Hat there were different causes for the high prevalence of consanguinity in the two societies: in Tunisia, consanguinity was prevalent because of cultural factors while, in Croatia, it occurred because of very GW9662 site limited mate choice on isolated and remote island communities. It was concluded that the association between consanguinity and educational level and socioeconomic status needs to be taken into account in inbreeding studies in human populations, and the relationship will often be highly specific for each studied population and strongly dependent on the cultural context (11). In Pakistan, several studies on consanguinity and inbreeding coefficient F (ICF) have been conducted on the populations of upper Punjab (15-17). These studies have shown that CU accounted for 38-59 of the total marriages, and first-cousin marriages were the most common type of marital unions. Generally, CU was observed to be associated withrural status, early age at marriage, and low socioeconomic and educational levels. The comparative accounts of consanguinity levels in the Pakistani populations have been presented by Shami et al. and Hussain and Bittles (18-19). There is, however, a paucity of knowledge for other northern populations, like Kashmiris, which not only share cultural and social traditions with upper Punjab and Potohar regions of Pakistan but also have strong linguistic and historic affinities with the later. Kashmir is strategically, politically, and BAY 11-7085 structure culturally a very important region of Pakistan. This lack of knowledge is intriguing also because there are several published reports depicting an exceptionally high prevalence of CU in the Kashmiri families immigrated to Europe, including the UK (20). Hence, the primary aim of the present study was to explore the types of marital unions and to estimate consanguinity in people of various sociodemographic strata in Bhimber district, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan, which represents Kashmiri population.MATERIALS AND METHODS Study populationBhimber district (32.58 , 74.04 ) of Mirpur division is among the eight districts located at the southernmost part of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Pakistan (Figure 1). Being a historical corri-Figure 1. Map of Bhimber district (A) superimposed on map of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (B) and Pakistan (C). Sampling sites (n=24) in three tehsils, namely Bhimber, Samahni, and Barnala are shown with dots (rural areas) and circles (r=rural, u=urban or p=peri-urban area)JHPNConsanguinity in Bhimber, Azad Kashmir, PakistanJabeen N and Malik Sdor to the north, it is regarded as a “door to Kashmir” (21). It is bordered by Sialkot and Gujrat districts in the south, Mirpur and Jhelum in the west, Kotli in the north, and Indian Kashmir in the east. On the administrative grounds, it was declared a separate district in 1995 and now comprises three tehsilsBarnala, Bhimber, and Samahni)and 19 union councils18 rural, 1 urban. Population of the district comprises 0.401 million individuals (2009 projections), with an annual growth rate of 2.6 . Extended family structure is common, with an average household-size of 6.7. The primary languages are Punjabi and Pahari (22,23). Pahari is mainly spoken in Samahni tehsil which is located in the northeast of Bhimber and comprises the local tribes of Kashmir. Pahari is a native language of Jammu and Kashmir whereas Punjabi is considered the language of the people who got settled here from adjoining areas in different periods. The topography ranges f.Hat there were different causes for the high prevalence of consanguinity in the two societies: in Tunisia, consanguinity was prevalent because of cultural factors while, in Croatia, it occurred because of very limited mate choice on isolated and remote island communities. It was concluded that the association between consanguinity and educational level and socioeconomic status needs to be taken into account in inbreeding studies in human populations, and the relationship will often be highly specific for each studied population and strongly dependent on the cultural context (11). In Pakistan, several studies on consanguinity and inbreeding coefficient F (ICF) have been conducted on the populations of upper Punjab (15-17). These studies have shown that CU accounted for 38-59 of the total marriages, and first-cousin marriages were the most common type of marital unions. Generally, CU was observed to be associated withrural status, early age at marriage, and low socioeconomic and educational levels. The comparative accounts of consanguinity levels in the Pakistani populations have been presented by Shami et al. and Hussain and Bittles (18-19). There is, however, a paucity of knowledge for other northern populations, like Kashmiris, which not only share cultural and social traditions with upper Punjab and Potohar regions of Pakistan but also have strong linguistic and historic affinities with the later. Kashmir is strategically, politically, and culturally a very important region of Pakistan. This lack of knowledge is intriguing also because there are several published reports depicting an exceptionally high prevalence of CU in the Kashmiri families immigrated to Europe, including the UK (20). Hence, the primary aim of the present study was to explore the types of marital unions and to estimate consanguinity in people of various sociodemographic strata in Bhimber district, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan, which represents Kashmiri population.MATERIALS AND METHODS Study populationBhimber district (32.58 , 74.04 ) of Mirpur division is among the eight districts located at the southernmost part of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Pakistan (Figure 1). Being a historical corri-Figure 1. Map of Bhimber district (A) superimposed on map of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (B) and Pakistan (C). Sampling sites (n=24) in three tehsils, namely Bhimber, Samahni, and Barnala are shown with dots (rural areas) and circles (r=rural, u=urban or p=peri-urban area)JHPNConsanguinity in Bhimber, Azad Kashmir, PakistanJabeen N and Malik Sdor to the north, it is regarded as a “door to Kashmir” (21). It is bordered by Sialkot and Gujrat districts in the south, Mirpur and Jhelum in the west, Kotli in the north, and Indian Kashmir in the east. On the administrative grounds, it was declared a separate district in 1995 and now comprises three tehsilsBarnala, Bhimber, and Samahni)and 19 union councils18 rural, 1 urban. Population of the district comprises 0.401 million individuals (2009 projections), with an annual growth rate of 2.6 . Extended family structure is common, with an average household-size of 6.7. The primary languages are Punjabi and Pahari (22,23). Pahari is mainly spoken in Samahni tehsil which is located in the northeast of Bhimber and comprises the local tribes of Kashmir. Pahari is a native language of Jammu and Kashmir whereas Punjabi is considered the language of the people who got settled here from adjoining areas in different periods. The topography ranges f.
