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60-590: There is no consensus on the origins of the Pashayi. According to Christine Noelle-Karimi, the Pashayis and Nuristanis were native to the Kunar Valley and Laghman Province , near Jalalabad in north-east Afghanistan, until they were displaced to less fertile mountainous region by successive waves of immigration by Ghilji Pashtuns. Conversely, Ovesen and Keiser suggest that the Pashayi were not driven up into

120-474: A "pestilent people” and crafty". Polo claimed that the men wore brooches and earrings decorated with gemstones and that the main diet of the locals consisted of rice and meat. In the 16th century, when Mughal ruler Babur visited Darai Nur , a town in Nangarhar Province primarily inhabited by the Pashayi people, he found that the eating of pork had only recently been forbidden and that the town

180-469: A boy, subsequently abandoning the newborn under some leaves to hide her shame. A goat then discovered the boy, scraping the leaves away with their hoof, and raised the newborn, earning the name Soom . The story is repeated, except this time, the goat discovered the abandoned newborn with their horns, therefore earning the name Shenganek and becoming the ancestor of the Shenganek Pashayi. There

240-511: A few more decades, before finally converting to Islam as well. The final known non-converted Kafir was settled in a Chitrali village known as Urtsun. This Kafir's name was Chanlu, and he converted in 1938, several months after being interviewed about the cosmology of the Kati. In Chitral, the Nuristanis are known either as Bashgalis (as most migrated from a valley of Nuristan called Bashgal in

300-532: A form of ancient Hinduism , infused with accretions developed locally". They acknowledged a number of human-like deities who lived in the unseen Deity World (Kâmviri d'e lu; cf. Sanskrit deva lok'a- ). Mitch Weiss and Kevin Maurer describe the Nuristanis of having traditionally practising a "primitive" form of Hinduism , up until the late nineteenth century, before their conversions to Islam . Certain deities were revered only in one community or tribe, but one

360-563: A formal tribal structure as the Pashtuns do, however they do designate themselves by the names of the local regions they are from. In total, there are 35 such designations: five from the north–south valleys and 30 from the east–west valley. Some of these tribes include: Pashtunization Pashtunization ( Pashto : پښتون‌ جوړونه ), is a process of cultural or linguistic change in which someone or something non-Pashtun becomes acculturated to Pashtun influence. Pashtuns are

420-405: A long period. Earlier, it was surrounded by Buddhist states and societies which temporarily extended literacy and state rule to the region. The journey to the region was perilous according to reports of Chinese pilgrims Fa-hsien and Sung Yun . The decline of Buddhism resulted in the region becoming heavily isolated. The Islamization of the nearby Badakhshan began in the 8th century and Peristan

480-431: A mixed economy of agriculture and herding. Common crops cultivated include rice, wheat, and corn. They also raise goats, cattle, and sheep. It has been noted that both the Pashayi, Nuristani people and other Dardic groups share a fascination with the goat , which might connote to pre-Islamic worship of the animal, or a goat-like deity. They also hold meetings known as marat to resolve issues, which has similarities to

540-631: A number of other deities, semi-gods and spirits. The Kalash pantheon is thus one of the few living representatives of Indo-European religion. They believed in many deities, whose names resembled those of Iranian and old Vedic sources. There was a supreme deity named Mara or Imra , plus a multitude of lesser gods and goddesses known locally as Mandi or Moni , Wushum or Shomde, Gish or Giwish, Bagisht, Indr , Züzum, Disani , Kshumai or Kime etc. According to Michael Witzel, some of these gods, especially Disani, Moni, and Gish, have direct parallels in Shinto ,

600-568: A period of time, Emir Abdur Rahman Khan conducted a military campaign to secure the eastern regions and followed up his conquest by imposition of Islam; the region thenceforth being known as Nuristan , the "Land of Light". Before their conversion, the Nuristanis practised a form of ancient Hinduism . Non-Muslim religious practices endure in Nuristan today to some degree as folk customs. In their native rural areas, they are often farmers, herders, and dairymen. The Nuristan region has been

