Pashtuns

Pashtuns

Regions with significant populations
Pakistan: 28,000,000 Afghanistan: 13,000,000 Iran:    500,000 United Arab Emirates:    126,000 United Kingdom:    88,000 Turkey:    54,000 United States:    44,000 India:    40,000 Germany:    35,000 France:    33,000 Austria:    31,000 Tajikistan:    26,000 Netherlands:    26,000
Languages
Pashto
Religion
Islam, Judaism, small groups of agnostic/atheists
Related ethnic groups
Indo-European   Iranian

Main areas populated by Pashtuns including overlapping regions

The Pashtuns (also Pushtun, Pakhtun, ethnic Afghan, or Pathan) are an ethno-linguistic group consisting mainly of eastern Iranian stock living primarily in eastern and southern Afghanistan, and the North West Frontier Province, Federally Administered Tribal Areas and Baluchistan provinces of Pakistan. Large additional colonies can be found in the Northern Areas, Azad Kashmir, and the cities of Karachi, Islamabad and Lahore in Pakistan as well as throughout other parts of Afghanistan. There are smaller communities in Iran and India, and a large migrant worker community in the countries of the Arabian Peninsula. The Pashtuns are typically characterized by their language, their pre-Islamic indigenous code of honor and culture Pashtunwali, and adherence to Islam.

The Pashtuns are the world's largest segmentary lineage (patriarchal) tribal group in existence. The total population of the group is estimated to be between 40 to 50 million[1], but an accurate count remains difficult to verify as there has not been an official census in Afghanistan since the 1970s, while in Pakistan, due to the migratory nature of many Pashtun tribes as well as the practice of secluding women, exact figures are to hard to attain.

History and Origins

File:Ahmad Shah Durrani.jpg

The founder of modern Afghanistan: Ahmad Shah Durrani

Pashtun culture is ancient and much of it is yet to be recorded in contemporary times. There are many conflicting theories, some contemporary and some ancient, about the origins of the Pashtun people, both among historians and the Pashtun themselves.

Ancient references

Herodotus and several other Greek and Roman historians have mentioned a people called 'Pactyan' living on the eastern frontier of Iran as early as the first millennium CE. It has been conjectured that these may be the ancestors of today's Pashtuns, but there is no specific evidence for this. In addition, the Rig-Veda mentions a tribe called the 'Pakhat' as inhabiting present-day Afghanistan and some have speculated that they may have been early ancestors of the Pashtuns, but this remains unproven. The Bactrians appear to have spoken a related Eastern Iranian language and it is conceivable that the Pashtuns are at least partially descended from them, especially Pashtuns in the Kabul and Peshawar regions.

The Pashtuns most likely were living near somewhere in the vicinity of the city of Kandahar and the Suleiman Mountains and began expanding millennia ago. Due to their geographic location, they have often been in close contact with the Persians, while religiously most Pashtuns, according to archaeological evidence, were most likely Buddhist and Zoroastrian with small minorities of pagans, Hindus, and Jews prior to the coming of Arab Muslim invaders in the 8th century CE.

According to the writer W.K. Frazier Tytler writing in his book Afghanistan, "The word Afghan… first appears in history in the Hudud-al-Alam, a work by an unknown Arab geographer who wrote in 982 CE." Until the advent of the modern Afghan state in the 18th century, the word Afghan had been synonymous with Pashtun.

"The supposition that the Pathans are any different from the Afghans is not borne out either by the legendary accounts associated with the origin of this people or by historical or ethnological data." (Afghan Immigration in the Early Middle Ages, by K.S Lal).

From the 1st century BCE to the 5th century CE the regions where the Pashtuns lived saw immense migrations of Eurasian peoples including the Aryans, Persians, Sakas, Scythians, Kushans, Huns, and Greeks. Later invaders would include Muslim Arabs and Central Asian Turkic tribes as well as the devastating assaults by the Mongols.

