Kotli District

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Kotli (Urdu: کوٹلی) is a district of Azad Kashmir, which is the Pakistani-administered part of the former princely state of Indian Occupied Kashmir. Kotli the chief town of the district[1], was originally a minor town between Mirpur and Muzaffarabad, but has recently seen major growth.

[change] Etymology

There are two theories about the origin of the name "Kotli". One school of thought claims that in ancient times Prince Raja Shahswar Khan built a small residence here and called it "Kot", which became "Kotli". Another theory states that the name is derived from the Sanskrit word Kotli which means to reside or take up residence. (The two theories are not, of course, mutually exclusive.) At one stage the area was inhabited by the Mangran and Solhan peoples, and was called Kotli Solwhan.

[change] Administration

The area now comprising district Kotli was a sub-division of Mirpur District up to the year 1975. Prior to 1947, it was a part of the Jammu area. The district is bounded by the Indian-Held disputed territory of Indian Occupied Kashmir in the east, and by Mirpur District in the south and Rawalakot to its north. The district is divided into three tehsils (sub-divisions)

• Kotli
• Nakyal
• Sehnsa

The district covers a total area of 1862 square kilometres. Kotli is now the largest city by population (656,000).

Before the division of Kashmir in 1947, Nakyal was part of Mehndar sub-division of Poonch.