The Pashtuns

Pashtuns or Pathans are an ethnolinguistic people located mainly in Afghanistan and in tribal areas of western Pakistan. The Pashtuns have the hallmarks of the Pashto language use and practice of Pashtunwali code, a traditional old code of conduct and honor.

Seed Pashtuns of Kandahar

Pashtun society consists of many tribes and clans which were rarely united throughout history, until the emergence of the Durrani Empire in 1747. During the Anglo-Russian rivalry (known as The Great Game), played a vital role because the limit of both empires coincided with the settlement area. For 250 years the Pashtuns were the dominant group in Afghanistan, and stirred up the world's attention with the Soviet invasion of the country (1979) and with the rise and fall of the Taliban because of their ethnicity should be the main contingent of the fundamentalist movement. Pashtuns are also an important community in Pakistan, where are the second largest ethnic group.

The Pashtun population is estimated about 42 million people, but there is no official census in Afghanistan since 1979. There are about 60 major tribes and, within them, more than 400 sub-clans.

Demography. The vast majority of Pashtuns live in a belt stretching from southeastern Afghanistan to northwestern Pakistan. There are also Pashtuns in Pakistan's northern areas and in eastern Iran. They have a small presence in India, while in recent years have seen the small communities of immigrants in Europe, North America and the Arabian Peninsula. The major metropolitan centers are Kandahar, Jalalabad and Swat. Peshawar, Quetta, Kabul and Kunduz are ethnically diverse cities, but with a large presence of Pashtun population. In Karachi, 3.5 million Pashtuns live.

Sher Ali Khan and company Sikh

Ethnicity is the 15.42 percent of Pakistan's population, about 25.6 million people. In Afghanistan, an estimated 42 percent of the population is Pashtun, about 13.3 million people. Among the 1.7 million Afghan refugees in Pakistan, mostly Pashtuns. A cumulative sum of the Pashtuns in the region for a total of 42 million people.

History and origins. The history of the Pashtuns remains without reliable research. From the second millennium BC, the cities of the region have been subject to invasions and migrations. Visited by Indo-Iranian, Indo-Aryans, Medes, Persians, Mauryas, Scythians, Kushans, heptalitas, Greeks, Arabs, Turks, Mongols, British, Russian and, more recently, the United States of America. Several theories-both academic and popular-hit about the origin of Pashtuns

Old references. There are several ancient groups with eponyms similar to the Pashtuns, who have been referred to as the possible ancestors of modern Pashtuns. The Greek historian Herodotus mentioned the people "pactiano" on the eastern border of the Persian satrapy Arachosia, as in the first millennium BC. His connection with the Pashtuns is unclear. And similarly, the Rig Veda mentions the tribe "paktha" (in the region of Pakhat), ie, the current eastern Afghanistan. Some scholars have suggested a connection with modern Pashtuns, but this is speculation.

In the Middle Ages until the advent of the modern state of Afghanistan in 1747, and the division of the Pashtun territory by the Durand Line, in 1893, the Pashtuns were given merely as the "Afghans." This adjective first appears in history in the Hudud-al-Alam in 982 AD, was referring to a common ancestor and legendary Pashtuns, known as Afghani.

Ahmad Shah Durrani

The wise Alberuni refers to Afghans as a group of tribes living in the border mountains between old India and Persia. In this geographical location, the Pashtuns had close contact with Indian tribes and Iranian, as witnessed by the famous Moroccan traveler Ibn Battuta, during a visit to Kabul in the year 1333: "We traveled to Kabul, formerly a vast city, whose site is now occupied by a tribe of Persians called "Afghans."

Anthropology and linguistics. The origins of the Pashtuns are in eastern Iran. The language belongs to the Iranian sub-branch of the family of Indo-European languages. The Pashtuns are classified as Iranians, possibly as descendants of the Bactrians and Scythians. The old Iranian tribes that expanded to over the Iranian plateau were early precursors to the Pashtuns. Like other Iranian peoples, many Pashtuns have mixed with various invaders, neighboring groups and migrants. In terms of phenotype, Pashtuns are predominantly a Mediterranean group, so that the light hair and pale skin are not uncommon, especially among remote mountain tribes.

Oral traditions. Some anthropologists lend credence to mythical oral traditions of the Pashtun tribes themselves. For example, according to the Encyclopedia of Islam, the theory of descent is Israeli Pashtuns originated in Maghzan-e-Afghani who compiled a history during the reign of Mughal Emperor Jehangir, in the seventeenth century.

Ghilzai nomads in Afghanistan

Another historical book, the Taaqati-Nasiri, maintains that in the seventh century a people called Bani Israel settled in Ghor, southeast of Herat, and later migrated south and east. These references marry a common vision of Pashto oral tradition, that when the twelve tribes of Israel were dispersed, the tribe of Joseph settled in the region. The Pashtun name "Yusuf Zai" translates as "the sons of Joseph."

