Peshawar is the capital of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It is the largest city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa; and according to the 1998 census was the ninth-largest city of Pakistan. Peshawar is a metropolitan city and the administrative centre and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan.

Peshawar is situated in a large valley near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass; close to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar is irrigated by various canals of the Kabul River and by its right tributary; the Bara River.

Peshawar's recorded history dates back to at least 539 BCE; making it the oldest city in Pakistan and one of the oldest in South Asia.