Mazar-i-Sharīf ( / m ə ˈ z æ r i ʃ ə ˈ r iː f / mə- ZARR -ee shə- REEF ; Dari and Pashto : مزار شریف ), also known as Mazar-e Sharīf or simply Mazar , is the third-largest city in Afghanistan by population, with an estimated 500,207 residents in 2021. It is the capital of Balkh province and is linked by highways with Kunduz in the east, Kabul in the southeast, Herat in the southwest and Termez , Uzbekistan in the north. It is about 55 km (34 mi) from the Uzbek border. The city is also a tourist attraction because of its famous shrines as well as the Islamic and Hellenistic archeological sites. The ancient city of Balkh is also nearby.
79-1039: The Muqbil is a Pashtun tribe, cousins of the Zadrans and Mangals . They mostly reside in Said Karam District , Paktia Province and also can be found in large numbers in Kurram living beside the Bangash and Mangal Pashtuns. They can be further divided into five clans: Musakhel, Sultak, Ahmadkhel, Hasankhel, and Bobaki. Muqbil is, also, a Muslim boy’s name found around the Muslim world. - Muqbil bin Hadi al-Wadi'i - Muqbil Al-Zahawi Pashtuns Pashtuns ( / ˈ p ʌ ʃ ˌ t ʊ n / , / ˈ p ɑː ʃ ˌ t ʊ n / , / ˈ p æ ʃ ˌ t uː n / ; Pashto : پښتانه , romanized: Pəx̌tānə́ ; ), also known as Pakhtuns , or Pathans , are
158-583: A nomadic , pastoral , eastern Iranic ethnic group primarily residing in northwestern Pakistan and southern and eastern Afghanistan . They historically were also referred to as Afghans until 1964 after the term's meaning had become a demonym for members of all ethnic groups in Afghanistan . The Pashtuns speak the Pashto language , which belongs to the Eastern Iranian branch of
237-667: A Pashtun population of over 1 million, whilst Jaipur and Bangalore have an estimate of around 100,000. The Pashtuns in Bangalore include the khan siblings Feroz , Sanjay and Akbar Khan , whose father settled in Bangalore from Ghazni . During the 19th century, when the British were recruiting peasants from British India as indentured servants to work in the Caribbean , South Africa and other places, Rohillas were sent to Trinidad , Surinam , Guyana , and Fiji , to work in
316-712: A double bombing. Mazar-i-Sharif is also known for the Afghan song Bia ke berem ba Mazar ( Come let's go to Mazar ) by Sarban . Mazar-i-Sharif has a cold steppe climate ( Köppen climate classification BSk ) with hot summers and cold winters. Precipitation is low and mostly falls between December and April. The climate in Mazar-i-Sharif is very hot during the summer with daily temperatures of over 40 °C (104 °F) from June to August. The winters are cold with temperatures falling below freezing; it may snow from November through March. The city of Mazar-i-Sharif has
395-633: A group of opposing Afghans, as also corroborated by Abulfazl Beyhaqi . It is recorded that Afghans were also enrolled in the Ghurid Kingdom (1148–1215). By the beginning of the Khilji dynasty in 1290, Afghans have been well known in northern India. Ibn Battuta , when visiting Afghanistan following the era of the Khilji dynasty, also wrote about the Afghans. "We travelled on to Kabul, formerly
474-725: A reference to the tomb of Ali , cousin, son-in-law and companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad . The tomb is housed in the large, blue-tiled sanctuary and mosque in the center of the city known as the Shrine of Ali or the Blue Mosque. The Achaemenids controlled the region from the sixth century BCE. Alexander the Great conquered the area but it was then incorporated into the Seleucid Empire after his death. The decline of
553-529: A result, several people were killed and wounded from explosions over the years. These rockets, left behind by the Soviet Army in 1989 at the end of the Soviet–Afghan War , were used as cheap building materials by the poor residents of the village. It was estimated that over 400 rockets were incorporated into the village as wall and ceiling beams, door-stoppers, and even footbridges used by children. When
632-671: A rout from the rest of the north and west of Afghanistan. After the Battle of Mazar-i-Sharif in November 2001, the city was officially captured by forces of the Northern Alliance. They were joined by the United States Special Operations Forces and supported by U.S. Air Force aircraft. As many as 3,000 Taliban fighters who surrendered were reportedly massacred by the Northern Alliance after
