,046 kilometre (650 mile) coastline along the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman in the south, and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, the Republic of India in the east and the People's Republic of China in the far northeast.^[7] Tajikistan also lies adjacent to Pakistan but is separated by the narrow Wakhan Corridor. In recent times, Pakistan has been called part of the New Middle East.^[8]

The region forming modern Pakistan was home to the ancient Indian Indus Valley Civilisation and then, successively, recipient of ancient Vedic, Persian, Turco-Mongol, Indo-Greek and Islamic cultures. The area has witnessed invasions and/or settlement by the Aryans, Persians, Greeks, Arabs, Turks, Afghans, Mongols, Sikhs and the British.^[9] It was a part of India during the British Raj from 1858 to 1947, until the Indian independence movement led by Mahatma Gandhi. When the Pakistan Movement for a state for Muslims, led by Muhammad Ali Jinnah and the Muslim League resulted in the independence and creation of the Islamic state of Pakistan, that comprised the provinces of Sindh, North-West Frontier Province, West Punjab, Balochistan and East Bengal. With the adoption of its constitution in 1956, Pakistan became an Islamic republic. In 1971, a civil war in East Pakistan resulted in intervention from India and the subsequent independence of Bangladesh. Pakistan's history has been characterized by periods of military rule and political instability.

Pakistan is the sixth most populous country in the world and has the second largest Muslim population in the world after Indonesia. The country is listed among the Next Eleven economies, is a founding member of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, G20 developing nations, Asia Cooperation Dialogue and the Economic Cooperation Organisation. It is also a member of the United Nations, Commonwealth of Nations, World Trade Organisation, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, G33 developing countries, Group of 77 developing nations, major non-NATO ally of the United States and is a nuclear state.