660-469: A prominent location for war, which has led to the death of many indigenous Nuristanis. Nuristan has also received abundance of settlers from the surrounding Afghan regions due to the borderline vacant location. Noted linguist Richard Strand , an authority on Hindu Kush languages, observed the following about pre-Islamic Nuristani religion: "Before their conversion to Islâm the Nuristânis practiced

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720-701: A rotating land tenure system known as wesh , which integrated and strengthened the segmentary lineage systems of the Kohistani people, allowing them to ward off Pashtun attempts of invasion. By not introducing the wesh system, the Darai Nur valley's economic cohesion was strengthened and was therefore more immune to " Pashtunization ". He invited Aṇu and Kolalek from Kordar to settle in Kandak, and Yarukei from Chelas to settle in Shemul. In return, they had to guard

780-525: A stubborn and prolonged resistance, describing them as being distinct culturally and religiously from other peoples of the region. Nuristanis were formerly classified into "Siah-Posh ( black-robed ) and "Safed-Posh ( white-robed )/Lall-Posh ( Red-Robed ). Timur fought with and was humbled by the Siah-Posh. Babur advised not to tangle with them. Genghis Khan passed by them. In 1014, Mahmud of Ghazni attacked them: Another crusade against idolatry

840-635: Is an additional tribe from Kuz Kunar District , known as Kolmān . According to a work published by Jeffrey H.P Evans-von Krbek at the Department of Anthropology at the University of Durham in 1977, an observer known as Masson claimed the Pashayi people can be traced back to the Pasiani tribe, mentioned by Strabo as one of the Scythian tribes. However, Jeffrey states that Masson’s research in

900-555: Is derived from the words Baha Sha , Bahash and Bash which are words in the Pashayi languages . Others believe that the word comes from Psatha or Pishacha , meaning demon and carnivore. Others think that Pashayi is derived from Pashi , meaning “strong”, “sturdy” and “rock wall” in the language. The last theory claims that in ancient times, a king emerged from the Pashayi ethnic group, later being named after him as kings were referred to as Pasha or Padshāh . Pashayi historians and

960-467: The 1929 Afghan Civil War , which saw the overthrow of King Amanullah Khan and fighting between the Saqqawists and anti-Saqqawist forces, Kalakani faced resistance on several fronts, including Greater Nangarhar where Pashayi rebels loyal to Mohammad Nadir Shah and other opposition leaders managed to defeat Habibullāh Kalakāni in three battles. There are several theories regarding the origin of

1020-649: The Afghan Armed Forces . Led by the Koms tribe, the Nuristani were the first citizens of Afghanistan to revolt against Saur Revolution in 1978. They played an important role in the conquering of some provinces, including Kunar , Nangarhar , Badakhshan , and Panjshir . Thereafter, Nuristan remained a scene of some of the bloodiest guerrilla fighting with the Soviet forces from 1979 through 1989. Following

1080-620: The Durrani Empire . During the reign of Abdur Rahman Khan in the late 19th century, some Pashtuns settled in the north of the country, while Tajiks from the north were brought to the south. This was done for political reason, mainly to prevent Russian invasion. In the meantime, thousands of Hazaras left Hazarajat to settle in Quetta (now in Pakistan ) and Mashad in what is now Iran , after Abdur Rahman Khan 's depredations in

1140-672: The Mughal period . In 1839, the Kafirs sent a deputation to Sir William Macnaghten in Jalalabad claiming relationship with the fair skinned British troops who had invaded the country At the time of the Afghan conquest of Kafiristan, a small number of Kom and Kati Kafirs fled east to Chitral (modern Pakistan) where they were allowed to settle by the Mehtar. There they practised their faith for

1200-792: The Nuristan Province of northeastern Afghanistan and Chitral District of northwestern Pakistan . Their languages comprise the Nuristani branch of Indo-Iranian languages . In the mid-1890s, after the establishment of the Durand Line when Afghanistan and the British Indian Empire reached an agreement regarding the Indo-Afghan border as the region of Kafiristan became part of the Great Game and for

