Kargil district

Kargil is a district of Ladakh division in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. Kargil lies near the Line of Control facing the Pakistan-administered region of Gilgit–Baltistan to the north, the Kashmir and Jammu divisions to the west, and the Leh district of the Ladakh division to the east. Zanskar is part of Kargil district along with Suru, Wakha and Dras valleys., it is the least populous district of the 22 districts in Jammu and Kashmir. Of total population, 77% are Muslims, of which 65% follow Shia Islam. Buddhism and Hinduism represent 14.5% and 8% of the local population respectively.EtymologyThe name Kargil is said to be derived from the words Khar and rKil. Khar means castle and rKil means centre thus a place between castles as the place lay between many kingdoms. The competing theory is that Kargil has been derived from the words "Gar" and "Khil". Gar in local language mean ‘Anywhere’ and Khil means a central place where people could stay. Earlier it was called Purig. A major study of the history of Purig is included in the book Qadeem Ladakh by Kacho Sikander Khan which includes genealogy of various dynasties that ruled the region.