711-434: A station near Mazar-i-Sharif Airport , where the goods are reloaded onto trucks or airplanes and sent to their last destinations across Afghanistan. As of June 2016 Mazar-i-Sharif Airport has direct air connections to Kabul , Mashad , Tehran , and Istanbul . Highway AH76 links Mazar-i-Sharif to Sheberghan in the west, and Pul-e Khomri and Kabul to the south-east. Roads to the east link it to Kunduz . Roads to
790-402: A total population of 500,207, and is the fourth-largest city of Afghanistan by population. It has a total land area of 8,304 Hectares with 77,615 total number of dwellings. The November 2003 issue of National Geographic magazine indicated the ethnic composition as Pashtuns 15%, Hazaras 12%, Tajiks 53%, Turkmens 10%, and Uzbeks 20%. Occasional ethnic violence has been reported in
869-568: A tribe mentioned by Herodotus ( Pactyans ) in 430 BCE in the Histories : Other Indians dwell near the town of Caspatyrus[Κασπατύρῳ] and the Pactyic [Πακτυϊκῇ] country, north of the rest of India; these live like the Bactrians; they are of all Indians the most warlike, and it is they who are sent for the gold; for in these parts all is desolate because of the sand. These Pactyans lived on
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#1732793399939948-440: A vast town, the site of which is now occupied by Afghans. They hold mountains and defiles and possess considerable strength, and are mostly highwaymen. Their principal mountain is called Kuh Sulayman . It is told that the prophet Sulayman [Solomon] ascended this mountain and having looked out over India, which was then covered with darkness, returned without entering it." Ferishta , a 16th-century Muslim historian writing about
1027-417: Is also home to an international airport . It has the highest percentage of built-up land (91%) of all the Afghan provincial capitals, and it has additional built-up area extending beyond the municipal boundary but forming a part of the larger urban area . It is also the lowest-lying major city in the country, about 357 metres (1,171 ft) above sea level. The city was spared the devastation that occurred in
1106-830: Is skepticism over Afghan abilities to combat the Taliban insurgency . On 10 November 2016, a suicide attacker rammed a truck bomb into the wall of the German consulate in Mazar-i-Sharif. Eight people were killed and more than a hundred others were injured. On 21 April 2017, a coordinated Taliban attack killed more than 100 people at Camp Shaheen , the Afghan Army base in Mazar-i-Sharif. In November 2018, VOA reported that 40 houses in Qazil Abad, an immediate suburb of Mazar-i-Sharif, used unexploded Soviet Grad surface-to-surface rockets as construction materials. As
1185-513: Is stationed at Camp Northern Lights which is located ten kilometres (six miles) west of Camp Marmal. Camp Nidaros , located within Camp Marmal, has soldiers from Latvia and Norway and is led by an ISAF-officer from Norway. In 2006, the discovery of new Hellenistic remains was announced. On April 1, 2011, ten foreign employees working for United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan ( UNAMA ) were killed by angry demonstrators in
1264-695: The Amu Darya became part of the Durrani Empire in around 1751. For the most part the region was controlled by autonomous Uzbek rulers). After the Bukharan-Durrani war of 1788–1790, Qilich Ali Beg of Khulm formed a mini-empire stretching from Balkh to Aybak , Saighan , Kahmard , Darra-i Suf , and Qunduz . When he died in 1817, the Balkh and Mazar-i Sharif region became an independent city state with Aqcha as its dependency. In November 1837
1343-639: The Amu river and west of the Indus River . They can be found all over Pakistan and Afghanistan. Big cities with a Pashtun majority include Jalalabad , Kandahar , Bannu , Dera Ismail Khan , Khost , Kohat , Lashkar Gah , Mardan , Ghazni , Mingora , Peshawar , Quetta , among others. Pashtuns also live in Abbottabad , Farah , Herat , Islamabad , Kabul , Karachi , Kunduz , Lahore , Mazar-i-Sharif , Mianwali , and Attock . The city of Karachi ,
1422-575: The Assakenoi of Arrian , which was the name used for ancient inhabitants of the Hindu Kush . Aśvakan literally means "horsemen", "horse breeders", or " cavalrymen " (from aśva or aspa , the Sanskrit and Avestan words for " horse "). This view was propounded by scholars like Christian Lassen , J. W. McCrindle , M. V. de Saint Martin, and É. Reclus , The earliest mention of
1501-576: The British Raj in colonial India . These include Bombay (now called Mumbai ), Farrukhabad , Delhi , Calcutta , Saharanpur , Rohilkhand , Jaipur , and Bangalore . The settlers are descended from both Pashtuns of present-day Pakistan and Afghanistan ( British India before 1947). In some regions in India , they are sometimes referred to as Kabuliwala . In India significant Pashtun diaspora communities exist. While speakers of Pashto in
