Swat District
Swat District, also known as the Swat Valley, was an administrative district in the Malakand Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan from 1969 to 2025. Known for its natural sites, the district was a popular tourist destination. It had a population of 2,687,384 per the 2023 national census, and was the 15th-largest district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at the time.
Swat District was centred on the Valley of Swat, usually referred to simply as Swat, which is a natural geographic region surrounding the Swat River. The valley was a major centre of early Buddhism of the ancient civilisation of Gandhara, mainly Gandharan Buddhism, with pockets of Buddhism persisting in the valley until the 16th century conquest of Swat by the Yousafzais, after which the area became largely Muslim, along with the Pashtunization of Swat and its neighbouring regions. In the early 19th century, Swat emerged as an independent state under Saidu Baba. The State of Swat became a princely state under British suzerainty as part of the British Raj in 1918.
In 1947, following the Partition of British India and subsequent independence of Pakistan, Swat acceded to the Dominion of Pakistan continuing as a self-governing princely state until it was officially annexed and merged into West Pakistan and later became a part of North-West Frontier Province in 1969. The region was seized by the Tehrik-i-Taliban in late-2007 until Pakistani control was re-established in mid-2009.
The average elevation of Swat is, resulting in a considerably cooler and wetter climate compared to the rest of Pakistan. With lush forests, verdant alpine meadows, and snow-capped mountains, Swat is one of the country's most popular tourist destinations.
In October 2025, the government divided the Swat District into two, the Upper Swat District and Swat District.
Etymology
The name "Swat" is derived from the Swat River. The Swat River referred to as the Suvāstu in the Rig Veda, with a literal meaning "of fair dwellings". Some have suggested the Sanskrit name may mean "clear blue water." Another theory derives the word Swat from the Sanskrit word shveta, also used to describe the clear water of the Swat River. To the ancient Greeks, the river was known as the Soastus. The Chinese pilgrim Faxian referred to Swat as the Su-ho-to.Geography
Swat's total area was. Swat District consists of two well-defined geographic regions, Swat Kohistan and Swat Proper. Swat Kohistan forms the larger, northern part of the district, and is mainly inhabited by the indigenousTorwali and Gawri peoples. Swat Proper forms the lower portion of the district and has a Pashtun majority, with a significant Gujar population. In terms of administrative divisions, Swat was surrounded by Chitral, Upper Dir and Lower Dir to the west, Gilgit-Baltistan to the north, and Kohistan, Buner and Shangla to the east and southeast, respectively. The former tehsil of Buner was granted the status of a separate district in 1991.The Swat Valley is enclosed by mountains that forms a natural geographic boundary for it. The Swat River whose headwaters arise in the Hindu Kush mountain range runs through the length of the region. The main area consists of many sub valleys such as Kalam, Bahrain, Matiltan, Utror, and Gabral.
Valley
The Valley of Swat is delineated by natural geographic boundaries, and is centered on the Swat River. The valley is enclosed on all sides by mountains, and is intersected by glens and ravines. Above mountains ridges to the west is the valley of the Panjkora River, to the north the Gilgit Valley, and Indus River gorges to the east. To the south, across a series of low mountains, lies the wide Peshawar valley.The northernmost area of Swat district are the high valleys and alpine meadows of Swat Kohistan , a region where numerous glaciers feed the Usho, and Gabral rivers, which form a confluence at Kalam, and thereafter forms the Swat river - which forms the spine of the Swat Valley and district. Swat then is characterized by thick forests along the narrow gorges of the Kalam Valley until the city of Madyan. From there, the river courses gently for 160 km through the wider Yousufzai Plains of the lower Swat Valley until Chakdara.
