PESHAWUR, or PESHAWER, a province of British India, in the Punjab, occupying the extreme N.W. corner of the empire. It lies between N. Lat. 33. 42. and 34. 30., E. Long. 71. 35. and 72. 42., and is bounded on the N.W. and S. by the Khyber, Mohmund, Swat, and Khuttuk hills, and on the E. by the Indus. Its length is 65 miles, breadth 50, area about 2324 square miles. Besides the Indus, it is watered by the Kabool river, which joins the Indus near Attock, and by the Swat, the Bara, and other affluents of the Kabool. The water of these rivers is used for irrigation, being conducted to the fields by numerous canals and small channels, from which it is raised by levers or Persian wheels. The country is very fertile, and this abundant supply of water renders it verdant at all seasons of the year. Two crops are raised annually; the principal produce being wheat, barley, maize, millet, and especially rice, which it produces in greater excellence than any other country in the world, and which is known by the name of Bara rice, from the river on whose banks it is grown. Vegetables, such as carrots, turnips, cabbages, onions, and others, are likewise raised; and an important part of the produce consists of what is called paulaiz, comprising melons and cucumbers of various kinds, pumpkins, and gourds. The castor-oil plant, the sugar-cane, ginger, tobacco, and cotton are among the other plants cultivated. Agriculture is well advanced; the plough has superseded the spade; and oxen are employed in treading out the corn, and in other labours. Plums, figs, peaches, pomegranates, and quinces are among the principal fruits that the country produces. The climate during the summer is extremely hot, though the occasional breezes from the mountains mitigate its sultriness. The province of Peshawur is traversed by the great route from Khorasan and Kabool to India, which crosses the mountainous
Peshawur tains by the Khyber pass; and there is also a grand trunk road which crosses the country, connecting the town of Peshawur with Lahore, along which the army of the Punjab is stationed. Forming part of the Punjab, Peshawur came into the possession of the British along with that country. Pop. 450,099.