Other Pashtun tribes claim that descended from the Arabs, and there are even some who claimed (the sayyids) that Muhammad is among their ancestors. Some groups of Peshawar and Kandahar (Afridis, and sadozais khattaks) are said to descendants of the ancient Greeks who came to the territory of Alexander the Great.

Modern Age. The Pashtuns are intimately tied to the history of modern Afghanistan and western Pakistan. Following the Arab-Turkish conquests of the VII-XI centuries, the ghazis (warriors of the faith) Pashtuns invaded and conquered much of northwestern India. His recent past runs through the Hotaki dynasty and later the Durrani Empire. The defeated Hotaki Safayid Dynasty of Persia and took control much of the Persian Empire between 1722 and 1738. This campaign was followed by the conquests of Ahmad Shah Durrani, a former senior commander under Nadir Shah of Persia. He founded the Durrani Empire, over a large part of what is now Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kashmir, Indian Punjab and the province of Khorasan (Iran). After the fall of the Durrani Empire in 1818, the Barakzai clan took control of Afghanistan. The country was in the hands of sub-clan Mohammedzai, since 1826 until the end of the reign of Mohammed Zahir Shah, in 1973. This legacy continues today: Hamid Karzai comes from the Pashtun tribe Popalzai in Kandahar.

Zahir Shah, the last Afghan king

Afghan Pashtuns resisted the British design of its territory and held off the Russians during the so-called Great Game. Despite the rivalry of the two empires, Afghanistan remained an independent state and enjoyed some autonomy. But during the reign of Abdur Rahman Khan (1880-1901), the Pashtun regions were divided by the Durand Line, and what is now western Pakistan was ceded to British India in 1893. In the twentieth century, many Pashtun leaders politically active and living in the British province of North West Frontier supported the independence of India, and were inspired by the peace movement of Mahatma Gandhi. His region was embedded in the newly created Pakistan.

The Pashtun Afghans, however, achieved full independence from British intervention during the reign of King Amanullah Khan, after the third Anglo-Afghan war. The monarchy ended in 1973 after a coup executed by Sardar Daud Khan. This opened the door to Soviet intervention, which was culminated by the Saur Revolution in 1978. Many Pashtun opposition joined the mujahideen against the Soviet intervention. This sowed the seeds of the modern Taliban, a religious movement originating in southern Afghanistan. In late 2001, the Taliban government was overthrown by a new invasion, this time led by the United States.

Who are the Pashtuns. Among historians, anthropologists and the Pashtuns themselves is active debate about who makes up this town. Among the various definitions, highlights the ethnolinguistic, that kept Pashtuns who move within the parameters of ethnic origin in eastern Iran, have a language, shared culture and history, living in proximity and are recognized as members of that village . The tribes who speak dialects very different from the Pashtun, for example, are recognized as members of the common body.

Another definition, more narrowly refers to a component of culture. Requires Pashtuns are Muslims and respect the Pashtunwali code. This is the prevailing view among the more conservative tribal leaders, who deny the Pashtun status of the Jews, even if they themselves claim to have ancestors of that religion. Pashtun society is not homogenous, Chapter religious: most are Sunni Muslims, but Shiites nuclei in the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan. Pakistani and Afghan Jews, who once numbered in the thousands, living today in Israel and the United States.

Expression of Pashtuns

A third definition refers to the ancient and patrilinear component, based on an important law of Pashtunwali, in which only those who have a parent Pashtun Pashtun. This definition places less emphasis on the language of each. For example, the Pashtuns Indians have lost their language and many customs, but are still considered Pashtuns, like Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan, the ancestors of this community.

Culture. Pashtun culture settled in the course of many centuries. The pre-Islamic traditions, you probably already present during the conquest of Alexander in 330 BC, survived as traditional dances, while the literary and music styles still reflect a strong influence of the Persian tradition. Pashtun culture is a unique blend of native customs and strong influences of the West, East and South Asia.

Religion. The vast majority of Pashtuns is Sunni Islam, especially the Hanafi school. A significant proportion of the Pashtuns are Shiites, mainly in eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. There are strong links between tribal affiliation and membership of the Islamic community. Most Pashtuns believe they are descendants of Qais Abdur Rashid, an early convert from Islam who brought the faith to the Pashtun population. Some historians believe that the Pashtuns could be Zoroastrians, Hindus, Jews or shamanistic before the arrival of Islam. Some were able to practice Buddhism. However, this is all conjecture at the moment and there is no conclusive evidence.

Pashtunwali. The term "pakhto 'or' Pashto 'from which the Pashtuns derive their name not only refers to the language, but the code of honor known as pre-Islamic Pashtunwali. It is believed that it originated in a pagan time and, in many ways, eventually merged with Islamic beliefs. The Pashtunwali governs and regulates nearly every aspect of life, from the tribal affairs to individual behavior and honor.

