Pashtun culture is mostly based on Pashtunwali and the use or understanding of the Pashto language. Pre-Islamic traditions, dating back to Alexander's defeat of the Persian Empire in 330 BC, possibly survived in the form of traditional dances, while literary styles and music reflect influence from the Persian tradition and regional musical instruments fused with localized variants and interpretation. Pashtun culture is a unique blend of native customs with some influences from South and Western Asia.
Monday, 1 August 2011
Modern Era
The Pashtuns are intimately tied to the history of modern Afghanistan, Pakistan and northern India. Following Muslim conquests from the 7th to 10th centuries, Pashtun ghazis (warriors) invaded and conquered much of the Indian subcontinent during the Ghaznavids (963–1187), Ghurid dynasty (1148–1215), Khilji dynasty (1290–1321), Lodhi dynasty (1451–1526) and Suri dynasty (1540–1556). Their modern past stretches back to the Hotaki dynasty (1709–1738) and the Durrani Empire. The Hotakis were Ghilzai tribesmen, who defeated the Persian Safavids and seized control over much of Persia from 1722 to 1738. This was followed by the conquests of Ahmad Shah Durrani who was a former high-ranking military commander under Nader Shah of Khorasan. He created the last Afghan empire that covered most of what is today Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kashmir, Indian Punjab, as well as the Kohistan and Khorasan provinces of Iran. After the decline of the Durrani dynasty in the first half of the 19th century under Shuja Shah Durrani, the Barakzai dynasty took control of the empire. Specifically, the Mohamedzai subclan held Afghanistan's monarchy from around 1826 to the end of Zahir Shah's reign in 1973. This legacy continues into modern times as the state is led by the Karzai administration under President Hamid Karzai, who is from the Popalzai tribe of Kandahar.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Abdul Rahim Wardak, the Defense Minister of Afghanistan since 2004. 
Afghan Finance Minister Omar Zakhilwal and Education Minister Ghulam Farooq Wardak during a joint US-Afghan letter signing in 2011.The Pashtuns in Afghanistan resisted British designs upon their territory and kept the Russians at bay during the so-called Great Game. By playing the two super powers against each other, Afghanistan remained an independent sovereign state and maintained some autonomy (see the Siege of Malakand). But during the reign of Abdur Rahman Khan (1880–1901), Pashtun regions were politically divided by the Durand Line, and what is today western Pakistan was claimed by British in 1893. In the 20th century, many politically-active Pashtun leaders living under British rule in the then NWFP province supported Indian independence, including Bacha Khan and son Wali Khan (both members of the Khudai Khidmatgar, popularly referred to as the Surkh posh or "the Red shirts"), and were inspired by Mohandas Gandhi's non-violent method of resistance. Some Pashtuns also worked in the Muslim League to fight for an independent Pakistan, including Yusuf Khattak and Abdur Rab Nishtar who was a close associate of Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
Dr. Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, former member of World Bank, Finance Minister of Afghanistan and chancellor of Kabul University.The Pashtuns of Afghanistan attained complete independence from British intervention during the reign of King Amanullah Khan, following the Third Anglo-Afghan War. The Afghan monarchy ended when President Daoud Khan seized control of Afghanistan from his cousin King Zahir Shah in 1973. This opened the door to Soviet intervention and the rise of Afghan communists, who demonstrated their power when they assassinated Daoud Khan and his family in the 1978 Saur Revolution. After this, many Pashtuns joined the mujahideen opposition against the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. In the meantime, millions of them began fleeing their country to live among other Afghan refugees in neighboring Pakistan and Iran, while thousands of them proceeded to North America, the European Union, the Middle East, Australia and other parts of the world.
