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The settlement was established in 1892 during the colonisation of the lower Chenab Valley. It was named in honour of the then Lieutenant-Governor of the Punjab, Sir James Lyall, for his role in establishing the canal colonisation project.[15][16] The surname Lyall was joined with the noun pur, meaning 'city' in Sanskrit.[17]

On 1 September 1977, the Government of Pakistan changed the name of the city from Lyallpur to Faisalabad ('City of Faisal') in honour of King Faisal of Saudi Arabia, who made several financial contributions to Pakistan.[18][19][20]

Early settlements
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The region encompassing modern day Faisalabad district was originally inhabited by a number of forest-dwelling tribes.[15] It is believed these early settlements belonged to the ancient districts of Jhang and Sandalbar, and included the area between Shahdara to Shorekot and Sangla Hill to Toba Tek Singh.[21] The shrine of Baba Noor Shah Wali was erected in the area in the 1600s.[22]

Development
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At the conclusion of the Second Anglo-Sikh War in 1849, the entire Punjab region became administered as Punjab province, firstly by the East India Company and after 1858 as part of the British Raj.[23][24]

In the 1880s the Punjab government began an irrigation scheme to cultivate large tracts of western Punjab through the creation of canal colonies.[25] The Chenab colony was the largest of these colonisation projects, and covered the entirety of present day Faisalabad district. Popham Young, the Colonisation Officer managing the project identified the site of the current city to establish headquarters for the colony.[15][26]

Young designed the settlement's centre to replicate the design in the Union Jack with eight roads extending from a large clock tower at its epicentre;[27] a design geometrically symbolic of the Cross of Saint Andrew counterchanged with the Cross of Saint Patrick, and Saint George's Cross over all.[28] The eight roads developed into eight separate bazaars (markets) leading to different regions of the Punjab.[16][29] In 1892, the newly constructed town with its growing agricultural surplus was added to the British rail network.[30] Construction of the rail link between Wazirabad and Lyallpur was completed in 1895.[27] In 1896, Gujranwala, Jhang and Sahiwal comprising the Tehsils of Lyallpur were under the administrative control of the Jhang District.[31] The town became one of the first planned settlements within British India.[13]

In 1904, the new district of Lyallpur was created to include the tehsils of Samundri and Toba Tek Singh with a sub-tehsil at Jaranwala, which later became a full tehsil in itself.[32] The University of Agriculture, originally the Punjab Agricultural College and Research Institute, Lyallpur, was established in 1906.[14] The Town Committee was upgraded to a Municipal Committee in 1909. Lyallpur grew into an established agricultural tool and grain centre.[33] By 1911 the city had a population of 19,578.[15] The 1930s brought industrial growth and market expansion to the textile industry as well as to food processing, grain crushing and chemicals.