Anthropological and linguistic evidence

According to most anthropologists, Pashto-speaking Pashtuns appear to be primarily of Iranian origin (as well as being modified by various other invaders and migrants over the centuries) and are very similar to the Persians, Kurds, Tajiks and Baluchis. These anthropologists believe the Pashtuns have eastern Iranian origins as the Pashto language is classified as an eastern Iranian tongue distantly related to Ossetic among other Iranian languages (see Ethnologue for further details).

The Pashto-speaking Pashtuns refer to themselves as Pashtuns or Pukhtuns depending upon whether they are speakers of the southern dialect or northern dialect respectively. These Pashtuns compose the core of ethnic Pashtuns who are predominantly an Iranian people and found in southern and eastern Afghanistan and western Pakistan. Many Pashto-speaking Pashtuns have however intermingled with various invaders, neighboring groups, and migrants (as have the other Iranian peoples) including possibly the Ghilzai who may have mingled with Turkic tribes, the Durrani who have interacted considerably with the Tajiks (another Iranian people), and Pashtun tribes north of Peshawar who have mingled with Dardic groups. In terms of phenotype, the Pashto-speaking Pashtuns overall are predominantly a Caucasoid people with Mediterranean features, but blonde hair and blue and green eyes are not uncommon, especially amongst remote mountain tribes.

Transitional groups

In terms of language use, various transitional groups of Pashtuns show varying degrees of overlap with neighboring populations. A prime example are the 'Punjabi Pathans' who appear to be of mixed Pashtun and Punjabi origin and tend to be bilingual in Pashto and Hindko and can be found mainly in northern Pakistan. In addition, many Durrani in Afghanistan tend to be bilingual in Pashto and Dari or sometimes simply speak Dari.

Claimants of Pashtun descent

There are also various groups which claim Pashtun descent and are largely found amongst other groups in Afghanistan and South Asia and generally do not speak Pashto and are often considered either overlapping groups or are simply assigned to the ethno-linguistic group that fits their geographic location and their mother tongue. Some groups who claim Pashtun descent and yet generally do not speak Pashto include the Hazaragi Pashtuns who are of mixed Pashtun and Hazara ancestry as well as some persianized tribes in Afghanistan. Many claimants of Pashtun heritage in India have mixed with local Indian populations and refer to themselves (and Pashto-speaking Pashtuns and often Afghans in general) in the Urdu variant Pathan rather than Pashtun or Pukhtun. These populations are usually only part-Pashtun, to varying degrees, and often trace their Pashtun ancestry through a paternal lineage, and are not universally viewed as ethnic Pashtuns (see section below on 'Who is a Pashtun' for further analysis). These groups with partial Pashtun heritage sometimes show traces of Mongol ancestry such as the Hazaragi Pashtuns while Pathans in India often display many phenotype similarities to Indian groups

Indigenous oral tradition of Pashtun origins

In addition, some anthropologists lend credence to the oral traditions of the elder Pashtun tribes themselves. For example, according to the Encyclopedia 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 16th century CE. Another book, Taaqati-Nasiri, states that in the 7th century a people called the Bani Israel settled in Ghor, southeast of Herat, Afghanistan and then migrated south and east. This account corresponds with most Pashtun historical records as to where some tribes resided before migrating towards modern day Pakistan and India. These Bani Israel references are in line with the commonly held view by Pashtuns that when the twelve tribes of Israel were dispersed (see Israel and Judah, Lost Ten Tribes), the tribe of Joseph among other Hebrew tribes settled in the region. Hence the term 'Yusef Zai' in Pashto translates to the 'sons of Joseph'. The Afridis also claim through oral tradition that they are descendents of the Bani Israel tribe of Ephraim.

Other Pashtun tribes claim descent from Arabs including some even claiming to be descendents of the Muslim Prophet Muhammad. The partial Arab descent for some tribes may be possible as small groups of Arab tribes did settle amongst the Pashtuns tribes during the rise of Islam. Some groups such as the Afridis also claim to be descended from Alexander the Great's Greeks.