1580-638: The Ghilji Pashtuns to the Mazandaran Province in northern Iran. The remnants of this once sizable exiled community, although assimilated, continue to claim Pashtun descent. During the early 18th century, in the course of a very few years, the number of Durrani Pashtuns in Iranian Khorasan, greatly increased. Later the region became part of the Durrani Empire itself. The second Durrani king of Afghanistan, Timur Shah Durrani
1659-557: The Iranian language family . Additionally, Dari serves as the second language of Pashtuns in Afghanistan, while those in Pakistan speak Urdu and English. In India, the majority of those of Pashtun descent have lost the ability to speak Pashto and instead speak Hindi and other regional languages. There are an estimated 350–400 Pashtun tribes and clans with a variety of origin theories . In 2021, Shahid Javed Burki estimated
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#17327933999391738-691: The Oxus at that time. Others however have suggested a much older Iranic ancestor given the affinity to Old Avestan . According to one school of thought, Pashtun are descended from a variety of ethnicities, including Persians , Greeks , Turks , Arabs , Bactrians , Dards , Scythians , Tartars , Huns ( Hephthalites ), Mongols , Moghals (Mughals), and anyone else who has crossed the region where these Pashtun live. Further they are also, and probably most surprisingly, of Israelite descent. Some Pashtun tribes claim descent from Arabs , including some claiming to be Sayyids . One historical account connects
1817-795: The Red Sea , many of the Copts became converts to the Jewish faith ; but others, stubborn and self-willed, refusing to embrace the true faith, leaving their country, came to India, and eventually settled in the Sulimany mountains, where they bore the name of Afghans. The ethnogenesis of the Pashtun ethnic group is unclear. There are many conflicting theories amongst historians and the Pashtuns themselves. Modern scholars believe that Pashtuns do not all share
1896-472: The Saffarids , Samanids , Ghaznavids , Ghurids , Ilkhanids , Timurids , and Khanate of Bukhara until 1751 when it became part of the Durrani Empire (although under autonomous emirs). Eventually the city passed to a few local rulers before becoming part of Afghanistan in 1849. Mazar-i-Sharif is the regional hub of northern Afghanistan, located in close proximity to both Uzbekistan and Tajikistan . It
1975-549: The Sogdian language , as well as Khwarezmian , Shughni , Sanglechi , and Khotanese Saka . It is suggested by some that Pashto may have originated in the Badakhshan region and is connected to a Saka language akin to Khotanese. In fact major linguist Georg Morgenstierne has described Pashto as a Saka dialect and many others have observed the similarities between Pashto and other Saka languages as well, suggesting that
2054-410: The 13th century, and then rebuilt. During the nineteenth century, due to the absence of drainage systems and the weak economy of the region, the excess water of this area flooded many acres of the land in the vicinity of residential areas causing a malaria epidemic in the region. The ruler of North Central Afghanistan decided to move the capital to Mazar-i-Sharif. The city along with the region south of
2133-612: The 982 Ḥudūd al-ʿĀlam , where a reference is made to a village, Saul, which was probably located near Gardez , Afghanistan. "Saul, a pleasant village on a mountain. In it live Afghans ". The same book also speaks of a king in Ninhar ( Nangarhar ), who had Muslim, Afghan and Hindu wives. In the 11th century, Afghans are mentioned in Al-Biruni 's Tarikh-ul Hind ("History of the Indus"), which describes groups of rebellious Afghans in
2212-783: The Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission opened an office in Mazar in April 2003. There were reports about northern Pashtun civilians being ethnically cleansed by the other groups, mainly by ethnic Tajiks, Hazaras and Uzbeks. NATO-led peacekeeping forces in and around the city provided assistance to the Afghan government. ISAF Regional Command North , led by Germany , is stationed at Camp Marmal which lies next to Mazar-i-Sharif Airport . Since 2006, Provincial Reconstruction Team Mazar-i-Sharif had unit commanders from Sweden on loan to ISAF. The unit