In the late 1990s, they became known for being the primary ethnic group that comprised the Taliban, which was a religious government based on Islamic sharia law formed to end the civil war. On the other hand, the Taliban opposition also included Pashtuns. Among them were Abdul Qadir and his brother Abdul Haq, Abdul Rasul Sayyaf, Gul Agha Sherzai, the Karzais, Abdullah Abdullah, Asadullah Khalid and many others. The Taliban were ousted in late 2001 during the US-led Operation Enduring Freedom and replaced with the current Karzai administration, which is dominated by Pashtun ministers. Some of these include: Foreign Minister Zalmay Rasoul, Defense Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak, Finance Minister Omar Zakhilwal, Education Minister Ghulam Farooq Wardak, Commerce Minister Anwar ul-Haq Ahady, Agriculure Minister Mohammad Asef Rahimi and Communication Minister Amirzai Sangin. The list of current governors of Afghanistan, as well as the parliamentarians in the House of the People and House of Elders, include large percentage of Pashtuns. The Chief of staff of the Afghan National Army, Sher Mohammad Karimi, and Commander of the Afghan Air Force, Mohammad Dawran, as well as Chief Justice of Afghanistan Abdul Salam Azimi and Attorney General Mohammad Ishaq Aloko also belong to the Pashtun ethnic group. Several prominent Pashtun families include the Tarzis, Gilanis, and the Karzais.
They not only played an important role in South Asia but also in Central Asia, including the Middle East. The Afghan royal family, which was represented by king Zahir Shah, is of ethnic Pashtun origin. Other prominent Pashtuns include the 17th-century poets Khushal Khan Khattak and Rahman Baba, and in contemporary era Afghan Astronaut Abdul Ahad Mohmand, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Zalmay Khalilzad, Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, Ali Ahmad Jalali, Hedayat Amin Arsala and Mirwais Ahmadzai among many others.
Ethnic Pashtuns of Pakistan, notably Ayub Khan, Yahya Khan and Ghulam Ishaq Khan, attained the Presidency. Many more held high government posts, such as Army Chief Gul Hassan Khan, Abdul Waheed Kakar, Interior Minister Aftab Ahmad Sherpao, and etc. Others became famous in sports (i.e. Shahid Afridi, Imran Khan, Jahangir Khan, and Jansher Khan) and literature (i.e. Ghani Khan, Ameer Hamza Shinwari, Munir Niazi, and Omer Tarin). The Awami National Party (ANP) of Pakistan is represented by Pashtun nationalist Asfandyar Wali Khan, grandson of Bacha Khan, while the chairman of the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PMAP) is Mahmood Khan Achakzai, son of Abdul Samad Khan Achakzai.
One of India's former presidents, Zakir Hussain, had Pashtun origin of the Afridi tribe who came from an upper middle class Pashtun family settled in Farrukhabad. Mohammad Yunus, India's former ambassador to Algeria and advisor to Indira Gandhi, is an ethnic Pashtun related to the legendary Bacha Khan
In the late 1990s, they became known for being the primary ethnic group that comprised the Taliban, which was a religious government based on Islamic sharia law formed to end the civil war. On the other hand, the Taliban opposition also included Pashtuns. Among them were Abdul Qadir and his brother Abdul Haq, Abdul Rasul Sayyaf, Gul Agha Sherzai, the Karzais, Abdullah Abdullah, Asadullah Khalid and many others. The Taliban were ousted in late 2001 during the US-led Operation Enduring Freedom and replaced with the current Karzai administration, which is dominated by Pashtun ministers. Some of these include: Foreign Minister Zalmay Rasoul, Defense Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak, Finance Minister Omar Zakhilwal, Education Minister Ghulam Farooq Wardak, Commerce Minister Anwar ul-Haq Ahady, Agriculure Minister Mohammad Asef Rahimi and Communication Minister Amirzai Sangin. The list of current governors of Afghanistan, as well as the parliamentarians in the House of the People and House of Elders, include large percentage of Pashtuns. The Chief of staff of the Afghan National Army, Sher Mohammad Karimi, and Commander of the Afghan Air Force, Mohammad Dawran, as well as Chief Justice of Afghanistan Abdul Salam Azimi and Attorney General Mohammad Ishaq Aloko also belong to the Pashtun ethnic group. Several prominent Pashtun families include the Tarzis, Gilanis, and the Karzais.