1260-541: The Pashtun Jirga , where Pashayi elders are also present and lead the discussions. The Pashayi people additionally perform a dance where young people of all genders gather in a circle, hold each other by their shoulders and begin singing songs. This is performed at weddings or during celebrations, and lasts for 20–25 minutes. [REDACTED] Media related to Pashai people at Wikimedia Commons Nuristanis The Nuristanis are an ethnic group native to

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1320-592: The Saur Revolution , the Khalqists attempted to undermine the status of Dari in a bid to make Pashto the interethnic language of Afghanistan and remove Dari as an official language. Before the overthrow of Mohammad Najibullah in 1992, Pashto made up more than 50% of media in Afghanistan. A Soviet GRU dossier described Najibullah as "A Pashtun nationalist , he is one of the motivating spirits of

1380-482: The towers of the skulls of the Kators which he built on the mountain in the auspicious month of Ramazan A.H. 800 (1300 CE) Again, according to Timur's autobiography ( Tuzak-i-Timuri ), a military division of ten thousand Muslim soldiers was sent against the Siah-Posh (Kam) Kafirs under the command of General Aglan Khan to either slay these infidels or else to convert them into Islam. Tuzak-i-Timuri frankly admits that

1440-514: The 1830s was devalued by a lack of clarity. By the early 21st century, the Pashayi were often referred to as Kohistani , and were Sunni Muslims , while a minority are Nizari Ismaili Muslims . Pashayi people have deliberately been listed as Tajik by census takers and government agents. This is a result of the census takers being Tajik themselves, wanting to increase their own numbers for “consequent benefits”. Although, Pashayi-speaking Nizari Isma’ili refer to themselves as Tajik. During

1500-655: The Chitrali Khowar language ), or alternatively as Sheikhan (a generic term for recent converts to Islam). The exact population size of Nuristanis in Chitral is unknown, but members of the community estimate that they number at least 12 000. All of them are speakers of the Kamkata-vari language , also known locally as Sheikhani . Prior to 1895, the Kafirs of the Hindu Kush were classified into two groups:

1560-581: The Hindu Kush area (partly to obtain better grazing land) and began to assimilate much of the culture and language of the Pashtun tribes already present there." The Khalaj were originally a Turkic tribe which had long domiciled in the Ghazni , Qalati Ghilji (also known as Qalati Khalji), and Zabulistan regions of present-day Afghanistan. They intermarried with the local Pashtuns and gradually adopted

1620-690: The Kata Family and Janaderi Branch. However, there are other Nuristani tribes as well, some of the Kata of Janaderi people live in Ozhor (now Karimabad ), Gobor, Buburat, Ayun, Broze and Mastuj . There is a very popular rock associated with this tribe located in Karimabad (Juwara) called kata bont (Kata is the name of the tribe; bont meaning "stone" in the Chitrali language ). The Nuristani do not have

1680-801: The Katirs as well as the Kam sections of the Siah-Posh (black-robed) Kafirs of the Hindukush mountains. Timur invaded Afghanistan in March 1398. On the basis of local complaints of ill-treatment and extortions filed by the Muslims against the Kafirs , Timur personally attacked the Kators of the Siah-Posh group located north-east of Kabul in eastern Afghanistan. The Kators left their fort Najil and took refuge at

1740-517: The Ministry of Culture and Information claim that the Pashayi people were referred to as Alina , evident through the naming of Alishang and Alingar District , Alingar meaning “home of the Alina ”. In the present, some Pashayi people refer to themselves as Degano (resident of the plain, additionally implying “indigenous” or “native”), Laghmani , Nuristani and Sha’ari . The Pashayi engage in

1800-706: The Pashtun culture. Najib Bakran's geography, Jahān Nāma (c. 1200–1220), described the Khalaj as a "tribe of Turks" that had been going through a language shift . Some of them left the area during the Mongol invasion of Central Asia towards the Indian subcontinent , where they built empires such as the Khalji dynasty of Delhi . Because of their language shift and Pashtunization, the Khalji were looked upon as Pashtuns (Afghans) by

