THATTA

also Tatta town, Sindh province, Pakistan, just west of the Indus River, inland from Karachi and the Arabian Sea coast. During the 16th century it was the capital of the Samma dynasty in Lower Sindh. Incorporated as a municipality in 1854, it has two mosques (notably Jama Mosque , built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan), historic tombs, and a library. Nearby Makli Hills is a vast necropolis containing thousands of graves. Cotton and silk lungis (sarongs) are its chief products. The surrounding region includes the barren and rocky Kohistan area and the swampy deltaic land of the Indus. Sugarcane is the chief crop; camel breeding is significant. Nearby excavations reveal occupations dating from the 1st century BC. Pop. (1981) 21,524.