Hamid Karzai

The Pashtunwali influences the social behavior of Pashtuns. One of the best known principles is the melmastia, the duty of hospitality and asylum to all guests seeking help. The perceived injustice requires Badal, revenge. "Revenge is a dish best served cold" was taken in these lands by the British and later popularized in the West. Men are required to protect Zan, Zar and Zameen, women, money and land. Some aspects promote peaceful coexistence, as Nanawati, the humble admission of guilt for a wrong committed, which should result in automatic forgiveness by the offended party. Other aspects of Pashtunwali have come under heavy criticism, especially regarding the rights of women and honor killings. The Pashtunwali remains in force among many Pashtuns, especially in rural areas.

Literature and media Pashtuns. Throughout Pashtun history, there were poets, prophets, warriors and kings were revered. But literature did not play a role, mainly because Persian was the lingua franca of neighboring countries and dominated the typed letters. The first written records of Pashto are the sixteenth century and describes the conquest of Swat by Shaikh Mali. In the twentieth century, in Pashto literature gained prominence through the work of Amir Hamza Shinwari, who cultivated the ghazals. In 1919, Mahmud Tarzi began publishing the first newspaper in Afghanistan: Seraj-al-Akhbar.

With very low rates of literacy, many Pashtuns continue to adhere to oral traditions. Men continue to meet in the chai-tea shops-khaanas to hear oral histories, stories of bravery and courage. Although the tradition of the storyteller is male-dominated Pashtun society is also marked by certain matriarchal tendencies. The stories related to reverence for the mother are common and are passed from parents to children, like most Pashtun heritage, through a rich oral tradition that has survived over time.

Sport. Traditional sports include naiza bazi, including riders competing in spear throwing. The pole is also a traditional sport in the region and is popular with some of the tribes. Pashtuns are also involved in the fighting and Buzkashi, often part of the sports events. Cricket was a legacy of British rule over Pakistan and India, countries that now have some Pashtuns from their best players.

Lance the traditional Buzkashi

Performing Arts. The Pashtun are a people engaged in various forms of expression such as dance, sword fighting and other physical activities. The most common form of artistic expression can be seen in the various dance forms. One of the most prominent is the bind, it has old pagan roots. Amended by Islamic mysticism, today is the national dance of Afghanistan.

The ATAN dances accompanied by several traditional instruments such as drum, table, or the tula rubab (wooden flute). With a quick circular motion, the dancers dance until there is no dancing. Most dances are male, although there are some exceptions such as Spin and tumbal Takray, a kind of drum performance by the girls of the people when one of them gets married.

Traditional Pashtun music has ties to the traditional Afghan music, in turn inspired by that of Hindustan. Popular forms include the ghazal (sung poetry) and Sufi Qawali music. Topics revolve around love and religious introspection. The modern Pashtun music is centered on city of Peshawar, Afghan wars since, and has its own techniques combined with features Persian and Indian music from Bollywood.

Tribes. A feature of the Pashtun people is its intricate system of tribes. The Pashtuns are predominantly a tribal people, but urbanization the world has begun to alter Pashtun society: cities like Peshawar, Quetta or Kabul are growing rapidly due to the flow of rural Pashtuns and the arrival of refugees. Although urban development, many people still identify with various clans.

Meeting of a rural council

The tribal system has several levels of organization: the tribe (tabar) is divided into kinship groups called khels in turn divided into smaller groups (pllarina), formed in turn by several extended families kahols calls. The Pashtun tribes are classified into four major tribal groups: the sarbanes, the batianos, the ghurghushtos and karlanes.

Another prominent Pashtun institution is the Jirga or Senate, made ​​by local veterans. Most decisions in tribal life are made ​​by council members, which is the main authority recognize as egalitarian Pashtuns viable government body.

Women. The lives of Pashtun women vary between those living in conservative rural areas, as the tribal belt, and those living in urban centers, with greater relative freedom. Though many Pashtun women remain uneducated, others have had access to work. The Russian occupation, Afghan wars and the Taliban regime brought hard times for women, whose rights were limited by an uncompromising interpretation of Islamic law.

The Kandahari Begum Jan

The code often narrows Pashtunwali women in traditional roles that separate sexes. The path of change and reform has been impeded by the Afghan wars, and by the isolation and instability of tribal life in Pakistan. Proof of social barriers is that the illiteracy rate among them is well above that of boys.

Abuses against women widespread, have a growing opposition by several women's associations are very active, fighting against conservatives and religious groups against government officials in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. Pashtun women often see that their rights are at the expense of their husbands or male relatives. Pashtun men are still the domain of life in Pashtunistan.