Sindhis

Sindhis (Sindhi: سنڌي‎ (Perso-Arabic), सिन्धी (Devanagari), (Khudabadi)) are a Sindhi-speaking ethnic group native to the Sindh province of Pakistan.

Sindhi culture is highly influenced by Sufi doctrines and principles. Some of the popular cultural icons are Raja Dahir, Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai, Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, Jhulelal, Sachal Sarmast and Shambumal Tulsiani.

After independence of Pakistan in 1947, most Hindu and Sikh Sindhis migrated to India and other parts of the world, though, in 1998, Hindus constituted about 6% of the Sindhi population in Pakistan. Sindhi Hindus believe in tenets of Sikhism but are predominantly Sahajdhari. As a result, this group can be regarded as concurrently following Hinduism and Sikhism. Most of them live in urban areas like Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, and Mirpur Khas. Hyderabad is the largest centre of Sindhi Hindus in Pakistan with 100,000-150,000 people.

Sindhi is spoken in India, especially in the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra. It is spoken in Ulhasnagar, near Mumbai, which is the largest Sindhi Hindu dominant region in India. Sindhi is also spoken as a minority language in other countries where communities of Sindhis can be found.