They not only played an important role in South Asia but also in Central Asia, including the Middle East. The Afghan royal family, which was represented by king Zahir Shah, is of ethnic Pashtun origin. Other prominent Pashtuns include the 17th-century poets Khushal Khan Khattak and Rahman Baba, and in contemporary era Afghan Astronaut Abdul Ahad Mohmand, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Zalmay Khalilzad, Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, Ali Ahmad Jalali, Hedayat Amin Arsala and Mirwais Ahmadzai among many others.
Ethnic Pashtuns of Pakistan, notably Ayub Khan, Yahya Khan and Ghulam Ishaq Khan, attained the Presidency. Many more held high government posts, such as Army Chief Gul Hassan Khan, Abdul Waheed Kakar, Interior Minister Aftab Ahmad Sherpao, and etc. Others became famous in sports (i.e. Shahid Afridi, Imran Khan, Jahangir Khan, and Jansher Khan) and literature (i.e. Ghani Khan, Ameer Hamza Shinwari, Munir Niazi, and Omer Tarin). The Awami National Party (ANP) of Pakistan is represented by Pashtun nationalist Asfandyar Wali Khan, grandson of Bacha Khan, while the chairman of the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PMAP) is Mahmood Khan Achakzai, son of Abdul Samad Khan Achakzai.
One of India's former presidents, Zakir Hussain, had Pashtun origin of the Afridi tribe who came from an upper middle class Pashtun family settled in Farrukhabad. Mohammad Yunus, India's former ambassador to Algeria and advisor to Indira Gandhi, is an ethnic Pashtun related to the legendary Bacha Khan
Anthropology And Oral Traditions
Some anthropologists lend credence to the oral traditions of the Pashtun tribes themselves. For example, according to the Encyclopaedia of Islam, the theory of Pashtun descent from Israelites is traced to Maghzan-e-Afghani who compiled a history for Khan-e-Jehan Lodhi in the reign of Mughal Emperor Jehangir in the 17th century.
Another book that corresponds with Pashtun historical records, Taaqati-Nasiri, states that in the 7th century BC a people called the Bani Israel settled in the Ghor region of Afghanistan and migrated later to the southeast areas. These references to Bani Israel agree with the commonly held view by Pashtuns that when the twelve tribes of Israel were dispersed (see Israel and Judah and Ten Lost Tribes), the tribe of Joseph, among other Hebrew tribes, settled in the region. This oral tradition is widespread among the Pashtuns. There have been many legends over the centuries of descent from the Ten Lost Tribes after groups converted to Christianity and Islam. Hence the tribal name Yusufzai in Pashto translates to the "son of Joseph". A similar story is told by the 16th century Persian historian, Ferishta.
One conflicting issue in the belief that the Pashtuns descend from the Israelites is that the Ten Lost Tribes were exiled by the ruler of Assyria, while Maghzan-e-Afghani says they were permitted by the ruler to go east to Afghanistan. This inconsistency can be explained by the fact that Persia acquired the lands of the ancient Assyrian Empire when it conquered the Empire of the Medes and Chaldean Babylonia, which had conquered Assyria decades earlier. But no ancient author mentions such a transfer of Israelites further east, or no ancient extra-Biblical texts refer to the Ten Lost Tribes at all.
Other Pashtun tribes claim descent from Arabs, including some even claiming to be descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad (referred to as Sayyids). Some groups from Peshawar and Kandahar claim to be descended from Ancient Greeks that arrived with Alexander the Great.
In terms of race, the Pashtuns are classified as Caucasians of the Mediterranean variant. Their Pashto language is classified under the Eastern Iranian sub-branch of the Iranian branch of the Indo-European family of languages.
