Lower Chitral District

At the time of the 2017 census the district had 38,337 households and a population of 278,328. Lower Chitral had a sex ratio of 937 females per 1000 males and a literacy rate of 63.00% - 75.71% for males and 49.37% for females. 49,780 (17.89%) lived in urban areas. 27.10% of the population was under 10 years of age. 3,902 (1.40%) were from religious minorities, almost all of whom are followers of the indigenous animistic Kalash faith that was once the dominant faith in the district before the spread of Islam.[1]

89.48% of the population spoke languages recorded as 'Other' on the census. Most of these spoke Khowar (or Chitrali), the dominant language of Chitral as a whole. A minority spoke Chitral Kalasha and Wakhi, with the Kalasha dominating several valleys and the Wakhis spread throughout the north of the district near the Afghan border. Pashto is spoken in the southeast of the district by 9.11% of the population.[1] There are some speakers of the Madaklasht dialect, a Persian dialect which is considered similar to the Dari (Tajik) dialect spoken in Badakhshan.[4]

1. Chitral Tehsil
2. Drosh Tehsil