1860-629: The Ramgul Valley, in the westernmost part of Kafiristan on the Afghan frontier. All Siah-posh groups of Kafirs were regarded as of common origin. They all had a common dress and customs and spoke closely related dialects of Kati . Nicholas Barrington et al. reported that the Waigulis and Presungulis referred to all Siah-posh Kafirs as Katirs. While the Kamtoz of the lower Bashgul valley were

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1920-592: The Siah-Posh, or black-vested by the Muslims of later times. In Nardain there was a temple, which the army of Ghazni destroyed; and brought from thence a stone covered with certain inscriptions, which were according to the Hindus, of great antiquity. The first reference to Siah-Posh Kafirs occurs in Timur's invasion of Afghanistan in 1398 CE. Timur's autobiography (Tuzak-i-Timuri) amply attests that he had battled both with

1980-479: The Siah-Poshes as he does for the Katirs and numerous other communities of India proper. Also, he gives no further details of his conflict with the Siah-Poshes in his Tuzak-i-Timuri after this encounter, which clearly shows that the outcome of the fight against the Siah-Poshes was very costly and shameful for Timur. Other references to these Kafirs are made in the fifteenth and later in sixteenth century during

2040-721: The Siah-posh (black clad) and the Safed-posh (white clad) Kafirs, also known as the Lal-posh (red-clad), so-called because of the colour of the robes they wore. But the British investigator George Scott Robertson who visited Kafiristan and studied the Kafirs for about two years (1889–1891) improved upon the old classification by recognising that the Safed-posh Kafirs were actually members of several separate clans, viz,

2100-573: The Turkic nobles of the Delhi Sultanate. Many former Pashai speakers have adopted the ethnonym Safi and often refer to themselves by the mountain valleys in which they live, whereas in Swat and Indus Kōhestān many former Dardic speakers now claim to be Pashtuns. Pashtunization may also refer to the settling of Pashtun tribes onto lands where non-Pashtun tribes live or more broadly

2160-524: The Waigulis, Presungulis or Viron, and the Ashkuns. The later three groups of the Kafirs used to be collectively known as Sped-Posh Kafirs. The term Siah-posh Kafirs used to designate the dominant group of Hindu Kush Kafirs inhabiting the Bashgal Valley . The Siah-posh Kafirs have sometimes been confused with Kalasha people of the neighbouring Chitral region in Pakistan . The Siah-Posh tribe

2220-570: The aftermath of 1888–1893 Uprisings of Hazaras . Some Pashtunization attempts were later made in the early part of the 20th century by the Musahiban . Many non-Pashtuns living in close proximity with Pashtuns have been Pashtunized. For example, in the central Ghor Province , some southern groups of Aimaqs have adopted Pashto language. In the eastern Laghman Province and Nangarhar Province , many Pashayi are bilingual in Pashto. Following

2280-523: The east. Bambakot's main market known as the Hindu Quarter also declined with the going of the Hindus . According to Ovsen, these events occurred in the early 1800s. In Darra-i-Nur , the two most important descent groups are Soom , meaning hoof, and Shenganek , sheng meaning horn. According to Pashayi mythology , an unmarried woman had become pregnant and went into the mountains to give birth to

2340-564: The erosion of the customs, traditions and language of non-Pashtun peoples due to the political power and regional influence of the Pashtuns. This occurred in the Peshawar sub-region in the early 16th century, during the period of the Suri dynasty of Delhi. It intensified in the mid-18th century under Pashtun emperor Ahmad Shah Durrani , when he conquered non-Pashtun territories and established

2400-473: The expedition mentions its details. The Sifat-nama gives Muhammad Hakim the epithet of Darviš Khan Gazi . Muhammad Hakim's invasion fought its way from Laghman to Alishang , and is stated to have conquered and converted 66 valleys to Islam. After conquering Tajau and Nijrau valleys in Panjshir area, the soldiers established a fort at Islamabad at confluence of Alishang and Alingar Rivers . They continued

