Faisalabad was a small town founded only to act as an agricultural market / mandi. Now it has grown as a metropolitan city which enjoys third position in the country as far as population and industrial growth is concerned. The Faisalabad district came into existence in 1904 named as Lyallpur back then which was a Tehsil of Jhang district earlier. During the later part of the 19th century, the Government of India initiated a great system of artificial irrigation through construction of canals.
The area of Faisalabad district was part of three districts i.e. Gujranwala, Jhang and Sahiwal. This area was located between river Ravi and river Chenab and formed part of Rachna Doab. It was named Lyallpur to pay tribute to Sir James Lyall, Lt. Governor of Punjab, for his services rendered in colonization of the lower Chenab valley.
The design of the town was prepared by a colonization officer Captain Pophan Young C.I.E. in 1896. Lyallpur tehsil is comprised of Gujranwala, Jhang and Sahiwal and was given under the administrative control of district Jhang:
| Founding Year (Lyallpur) | 1897 |
| District Status | 1904 |
| Divisional Status | 1982 |
| District Government Status | 2001 |
| CDGF Status | 2005 |
| Restoration of Divisional Status | 2008 |
| District Administration Status | 2017 |
| Number of Constituencies (NA) | 11 |
| Number of Constituencies (PP) | 22 |
| Number of Villages | 842 |
| Number of Police Stations | 42 |
| Population Census (2017) | 7.874 million (Rural: 4.114 million, Urban: 3.760 million) |