Swat is a valley and an administrative district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. Swat is famous for its marvelous natural beauty. Saidu Sharif is capital of Swat Valley, while the largest city and main commercial centre is the nearby city of Mingora with a population of 2,309,570 according to the 2017 census. Swat is the third-largest district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The region is settled mainly by Pashtun people apart from in the valley’s topmost reaches, where the Kohistani people dominate. Swat’s average elevation is 980 m (3,220 ft) and considerably cooler climate as compared to most of Pakistan. With lush forests, grassy alpine meadows, and snow-capped mountains, Swat is one of the country’s most popular tourist destinations.
Swat was a main centre of early Buddhist thought as part of the Gandhara kingdom and today is besieged with ruins from that era. Swat was home to the last remote pockets of Gandharan Buddhism, which lasted until the 11th century, well after most of the area had converted to Islam. Until 1969, Swat was part of the Yousafzai State of Swat, a self-governing princely state.
