Pakistan’s Buddhist heritage city Taxila declared one of the oldest in the world

Taxila, a Pakistani city with historic Buddhist sites, is declared one of the oldest cities in the world, the Pakistani mission said.   

According to the Pakistani High Commission in Colombo, there are a number of world heritage sites present in Pakistan and Taxila is one of them. It is a city situated 31 km to the west of Islamabad and 36.40 km to the northwest of Rawalpindi off the Grand Trunk Road. Its other close neighbouring cities include Hassanabdal, Khanpur and Wah. Wah Cantt and Taxila are twin cities. It is a city with a population of 151,000 people according to the 1998 census.

 “Taxila is among the seven tehsils of Rawalpindi district. It is a city spread in the periphery of the Potohar plateau of Punjab. Taxila was historically known as Takshashila and is a city that dates back to 5 century BCE. The recorded history of Taxila starts from 6th century BC, when this Gandharan kingdom became part of the Achaemenid Empire of Persia.    An overall Punjabi culture prevails in the city with people understanding both English and Urdu languages but speak Punjabi the language with a different dialect native to the region. The dressing and food in the city are heavily influenced by those in the Punjab province as a whole and the one factor that helps in distinguishing this city from the rest of the cities in Pakistan is not its food, it’s not its native clothing nor its language but its history. The culture of Taxila as a city is heavily influenced by the city’s strong historical background,” the statement said.