# Demographics of Lahore

This article deals with topics related to the demographics of the city of Lahore, in Punjab, Pakistan.

## Urban demographics

According to estimates, Lahore had a population of more than 400,000 in 1700, when it was a first tier imperial city of the Mughal Empire. It didn't reached that level again till 1931. According to the 1998 census, Lahore's population was 6,318,745. Mid-2006 government estimates put the population at somewhere around 10 million, which makes it the second largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi. It is considered to be one of the 30 largest cities of the world. The results of the 2017 Census determined the population of Lahore to be 11,126,285, with an annual growth rate of 4.07% since 1998. Gender-wise, 52.35% of the population are male, 47.64% are female, and 0.01% are transgender. Lahore is a demographically young city, with over 40% of its inhabitants below the age of 15.

## Religion

Religious groups in Lahore City (1881−2017) :
| Religious group | 1881$^{:520}$ | 1881$^{:520}$ | 1891$^{:68}$ | 1891$^{:68}$ | 1901$^{:44}$ | 1901$^{:44}$ | 1911$^{:20}$ | 1911$^{:20}$ | 1921$^{:23}$ | 1921$^{:23}$ | 1931$^{:26}$ | 1931$^{:26}$ | 1941$^{:32}$ | 1941$^{:32}$ | 2017 | 2017 |
| Religious group | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % |
| Islam | 86,413 | 57.85% | 102,280 | 57.83% | 119,601 | 58.93% | 129,801 | 56.76% | 149,044 | 52.89% | 249,315 | 58.01% | 433,170 | 64.49% | 10,530,816 | 94.7% |
| Hinduism | 53,641 | 35.91% | 62,077 | 35.1% | 70,196 | 34.59% | 77,267 | 33.79% | 107,783 | 38.25% | 139,125 | 32.37% | 179,422 | 26.71% | 2,670 | 0.02% |
| Sikhism | 4,627 | 3.1% | 7,306 | 4.13% | 7,023 | 3.46% | 12,877 | 5.63% | 12,833 | 4.55% | 23,477 | 5.46% | 34,021 | 5.07% | — | — |
| Christianity | 529 | 0.35% | 4,697 | 2.66% | 5,558 | 2.74% | 8,436 | 3.69% | 11,287 | 4.01% | 16,875 | 3.93% | 21,495 | 3.2% | 571,365 | 5.14% |
| Jainism | 227 | 0.15% | 339 | 0.19% | 420 | 0.21% | 467 | 0.2% | 474 | 0.17% | 791 | 0.18% | 1,094 | 0.16% | — | — |
| Zoroastrianism | — | — | 132 | 0.07% | 166 | 0.08% | 198 | 0.09% | 177 | 0.06% | 150 | 0.03% | — | — | — | — |
| Judaism | — | — | 14 | 0.01% | — | — | 13 | 0.01% | 13 | 0% | 0 | 0% | — | — | — | — |
| Buddhism | — | — | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 128 | 0.06% | 170 | 0.06% | 14 | 0% | — | — | — | — |
| Ahmadiyya | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 13,433 | 0.12% |
| Others | 3,932 | 2.63% | 9 | 0.01% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 2,457 | 0.37% | 1,701 | 0.02% |
| Total population | 149,369 | 100% | 176,854 | 100% | 202,964 | 100% | 228,687 | 100% | 281,781 | 100% | 429,747 | 100% | 671,659 | 100% | 11,119,985 | 100% |

## Language

Languages by number of speakers in the Lahore district
Punjabi is the native language of the province and is the most widely spoken language in Lahore. Punjabi is the primary means of communication in both the city and adjoining rural areas. Punjabi has no official status in Lahore and some Punjabi activists have raised demands for recognition of Punjabi. English has become increasingly popular with educated and younger people due to its official status in government and preferred language status for business. Many Punjabi speakers in Lahore are known as Majha Dialect Of Punjabi. According to the 1998 census, 86.2% or 6,896,000 of the population are Punjabis; 10.2% or 816,000 are Urdu speakers and the Seraikis, at 0.4%, number about 32,000.