So to educate myself a little bit, I thought I'd write a short blurb about the different groups who make up the majority of the population in Afghanistan. By no means do I intend to attempt to write a detailed account of each groups history - that could be a whole research paper in it's self. Just enough to highlight the differences between the groups and be able to get and understanding of how Afghan society is differentiated. According to the world factbook, Afghanistan is made up of roughly 70% Pashtuns and Tajik, with another 9% Hazara, 9% Uzbek, 4% Aimak and a variety of other minorities.
Pashtuns: Pashtuns are an eastern Iranian group who make up the majority of the population of Afghanistan. They have played a dominant role in Afghanistan's history and in modern Afghan society. They are Sunni (as is most of Afghanistan), speak the Pashto language and follow what is known as Pashtunwali.
 | |
| Hamid Karzai - Pashtun |
Pashtunwali is similar to, but distinct from, Sharia. It is a set of guiding moral principles, traditions and rules by which the Pashtuns live. Some of the principles include:
Melmastia (hospitality) - Pashtuns believe in showing hospitality and respect to all visitors of their home.
Sabat (loyalty) - Loyalty to one's family, tribe and friends.
Ghayrat (self honour) - Maintaining ones honor, which also implies one must respect the honor of others.
And there are several others as well. The exact origins of the Pashtun people are not well known, and they have no written history. They are located primarily in eastern, southern and southwestern Afghanistan (as well as Iran and Pakistan), and large concentrations can be found in the major cities. They have traditionally been a tribal society, with tribes broken down into clans and families, though Pashtuns living in urban cities may be disconnected from their tribal background. The Taliban is mostly made up of Pashtuns, as are many other militant groups.
Tajiks: The Tajiks are descended from Persia (modern day Iran) and speak modern Persian, known as Farsi. They make up the second largest group in Afghanistan, accounting for about 27% of the population. Though not as numerous, they make up a large portion of Afghanistans educated and elite, and as such have considerable influence in Afghan government and politics. They are sedentary traders, artisans and farmers and are Sunni Muslims.
 |
| Ahmad Shah Massoud - A Tajik |
Unlike the Pashtuns, they do not have a well defined social structure and often adopt that of their neighbors. They do, however, have their own set of beliefs and traditions. Because they are not organized into large tribes, Tajiks are very village oriented and have a strong sense of community loyalty. They live Primarily in the North East near the border to Tajikastan and down to Kabul, and there is also a concentration of Tajiks surrounding Herat.
Hazara: Hazarans occupy much of the mountainous and rugged central Afghanistan known as Hazarajat.Unlike most other Afghan groups, they are predominantly Shia Muslims, which as times has brought persecution upon them. Hazarans are thought to descend from the mongols - if not directly from Genghis Khan - and have facial features distinct from other groups in Afghanistan. They speak Hazaragi, a dialect of the Farsi language.
 |
| A Hazaran girl |
The American invasion of Afghanistan has greatly liberated the Hazara people. Under the Taliban they were heavily persecuted - mainly due to their Shia believes, and had very little socioeconomic status. In the past ten years, there is much more opportunity for the Hazran man and woman.
Continued in Friday's post...
Some references:
http://countrystudies.us/afghanistan/40.htm
http://www.everyculture.com/wc/Tajikistan-to-Zimbabwe/Tajiks.html
http://www.everyculture.com/wc/Afghanistan-to-Bosnia-Herzegovina/Pashtun.html
http://www.afghan-network.net/Ethnic-Groups/tajiks.html
No comments:
Post a Comment