2291-530: The Afghans, so [you should] impose a penalty on Nat Kharagan ... ...lord of Warnu with ... ... ...the Afghan... ... " The name Afghan is later recorded in the 6th century CE in the form of "Avagāṇa" [अवगाण] by the Indian astronomer Varāha Mihira in his Brihat-samhita . "It would be unfavourable to the people of Chola, the Afghans (Avagāṇa), the white Huns and the Chinese." The word Afghan also appeared in
2370-919: The British/ Commonwealth links of their respective countries, and modern communities have been established starting around the 1960s mainly in the United Kingdom , Canada , Australia but also in other commonwealth countries (and the United States ). Some Pashtuns have also settled in the Middle East, such as in the Arabian Peninsula . For example, about 300,000 Pashtuns migrated to the Persian Gulf countries between 1976 and 1981, representing 35% of Pakistani immigrants. The Pakistani and Afghan diaspora around
2449-461: The Bukharans conquered the city but Balkh was still able to retain autonomy. In 1849 the city was conquered and annexed into Afghanistan. During the 1980s Soviet–Afghan War , Mazar-i-Sharif was a strategic base for the Soviet Army as they used its airport to launch air strikes on mujahideen rebels. Mazar-i-Sharif was also the main city that linked to Soviet territory in the north, especially
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2528-473: The Pashtuns nowadays constitute a clear ethnic group with their own language and culture, there is no evidence whatsoever that all modern Pashtuns share the same ethnic origin. In fact it is highly unlikely." Pashto is generally classified as an Eastern Iranian language. It shares features with the Munji language , which is the closest existing language to the extinct Bactrian , but also shares features with
2607-523: The Pashtuns to a possible Ancient Egyptian past but this lacks supporting evidence. Henry Walter Bellew , who wrote extensively on Afghan culture, noted that some people claim that the Bangash Pashtuns are connected to Ismail Samani . Mazar-i-Sharif The region around Mazar-i-Sharif has been historically part of Greater Khorasan and was controlled by the Tahirids followed by
2686-466: The Quran burning, calling it an act of "extreme intolerance and bigotry", and the "outrageous" attacks by protesters, referring to them as "an affront to human decency and dignity." "No religion tolerates the slaughter and beheading of innocent people, and there is no justification for such a dishonorable and deplorable act." U.S. legislators, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid , also condemned both
2765-854: The Seleucids consequently led to the emergence of the Greco-Bactrian kingdom . Around 130 BCE, the Sakas occupied the region and the Greco-Bactrian kingdom fell. The Yuezhi took Mazar-i-Sharif and the surrounding area which led to the creation of the Kushan Empire . The Sasanians subsequently controlled the area after the fall of the Kushans. The Islamic conquests reached Mazar-i-Sharif in 651 CE. The region around Mazar-i-Sharif has been historically part of Greater Khorasan and
2844-466: The Taliban were getting ready to take the city through Pahlawan. Afterwards Pahlawan himself mutinied the Taliban on the deal and it was reported that between May and July 1997 that Pahlawan executed thousands of Taliban members, that he personally did many of the killings by slaughtering the prisoners as a revenge for the 1995 death of Abdul Ali Mazari . "He is widely believed to have been responsible for
2923-449: The Taliban. On 14 August, the Taliban captured Mazar-i-Sharif along with Sharana and Asadabad , the provincial capitals of Paktika and Kunar provinces respectively. Local government forces and regional leaders Abdul Rashid Dostum and Atta Mohammad Noor fled to neighboring Uzbekistan . On 21 April 2022, Islamic State – Khorasan Province killed 31 people by bombing a Shia mosque . A week later, 11 people were killed in
3002-399: The battle, and reports also place U.S. ground troops at the scene of the massacre. The Irish documentary Afghan Massacre: The Convoy of Death investigated these allegations. Filmmaker Doran claims that mass graves of thousands of victims were found by United Nations investigators. The Bush administration reportedly blocked investigations into the incident. The city slowly came under
3081-400: The brutal massacre of up to 3,000 Taliban prisoners after inviting them into Mazar-i-Sharif." Several of the Taliban escaped the slaughtering and reported what had happened. Meanwhile, Dostum came back and took the city again from Pahlawan. However the Taliban retaliated in 1998 attacking the city and killing an estimated 8,000 non-combatants . At 10 am on 8 August 1998, the Taliban entered