Climate
Climate in Swat is a function of altitude, with mountains in the Kohistan region snow-clad year round. The upper areas of the region are relatively colder and often get snowfall in the winter. Drier, warmer temperatures in the lower portions in the Yousafzai Plains where summer temperatures can reach, although the lower plains experience occasional snow. Both regions are subject to two monsoon seasons - one in winter and the other in summer. Swat's lower reaches have vegetation characterized by dry bush and deciduous trees, while the upper areas mostly have thick pine forests.Airport
The Saidu Sharif Airport at Kanju is a stone throw from Mingora, adding much to the tourism in the past. The runway is situated between Swat River and the Sham Baba mountainous range, with lush green gardens and large trees being added as "charm" to the climate in the area. More than 20 km2 has been covered strategically, as was proposed during the last Wali's rule and constructed later-on by the Pakistani government. The Kanju village has seen an influx of academics in the region and is considered a hub for the Matta and Kabal Tehsils of Swat Valley.History
Ancient
The Gandhara grave culture that emerged c. 1400 BCE and lasted until 800 BCE, and named for their distinct funerary practices, was found along the Middle Swat River course. Swat, then known as Oddiyana, was a major centre of Gandhara civilization. The Gandhāra Kingdom, which emerged as an independent entity around 700 BCE, was recognized as a Mahajanapadas. Following the Achaemenid conquest of the Indus Valley, the region was incorporated as the satrapy of Gandāra. In 327 BCE, Alexander the Great fought his way to Odigram and Barikot and stormed their battlements; in Greek accounts, these towns are identified as Ora and Bazira. After the Alexandrian invasion of Swat, and adjacent regions of Buner, control of the wider Gandhara region was handedclaimed by Seleucus I Nicator.File:Statue of a Buddha seated on a lotus throne in Swat Valley.jpg|thumb|upright|1896 photo of a Buddha statue seated on a lotus throne in Swat
In 305 BCE, the Mauryan Emperor conquered the wider region from the Greeks, and probably established control of Swat, until their control of the region ceased around 187 BCE. It was during the rule of the Mauryan emperor Ashoka that Buddhism was introduced into Swat, and some of the earliest stupas built in the region. Following collapse of Mauryan rule, Swat came under control of the Greco-Bactrians, then the Scythians of the Central Asian Steppe.
The region of Gandhara, broke away from Greco-Bactrian rule to establish their own independence as the Indo-Greek Kingdom. Following the death of the most famous Indo-Greek king, Menander I around 140 BCE, the region was overrun by the Indo-Scythians, and then the Persian Parthian Empire around 50 CE. The arrival of the Parthians began the long tradition of Greco-Buddhist art.
The Parthians were ousted from Swat by the Kushans, based in the Peshawar valley. Kushan rule began what is considered by many to be the golden age of Gandhara. Under the greatest Kushan king, Kanishka, Swat became an important region for the production of Buddhist art, and numerous Buddhists shrines were built in the area. As a patron of Mahayana Buddhism, new Buddhists stupas were built and old ones were enlarged. The Chinese pilgrim Fa-Hsien, who visited the valley around 403 CE, mentions 500 monasteries.
Medieval
Swat and the wider region of Gandhara were overrun by the Alchon Huns around about 465 CE. Under the rule of Mihirakula, Buddhism was suppressed as he himself became virulently anti-Buddhist after a perceived slight against him by a Buddhist monk. Under his rule, Buddhist monks were reportedly killed, and Buddhist shrines attacked. He himself appears to have been inclined towards the Shaivism sect of Hinduism.In around 520 CE, the Chinese monk Song Yun visited the area, and recorded that area had been in ruin and ruled by a leader that did not practice the laws of the Buddha. The Tang-era Chinese monk Xuanzang recorded the decline of Buddhism in the region, and ascendance of Hinduism in the region. According to him, of the 1400 monasteries that had supposedly been there, most were in ruins or had been abandoned.
Following the collapse of Buddhism in Swat following the Alchon Hun invasion, Swat was ruled by the Hindu Shahi dynasty beginning in the 8th century, who made their capital at Udigram in lower Swat. The Hindu Shahis are believed to belong to the Uḍi/Oḍi tribe, namely the people of Oddiyana, present-day Swat.
The Shahis built an extensive array of temples and other architectural buildings, of which ruins remain today. Under their rule, Hinduism ascended, and Sanskrit is believed to have been the lingua franca of the locals during this time. By the time of the Muslim conquests, the population in the region was predominantly Hindu, though Buddhism persisting in the valley until the 10th century, after which the area became largely Muslim. Hindu Shahi rulers built fortresses to guard and tax the commerce through this area, and ruins dating back to their rule can be seen on the hills at the southern entrance of Swat, at the Malakand Pass.
File:Mehmood Ghaznavi Masjid.jpg|thumb|The Mahmud Ghaznavi Mosque was built in the former Hindu Shahi capital of Odigram shortly after their defeat, and dates to 1048–49 CE.
Around 1001 CE, the last Hindu Shahi king, Jayapala was decisively defeated at the Battle of Peshawar by Mahmud of Ghazni, thereby ending 2 centuries of Hindu rule over Gandhara. The Sultanate of Swat was the last Dardic state that existed in the Swat valley between 12th and 16th centuries. It was conquered by the Yousafzai Pashtuns from west during the reign of Sultan Awes Jahangiri in 1519, resulting into the Pashtunization of Swat.