ltän`), city (1998 pop. 1,182,441), E central Pakistan, in the Punjab, near the Chenab River. It is an important road and rail junction, an agricultural center, and a market for textiles, leather goods, and other products. The city's industries include metalworking, flour, sugar, and oil milling, and the manufacture of textiles, fertilizer, soap, and glass. Multan is also known for its handicrafts, especially pottery and enamel work. One of the Indian subcontinent's oldest cities, Multan derives its name from an idol in the temple of the sun god, a shrine of the pre-Muslim period. The city was conquered (c.326 B.C.) by Alexander the Great Alexander the Great or Alexander III, 356–323 B.C., king of Macedon, conqueror of much of Asia.
Youth and Kingship..... Click the link for more information. , visited (A.D. 641) by the Chinese Buddhist scholar Hsüan-tsang, taken (8th cent.) by the Arabs, and captured by Muslim Turkish conqueror Mahmud of Ghazna Mahmud of Ghazna , 971?–1030, Afghan emperor and conqueror. He defeated (c.999) his elder brother to gain control of Khorasan (in Iran) and of Afghanistan.
..... Click the link for more information. in 1005 and by Timur Timur or Tamerlane , c.1336–1405, Mongol conqueror, b. Kesh, near Samarkand. He is also called Timur Leng [Timur the lame]. He was the son of a tribal leader, and he claimed (apparently for the first time in 1370) to be a descendant of
..... Click the link for more information. in 1398. In the 16th and 17th cent., Multan enjoyed peace under the early Mughal emperors. In 1818 the city was seized by Ranjit Singh, leader of the Sikhs. The British held it from 1848 until Pakistan achieved independence in 1947. Landmarks include an old fort containing the 14th-century tombs of two Muslim saints.
Multan
City (pop., 2005 est.: urban agglom., 1,452,000), east-central Pakistan, near the Chenab River. An ancient city, it was taken by Alexander the Great in 326 BC. It fell to the Muslims c. AD 712. For three centuries it remained the outpost of Islam in what was then India. It was subject to the Delhi sultanate and the Mughal Empire and was captured by the Afghans (1779) and the Sikhs (1818) before being subjugated by the British (1849–1947). Multan is a commercial and industrial centre, with textile mills, glass factories, and cottage industries, including pottery and camelskin work. It is the site of many Muslim shrines and an ancient Hindu temple.
Multan
Multan
a city in Pakistan in Punjab Province, near the Chenab River. Population, 678,000 (1971). Important economic center and transportation junction. Multan has a large textile industry (primarily cotton), as well as enterprises of the chemical, glass, and food industries. The city has a pipeline to gas deposits in Sui.
Multan is an old handicrafts center: glazed tiles and ceramics, rugs, and leather items are made there. Noteworthy architectural monuments include the brick mausoleums of Sheikh Yusuf Gardez (1150–52), Bahawal Haq (second half of the 13th century), Shams-e Tabriz (rebuilt 1780), and Rukn-i Alam (1320–24).
Multan probably came into being in the middle of the first millennium B.C. as a center for the Malli tribe. It was conquered by Alexander the Great in 326 B.C., and by the Arabs in A.D. 713. In the eighth century it became the center of a Muslim principality, and in the tenth century, of the theocratic state of the Karmathians. In the 11th century, Multan was seized by Mahmud of Ghazna, who took reprisals against the Karmathians. In the 12th century the city was included in the Ghorid state. It joined the Delhi sultanate in 1228 and was seized by Tamerlane in 1398. Having been conquered by Baber in 1527, Multan was part of the Mongolian empire until 1752. In 1818 it became part of the Sikh state. The city was captured by British colonialists in 1849 during their annexation of Punjab. After the partition of India in 1947, Multan was incorporated into Pakistan.
How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content.
| ?Page tools | ||
|---|---|---|
|