3160-402: The burning and the violence in reaction to it. By July 2011 violence grew to a record high in the insurgency . In late July 2011, NATO troops also handed control of Mazar-i-Sharif to local forces amid rising security fears just days after it was hit by a deadly bombing. Mazar-i-Sharif is the sixth of seven areas to transition to Afghan control, but critics say the timing is political and there
3239-420: The chief of the Afghans, ' the judge of Tukharistan and Gharchistan . Moreover, ' a letter [ has come hither ] from you, so I have heard how [ you have ] written ' ' to me concerning ] my health . I arrived in good health, ( and ) ( afterwards ( ? ) ' ' I heard that a message ] was sent thither to you ( saying ) thus : ... look after the farming but the order was given to you thus. You should hand over
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3318-483: The city and for the next two days drove their pickup trucks "up and down the narrow streets of Mazar-i-Sharif shooting to the left and right and killing everything that moved—shop owners, cart pullers, women and children shoppers and even goats and donkeys." More than 8000 noncombatants were reported killed in Mazar-i-Sharif and later in Bamiyan . In addition, the Taliban were criticized for forbidding anyone from burying
3397-593: The city the next day. Afterwards Mazar-i-Sharif became the de facto capital of a relatively stable and secular proto-state in northern Afghanistan under the rule of Dostum. The city remained peaceful and prosperous, whilst rest of the nation disintegrated and was slowly taken over by fundamentalist Taliban forces. The city was called at the time a "glittering jewel in Afghanistan's battered crown". Money rolled in from foreign donors Russia , Turkey , newly independent Uzbekistan and others, with whom Dostum had established close relations. He printed his own currency for
3476-513: The city's prospects. It is also the location of consulates of India and Pakistan for trading and political links. The modern city of Mazar-i Sharif is centred around the Shrine of Ali. Much restored, it is one of Afghanistan's most glorious monuments. Outside Mazar-i Sharif lies the ancient city of Balkh . The city is a centre for the traditional buzkashi sport, and the Blue Mosque is
3555-569: The city. The demonstration was organized in retaliation to pastors Terry Jones and Wayne Sapp's March 21 Qur'an-burning in Florida , United States. Among the dead were five Nepalis , a Norwegian , Romanian and Swedish nationals, two of them were said to be decapitated . Terry Jones, the American pastor who was going to burn Islam 's Holy Book , denied his responsibility for incitement. President Barack Obama strongly condemned both
3634-696: The connection of the Pashtuns with names such as the Parsiētai (Παρσιῆται), Parsioi (Πάρσιοι) that were cited by Ptolemy 150 CE: "The northern regions of the country are inhabited by the Bolitai, the western regions by the Aristophyloi below whom live the Parsioi (Πάρσιοι). The southern regions are inhabited by the Parsiētai (Παρσιῆται), the eastern regions by the Ambautai. The towns and villages lying in
3713-578: The control of the Karzai administration after 2002, which is led by President Hamid Karzai . The 209th Corps (Shaheen) of the Afghan National Army is based at Mazar-i-Sharif, which provides military assistance to northern Afghanistan. The Afghan Border Police headquarters for the Northern Zone is also located in the city. Despite the security put in place, there are reports of Taliban activities and assassinations of tribal elders. Officials in Mazar-i-Sharif reported that between 20 and 30 Afghan tribal elders have been assassinated in Balkh Province in
3792-482: The corpses for the first six days (contrary to the injunctions of Islam, which demands immediate burial) while the remains rotted in the summer heat and were eaten by dogs. The Taliban also reportedly sought out and massacred members of the Hazara , while in control of Mazar. Following the September 11 attacks in 2001, Mazar-i-Sharif was the first Afghan city to fall to the U.S.-backed Northern Alliance (United Front). The Taliban's defeat in Mazar quickly turned into
