Kashmiris

a people, the principal population of the state of Jammu and Kashmir in India. The Kashmiris live mainly in the Vale of Kashmir, along the Jhelum River. They number about 2.5 million (1970, estimate); their language is Kashmiri. The influence of Urdu, Hindi, and Punjabi is strong in the cities. More than 90 percent of the Kashmiris are Muslims; the rest are Hindus.

The Kashmiris have a diversified agricultural economy: they cultivate grains (rice, maize, and wheat), vegetables and melons (muskmelon, watermelon, and squash), and fruits (apricots and mulberries); they engage in beekeeping, silkworm breeding, and, in the mountains, pastoral livestock raising (goats and sheep). Handicrafts are highly developed: the production of fine woolen fabrics (cashmere) and cashmere shawls made of goat down, painted lacquerware made of wood and papier-mâché, and artistic woodcarving and metalworking. A small number of Kashmiris are employed in industry.