Early precursors to the Pashtuns were old Iranian tribes that spread throughout the eastern Iranian plateau. According to the Russian scholar Yu. V. Gankovsky, the Pashtuns probably began as a "union of largely East-Iranian tribes which became the initial ethnic stratum of the Pashtun ethnogenesis, dates from the middle of the first millennium CE and is connected with the dissolution of the Epthalite (White Huns) confederacy." He proposes Kushan-o-Ephthalite origin for Pashtuns.
Those who speak a dialect of Pashto in the Kandahar region refer to themselves as Pashtuns, while those who speak a Peshawari dialect call themselves Pukhtuns. These native people compose the core of ethnic Pashtuns who are found in southeastern Afghanistan and western Pakistan. The Pashtuns have oral and written accounts of their family tree. The elders transfer the knowledge to the younger generation. Lineage is considered very important and is a vital consideration in marital business.
Another book that corresponds with Pashtun historical records, Taaqati-Nasiri, states that in the 7th century BC a people called the Bani Israel settled in the Ghor region of Afghanistan and migrated later to the southeast areas. These references to Bani Israel agree with the commonly held view by Pashtuns that when the twelve tribes of Israel were dispersed (see Israel and Judah and Ten Lost Tribes), the tribe of Joseph, among other Hebrew tribes, settled in the region. This oral tradition is widespread among the Pashtuns. There have been many legends over the centuries of descent from the Ten Lost Tribes after groups converted to Christianity and Islam. Hence the tribal name Yusufzai in Pashto translates to the "son of Joseph". A similar story is told by the 16th century Persian historian, Ferishta.
Other Pashtun tribes claim descent from Arabs, including some even claiming to be descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad (referred to as Sayyids). Some groups from Peshawar and Kandahar claim to be descended from Ancient Greeks that arrived with Alexander the Great.
In terms of race, the Pashtuns are classified as Caucasians of the Mediterranean variant. Their Pashto language is classified under the Eastern Iranian sub-branch of the Iranian branch of the Indo-European family of languages.
Early precursors to the Pashtuns were old Iranian tribes that spread throughout the eastern Iranian plateau. According to the Russian scholar Yu. V. Gankovsky, the Pashtuns probably began as a "union of largely East-Iranian tribes which became the initial ethnic stratum of the Pashtun ethnogenesis, dates from the middle of the first millennium CE and is connected with the dissolution of the Epthalite (White Huns) confederacy." He proposes Kushan-o-Ephthalite origin for Pashtuns.
Those who speak a dialect of Pashto in the Kandahar region refer to themselves as Pashtuns, while those who speak a Peshawari dialect call themselves Pukhtuns. These native people compose the core of ethnic Pashtuns who are found in southeastern Afghanistan and western Pakistan. The Pashtuns have oral and written accounts of their family tree. The elders transfer the knowledge to the younger generation. Lineage is considered very important and is a vital consideration in marital business.
History Of Pukhtoon
Pashtuns (Pashto: پښتون Paṣ̌tun, Pax̌tun, also rendered as Pushtuns, Pakhtuns, Pukhtuns), also called Pathans (in Urdu: پٹھان Paṭhān) or ethnic Afghans (in Persian: افغان), are an Eastern Iranian ethno-linguistic group with populations primarily in Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan, which includes Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Balochistan. The Pashtuns are typically characterized by their usage of the Pashto language and practice of Pashtunwali, a traditional set of ethics guiding individual and communal conduct. The Pashtuns have a glorious past and their deeds of bravery, chivalry and their identity as unexhaustable warriors have earned them great name in the history of Asia.[12] Their true origin is unclear but historians have come across references to a people called Paktha (Pactyans) between the 2nd and the 1st millennium BC, who may be the early ancestors of Pashtuns. Since the 3rd century AD and onward, they are mostly referred to by the ethnonym "Afghan".