2460-656: The largest ethnic group in Afghanistan and second-largest in Pakistan . People become Pashtunized when they settle in Pashtun-dominated areas and adopt Pashtun culture and language. Pashtunization is a specific form of cultural assimilation and has been taking place in Pashtun-populated regions of Afghanistan and Pakistan for several centuries. "In the eighth and ninth centuries, ancestors of many of today's Turkic-speaking Afghans settled in

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2520-446: The latter, but soon recanted and attacked the regiment of Muslim soldiers during night. The latter being on guard, fought back, killed numerous Kators and took 150 as prisoners and put them to death afterwards. Next day, Timur ordered his troops to advance on all four sides to kill all men, enslave the women and children and plunder or lay waste all their property . In his autobiography called Tuzak-i-Timuri , Timur proudly boasts of

2580-406: The most numerous, the Kam of the upper Bashgul valley were the most intractable and fierce and dreaded for their military prowess. General Issa Nuristani was second in command following the King during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan , being the commander of the 1st Central Army Corps. Before his assassination, General Issa called the Nuristani people in a " Jihad " against the Soviet Army and

2640-412: The mountain valleys where they reside and were, rather, the indigenous inhabitants of their region before the rise of the Gandhara civilization. The Pashayi people historically practiced ancient Hinduism and Buddhism , along with tribal religions. In the 13th century, Marco Polo traveled through the region and described the locals as practitioners of sorcery and witchcraft, as well as calling them

2700-471: The native religion of Japan , indicating a shared history dating back to 2000 BCE. Each village and clan had its guardian deity, with shamans advising those seeking help and priests officiating at religious services. The cult centered on the sacrifice of animals, mostly goats. The area extending from modern Nuristan to Kashmir was known as "Peristan", a vast area containing a host of Nuristani cultures and Indo-European languages that became Islamized over

2760-483: The north of the valley and water supply. He also allowed the Kafir Kalautar from Wama to settle Amla with his goats, on the condition that Kalautar give Deishamir tribute of a kharwar of cheese annually. Kalautar was later expelled because he would not convert to Islam but continued to pay tribute. In the south of the valley, the remaining Kafir rajas were under pressure due to lost allies (Bhim Raja and Shultan Raja) as well as poor land due to lack of water, and thus moved to

2820-426: The people to Islam. The valley was inhabited by Kafirs who only were armed with bows and arrows, whereas Deishamir Baba and his army had firearms . Deishamir Baba was from Kunar Valley , and he came to Darra-i Nur through Pech Valley and Aret and Shumast villages. The kafir rulers Bhim Raja of Bambakot, Shultan Raja of Sotan, and Sher Raja all surrendered to Deishamir Baba and converted to Islam. Laṇā Raja of Shemul

2880-508: The policy of “ Pashtunization ” of Afghan society. Within his closest circle he speaks only in Pashto . He is inclined to select colleagues not for their professional qualities but for their personal devotion to him, predominantly relatives and fellow-villagers". Strand states that Pashtunization continues to occur due to intermarriages between Pashtun women and indigenous Dardic Indo-Aryan and Nuristani men. Strand states that Pashtun wives rarely learn their native husband's language due to

2940-431: The raid up to Alishang and made their last effort against the non-Muslims of Alingar , fighting up to Mangu, the modern border between the Pashai and Ashkun-speaking areas. During the 18th century, Pashtuns forced Pashayi people to convert to Islam , and conversions continued into recent history. According to Pashai oral tradition, in the mid-18th century, Deishamir Baba conquered Darra-i Nur Valley and converted

3000-400: The regiment was badly routed by a small number of Siah-Posh Kafirs. The Muslim forces had to flee from the battle-field leaving their horses and armour. Another detachment had to be sent under Muhammad Azad which fought gallantly and recovered the horses and the armour lost by General Aglan and came back home, leaving the Siah-Posh alone. Timur does not boast of any killings or imprisonment of