3871-463: The country of the Paropanisadai are these: Parsiana Zarzaua/Barzaura Artoarta Baborana Kapisa niphanda" Strabo , the Greek geographer, in the Geographica (written between 43 BC to 23 AD) makes mention of the Scythian tribe Pasiani (Πασιανοί), which has also been identified with Pashtuns given that Pashto is an Eastern-Iranian language, much like the Scythian languages : "Most of the Scythians...each separate tribe has its peculiar name. All, or
3950-431: The country only number 21,677 as of 2011, estimates of the ethnic or ancestral Pashtun population in India range from 3,200,000 to 11,482,000 to as high as double their population in Afghanistan (approximately 30 million). The Rohilkhand region of Uttar Pradesh is named after the Rohilla community of Pashtun ancestry; the area came to be governed by the Royal House of Rampur , a Pashtun dynasty. They also live in
4029-405: The country's other large cities during the Soviet–Afghan War and subsequent civil war , and was long regarded as one of the safest cities in the country. On 14 August 2021, Mazar-i-Sharif was seized by Taliban fighters, becoming the twenty-fifth provincial capital to be captured by the Taliban as part of the wider 2021 Taliban offensive . The name Mazar-i-Sharif means "tomb of the saint",
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#17327933999394108-413: The eastern frontier of the Achaemenid Arachosia Satrapy as early as the 1st millennium BCE, present-day Afghanistan. Herodotus also mentions a tribe of known as Aparytai (Ἀπαρύται). Thomas Holdich has linked them with the Afridi tribe: The Sattagydae, Gandarii, Dadicae, and Aparytae (Ἀπαρύται) paid together a hundred and seventy talents; this was the seventh province Joseph Marquart made
4187-505: The entertainment industry and sports. Pashtuns are also found in smaller numbers in the eastern and northern parts of Iran . Records as early as the mid-1600s report Durrani Pashtuns living in the Khorasan Province of Safavid Iran . After the short reign of the Ghilji Pashtuns in Iran , Nader Shah defeated the last independent Ghilji ruler of Kandahar , Hussain Hotak . In order to secure Durrani control in southern Afghanistan, Nader Shah deported Hussain Hotak and large numbers of
4266-462: The financial capital of Pakistan, is home to the world's largest urban community of Pashtuns, larger than Kabul and Peshawar . Likewise, Islamabad , the country's political capital also serves as the major urban center of Pashtuns with more than 20% of the city's population belonging to the Pashto speaking community. Pashtuns in India are often referred to as Pathans (the Hindustani word for Pashtun) both by themselves and other ethnic groups of
4345-432: The focus of northern Afghanistan's Nowruz celebration. Although most Muslims believe that the real grave of Ali is found within Imam Ali Mosque in Najaf , Iraq , others still come to Mazar-i-Sharif to pay respect. It became the first city in Afghanistan to connect itself by rail with a neighboring country. Rail service from Mazar-i-Sharif to Uzbekistan began in December 2011 and cargo on freight trains arrive at
4424-437: The grain and then request it from the citizens store: I will not order, so.....I Myself order And I in Respect of winter sends men thither to you then look after the farming, To Ormuzd Bunukan, Greetings" "because [you] (pl.), the clan of the Afghans, said thus to me:...And you should not have denied? the men of Rob [that] the Afghans took (away) the horses" "[To ...]-bid the Afghan... Moreover, they are in [War]nu(?) because of
4503-471: The greatest part of them, are nomades. The best known tribes are those who deprived the Greeks of Bactriana, the Asii, Pasiani, Tochari, and Sacarauli, who came from the country on the other side of the Iaxartes (Syr Darya)" This is considered a different rendering of Ptolemy's Parsioi (Πάρσιοι). Johnny Cheung, reflecting on Ptolemy's Parsioi (Πάρσιοι) and Strabo's Pasiani (Πασιανοί) states: "Both forms show slight phonetic substitutions, viz. of υ for ι, and
4582-488: The history of Muslim rule in the subcontinent , stated: He [Khalid bin Abdullah son of Khalid bin Walid ] retired, therefore, with his family, and a number of Arab retainers, into the Sulaiman Mountains, situated between Multan and Peshawar, where he took up his residence, and gave his daughter in marriage to one of the Afghan chiefs, who had become a proselyte to Mahomedism. From this marriage many children were born, among whom were two sons famous in history. The one Lodhi ,
4661-403: The largest ethnic groups in Afghanistan , constituting around 18.24% of the total Pakistani population and around 47% of the total Afghan population. In India , significant and historical communities of the Pashtun diaspora exist in the northern region of Rohilkhand as well as in major Indian cities such as Delhi and Mumbai . Pashtuns are spread over a wide geographic area, south of