Usually described as a warrior and martial race, they have a glorious past especially after their conversion to the faith of Islam. Their turbulent history is spread amongst various countries of South Asia, especially Afghanistan which has been their traditional seat of power. During the Delhi Sultanate era, many Pashtun emperors (sultans) ruled the Indian subcontinent. Other Pashtuns defeated the Safavid Persians and the Mughal Empire before obtaining an independent state in the early-18th century, which began with a successful revolution by the Hotaki dynasty followed by conquests by Ahmad Shah Durrani.[ Pashtuns played a vital role during the Great Game from the 19th century to the 20th century as they were caught between the imperialist designs of the British and Russian empires. For over 300 years, they reigned as the dominant ethnic group in Afghanistan with nearly all rulers being Pashtun. More recently, the Pashtuns gained global attention during the 1980s Soviet war in Afghanistan and with the rise of the Taliban, since they are the main ethnic contingent in the movement. Pashtuns are also an important community in Pakistan, where they have attained the presidency and high positions in the military, and are the second-largest ethnic group in that country.
The Pashtuns are the world's largest (patriarchal) segmentary lineage ethnic group. According to Ethnologue, the total population of the group is estimated to be around 50 million but an accurate count remains elusive due to the lack of an official census in Afghanistan since 1979. Estimates of the number of Pashtun tribes and clans range from about 350 to over 400.The history of the Pashtun people is ancient and much of it is not fully researched. Since the 2nd millennium BC, cities in the region now inhabited by Pashtuns have seen invasions and migrations, including by Ancient Iranian peoples, the Median and Persian empires of antiquity, Greeks, Mauryas, Kushans, Hephthalites, Sassanids, Arab Muslims, Turks, Mongols, and others. In recent age, people of the Western world have explored the area as well.
There are many conflicting theories about the origin of Pashtuns, some modern and others archaic, both among historians and the Pashtuns themselves. According to most historians and experts, the true origin of the Pashtuns is some what unclear.
Usually described as a warrior and martial race, they have a glorious past especially after their conversion to the faith of Islam. Their turbulent history is spread amongst various countries of South Asia, especially Afghanistan which has been their traditional seat of power. During the Delhi Sultanate era, many Pashtun emperors (sultans) ruled the Indian subcontinent. Other Pashtuns defeated the Safavid Persians and the Mughal Empire before obtaining an independent state in the early-18th century, which began with a successful revolution by the Hotaki dynasty followed by conquests by Ahmad Shah Durrani.[ Pashtuns played a vital role during the Great Game from the 19th century to the 20th century as they were caught between the imperialist designs of the British and Russian empires. For over 300 years, they reigned as the dominant ethnic group in Afghanistan with nearly all rulers being Pashtun. More recently, the Pashtuns gained global attention during the 1980s Soviet war in Afghanistan and with the rise of the Taliban, since they are the main ethnic contingent in the movement. Pashtuns are also an important community in Pakistan, where they have attained the presidency and high positions in the military, and are the second-largest ethnic group in that country.
The Pashtuns are the world's largest (patriarchal) segmentary lineage ethnic group. According to Ethnologue, the total population of the group is estimated to be around 50 million but an accurate count remains elusive due to the lack of an official census in Afghanistan since 1979. Estimates of the number of Pashtun tribes and clans range from about 350 to over 400.The history of the Pashtun people is ancient and much of it is not fully researched. Since the 2nd millennium BC, cities in the region now inhabited by Pashtuns have seen invasions and migrations, including by Ancient Iranian peoples, the Median and Persian empires of antiquity, Greeks, Mauryas, Kushans, Hephthalites, Sassanids, Arab Muslims, Turks, Mongols, and others. In recent age, people of the Western world have explored the area as well.
There are many conflicting theories about the origin of Pashtuns, some modern and others archaic, both among historians and the Pashtuns themselves. According to most historians and experts, the true origin of the Pashtuns is some what unclear.
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 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....the origin of the Afghans is so obscure, that no one, even among the oldest and most clever of the tribe, can give satisfactory information on this point.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)