3060-445: The related word "Kafir" means one who does not believe in Islam. The majority were converted to Islam during Abdur Rahman Khan 's rule around 1895. The province is now known as Nuristan and the people as Nuristanis. However, among the rural population many old customs and beliefs like occasional production of wine have continued. In the 4th century BC, Alexander the Great encountered them and finally defeated them after they put up

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3120-482: The top of the hill. Timur razed the fort to ground, burnt their houses and surrounded the hill where the Kator had collected for shelter. The relic of the historic fort is said to still exist a little north to Najil in the form of a structure known as Timur Hissar (Timur's Fort). After a tough fight, some of the Kators were defeated and were instantly put to death while the others held out against heavy odds for three days. Timur offered them death or Islam . They chose

3180-426: The withdrawal of the Soviet troops in 1989, the Mawlawi Ghulam Rabbani was declared as governor of the Kunar Province. The Nuristanis inspired others to fight and contributed to the demise of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan in 1992. In a 2012 research on Y-chromosomes of five Nuristani samples, three were found to belong to the Haplogroup R1a , and one each in R2a and J2a . Most Nuristanis are from

3240-414: The word Pashayi, with some claiming it is over 2,500 years old. In 1891, Henry Walter Bellew stated "Pashae, or Pashie are attributive plural forms, meaning 'of the Kingdom Padshahi'. The Pashayi are still found by that name in the Darai Nur District of Nangarhar Province , Bamyan and Laghman districts in the southern valleys. However, the Afghan Ministry of Information of Culture claim that Pashayi

3300-429: Was at length resolved on; and Mahmud led the seventh one against Nardain, the then boundary of India , or the eastern part of the Hindu Kush; separating as Firishta says, the countries of Hindustan and Turkistan and remarkable for its excellent fruit. The country into which the army of Ghazni marched appears to have been the same as that now called Kafirstan, where the inhabitants were and still are, idolaters and are named

3360-408: Was completely surrounded by Muslim states in the 16th century. The Kalash people of lower Chitral are the last surviving heirs of the area. The region was called Kafiristan because while the surrounding populations were converted to Islam , the people in this region retained their traditional religion, and were thus known as "Kafirs" to the Muslims. The Arabic word "Kufr" means disbelief and

3420-420: Was defeated and he fled the region. Muturu Raja of Utran fought with Deishamir Baba for a longer time, but eventually converted to Islam and became an ally of Deishamir Baba. Deishamir Baba had two sons, Ranga and Japar, and six grandsons. The six grandsons are the ancestors of the Pashai in Sotan. In Darra-i Nur , Deishamir decided to give permanent land settlements to family and followers instead of introducing

3480-442: Was divided into Siah-posh Katirs or Kamtoz, Siah-posh Mumans or Madugals, Siah-posh Kashtoz or Kashtan, Siah-posh Gourdesh or Istrat, and Siah-posh Kams or Kamoze. The Siah-posh Katirs were further divided into the Katirs, who occupied twelve villages of the lower Bashgul (Kam) country, the Kti or Katawar, who lived in two villages in the Kti Valley, the Kulam, and the Ramguli, the most numerous group, living in twenty four villages in

3540-424: Was famous for its wine. According to the Tabakat-i-Akbari of Nizamuddin Ahmad , Mughal Emperor Akbar had dispatched his younger brother Mirza Muhammad Hakim , who was a staunch adherent of the missionary-minded Naqshbandi Sufi order, against the infidels of Katwar in 1582. Hakim was a semi-independent governor of Kabul. The Sifat-nama-yi Darviš Muhammad Hān-i Ğāzī of Kadi Muhammad Salim who accompanied

3600-437: Was universally revered as the creator: the Hindu god Yama Râja called imr'o in Kâmviri. There is a creator god, appearing under various names, as lord of the nether world and of heaven: Yama Rājan, or Māra ('death', Nuristani), or Dezau (ḍezáw) whose name is derived from Indo-European *dheiǵh- i.e. "to form" (Kati Nuristani dez "to create", CDIAL 14621); Dezauhe is also called by the Persian term Khodaii . There are

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