4740-405: The last several years. There is no conclusive evidence as to who is behind it but majority of the victims are said to have been associated with the Hezb-i Islami political party. Small-scale clashes between militias belonging to different commanders persisted throughout 2002, and were the focus of intensive UN peace-brokering and small arms disarmament programme. After some pressure, an office of
4819-452: The length and breadth of India, with the largest populations principally settled in the plains of northern and central India . Following the partition of India in 1947, many of them migrated to Pakistan . The majority of Indian Pashtuns are Urdu-speaking communities , who have assimilated into the local society over the course of generations. Pashtuns have influenced and contributed to various fields in India, particularly politics,
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#17327933999394898-454: The loss of r in Pasianoi is due to perseveration from the preceding Asianoi. They are therefore the most likely candidates as the (linguistic) ancestors of modern day Pashtuns." In the Middle Ages until the advent of modern Afghanistan in the 18th century, the Pashtuns were often referred to as "Afghans" . The etymological view supported by numerous noted scholars is that the name Afghan evidently derives from Sanskrit Aśvakan , or
4977-428: The name Afghan ( Abgân ) is by Shapur I of the Sassanid Empire during the 3rd century CE, In the 4th century the word "Afghans/Afghana" (αβγανανο) as a reference to a particular people is mentioned in the Bactrian documents found in Northern Afghanistan. "To Ormuzd Bunukan, from Bredag Watanan ... greetings and homage from ... ), the ( sotang ( ? ) of Parpaz ( under ) [ the glorious ) yabghu of Hephthal ,
5056-420: The oldest and most clever of the tribe, can give satisfactory information on this point." Others have suggested that a single origin of the Pashtuns is unlikely but rather they are a tribal confederation. "Looking for the origin of Pashtuns and the Afghans is something like exploring the source of the Amazon . Is there one specific beginning? And are the Pashtuns originally identical with the Afghans? Although
5135-407: The original Pashto speakers might have been a Saka group. Furthermore, Pashto and Ossetian , another Scythian-descending language, share cognates in their vocabulary which other Eastern Iranian languages lack Cheung suggests a common isogloss between Pashto and Ossetian which he explains by an undocumented Saka dialect being spoken close to reconstructed Old Pashto which was likely spoken north of
5214-399: The other Sur ; who each, subsequently, became head of the tribes which to this day bear their name. I have read in the Mutla-ul-Anwar , a work written by a respectable author, and which I procured at Burhanpur , a town of Khandesh in the Deccan , that the Afghans are Copts of the race of the Pharaohs ; and that when the prophet Moses got the better of that infidel who was overwhelmed in
5293-445: The region and established his own airline. The city remained relatively liberal as Kabul previously was, where activities such as coeducational schools and betting was legal as opposed to the Taliban dominated regions in the south of the country. This peace was shattered in May 1997 when he was betrayed by one of his generals, warlord Abdul Malik Pahlawan who allied himself with the Taliban, forcing him to flee from Mazar-i-Sharif as
5372-507: The region in the last decades, mainly between Pashtuns and the other groups. In 2011 news reports mentioned assassinations taking place in the area but with no evidence as to who is behind them. The dominant language in Mazar-i-Sharif is Persian , followed by Pashto , and Uzbek . Mazar-i-Sharif serves as the major trading center in northern Afghanistan. The local economy is dominated by trade, agriculture and Karakul sheep farming . Small-scale oil and gas exploitation have also boosted
5451-400: The rest of the world discovered this fact, the Danish demining group of the Danish Refugee Council visited the village and, after asking the residents, began demining and rebuilding the village, safely removing and disposing of the rockets through controlled detonation at the border with Uzbekistan . President Ghani visited the city on 11 August 2021 to rally local warlords to fight
5530-482: The roads leading to the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic . As a garrison for the Soviet-backed Afghan Army , the city was under the command of General Abdul Rashid Dostum . Mujahideen militias Hezbe Wahdat and Jamiat-e Islami both attempted to contest the city but were repelled by the Army. Dostum mutinied against Mohammad Najibullah 's government on March 19, 1992, shortly before its collapse, and formed his new party and militia, Junbish-e Milli . The party took over
5609-410: The same origin. The early ancestors of modern-day Pashtuns may have belonged to old Iranian tribes that spread throughout the eastern Iranian plateau . historians have also come across references to various ancient peoples called Pakthas ( Pactyans ) between the 2nd and the 1st millennium BC, Mohan Lal stated in 1846 that "the origin of the Afghans is so obscure, that no one, even among
5688-551: The states of Maharashtra in central India and West Bengal in eastern India that each have a population of over a million with Pashtun ancestry; both Bombay and Calcutta were primary locations of Pashtun migrants from Afghanistan during the colonial era. There are also populations over 100,000 each in the cities of Jaipur in Rajasthan and Bangalore in Karnataka . Bombay (now called Mumbai ) and Calcutta both have
5767-720: The subcontinent. Some Indians claim descent from Pashtun soldiers who settled in India by marrying local women during the Muslim conquest in the Indian subcontinent . Many Pathans chose to live in the Republic of India after the partition of India and Khan Mohammad Atif, a professor at the University of Lucknow , estimates that "The population of Pathans in India is twice their population in Afghanistan". Historically, Pashtuns have settled in various cities of India before and during
5846-451: The sugarcane fields and perform manual labour. Many stayed and formed communities of their own. Some of them assimilated with the other South Asian Muslim nationalities to form a common Indian Muslim community in tandem with the larger Indian community, losing their distinctive heritage. Some Pashtuns travelled as far as Australia during the same era. Today, the Pashtuns are a collection of diversely scattered communities present across
5925-432: The total Pashtun population to be situated between 60 to 70 million, with 15 million in Afghanistan. Others who accepted the 15 million figure include British academic Tim Willasey-Wilsey as well Abubakar Siddique, a journalist specialized in Afghan affairs. Although this figure is disputed due to the lack of an official census in Afghanistan since 1979 . They are the second-largest ethnic group in Pakistan and one of
6004-534: The tribal lands west of the Indus River in what is today Pakistan. Al-Utbi, the Ghaznavid chronicler, in his Tarikh-i Yamini recorded that many Afghans and Khiljis (possibly the modern Ghilji ) enlisted in the army of Sabuktigin after Jayapala was defeated. Al-Utbi further stated that Afghans and Ghiljis made a part of Mahmud Ghaznavi 's army and were sent on his expedition to Tocharistan , while on another occasion Mahmud Ghaznavi attacked and punished
6083-1001: The world includes Pashtuns. A tribe called Pakthās , one of the tribes that fought against Sudas in the Dasarajna , or "Battle of the Ten Kings" , are mentioned in the seventh mandala of the Rigveda , a text of Vedic Sanskrit hymns dated between c. 1500 and 1200 BCE: Together came the Pakthas (पक्थास), the Bhalanas, the Alinas, the Sivas, the Visanins. Yet to the Trtsus came the Ārya's Comrade, through love of spoil and heroes' war, to lead them. Heinrich Zimmer connects them with
6162-590: Was born in Mashhad . Contemporary to Durrani rule in the east, Azad Khan Afghan , an ethnic Ghilji Pashtun, formerly second in charge of Azerbaijan during Afsharid rule , gained power in the western regions of Iran and Azerbaijan for a short period. According to a sample survey in 1988, 75 percent of all Afghan refugees in the southern part of the Iranian Khorasan Province were Durrani Pashtuns. Indian and Pakistani Pashtuns have utilised
6241-494: Was controlled by the Tahirids followed by the Saffarids , Samanids , Ghaznavids , Ghurids , Ilkhanids , Timurids , and Khanate of Bukhara . The poet Jalal al-Din Rumi was born somewhere in this area. His father Baha' Walad was descended from the first caliph Abu Bakr . The Seljuk sultan Ahmed Sanjar ordered a city and shrine to be built on the location, which was later destroyed by Genghis Khan and his Mongol army in
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