Genetic insights into the origins of the Pashtuns

Research into human DNA has emerged as a new and innovative tool being used to explore the genetic make-up of various populations in order to ascertain historical population movements. According to some recent genetic research (the source of which is disclosed under the references section below regarding random sampling of Pashtun populations in western Pakistan) the anthropological evidence that the Pashto-speaking Pashtuns are an Indo-European people related to other Iranian groups as well as speakers of Dardic languages such as the Kalasha and the Nuristanis appears very probable but is not by any means conclusive at this time. The testing, though still in its initial phases, has not shown any substantial connection between the general Pashtun population sampled to the genetic markers found amongst most Greeks, Jews, or Arabs. What may be the case is that the Pashtuns have been slightly modified over time by various invaders, while maintaining their eastern Iranian base genetically overall. Ultimately, more research and a wider sampling of DNA will be required before the findings can be deemed conclusive and generally representative of Pashto-speaking Pashtuns.

Pashtuns in the modern era

The Pashtuns are intimately tied to the history of modern-era Afghanistan stretching back to the Durrani Empire. The country's founder, Ahmad Shah Durrani, was an Abdali (Durrani) Pashtun and formerly a high-ranking military official under the Turko-Iranian ruler Nadir Shah in Iran. He founded the empire of Greater Afghanistan which covered all of what is today Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kashmir and a portion of Iranian Mashad in 1747 and the Pashtuns would rule this empire for the next 80 years, while truncated Afghanistan emerged following conflicts with the Sikhs (see also Ranjit Singh) and the British. The Pashtuns/Afghans fought the British to a standstill and kept the Russians at bay during the Great Game during which Afghanistan managed to remain an independent state that played the two large empires against each other to maintain some semblance of autonomy. However, the British annexed the Pashtun majority regions that now comprise western Pakistan following the demarcation of the Durand Line and this would lead to the Pashtunistan dispute between Afghanistan and Pakistan. In the 20th century, Pashtun troops enlisted in the British Indian army and fought in World War II and became an important component of the Frontier Scouts and the Pakistan army as well as the modern Afghan military and were active in the opposition against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. More recently the Pashtuns became known for being the primary ethnic group that comprised the Taliban, whose ideological basis began in the North West Frontier Province of Pakistan during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, and their activity was centered around the city of Peshawar and at the Madarassa-e-Haqqania in Akora, Khattak.

In addition to Peshawar, the cities of Kandahar and Kabul figure quite prominently in Pashtun culture and the city of Quetta in Baluchistan also has a Pashtun majority population.

Many prominent Pashtuns have played an important role in the region. The current President of Afghanistan is an ethnic Pashtun, Hamid Karzai, while in neighboring Pakistan another ethnic Pashtun also attained the Presidency in the 1950s and 1960s, Ayub Khan. The Afghan royal family now represented by Muhammad Zahir Shah is also of ethnic Pashtun origin. Other prominent Pashtuns include the 17th century warrior poet Khushal Khan Khattak, Afghan "Iron" Emir Abdur Rahman Khan and in modern times Pakistani cricketer turned politician Imran Khan and US Ambassador to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad among many others.

Who is a Pashtun?

Sharbat Gula as seen in the photo used for the 1985 issue of National Geographic

Amongst historians, anthropologists, and the Pashtuns themselves, there is some debate as to who exactly is a Pashtun. The most prominent views are (1) that Pashtuns are predominantly an Eastern Iranian people who are speakers of the Pashto language and live in a contiguous geographic location (this is the generally accepted academic view) in Afghanistan and Pakistan, (2) Pashtuns, in addition to being Pashto-speakers and meeting other criteria, are also Muslim and follow Pashtunwali and thus Jews, Christians, or atheists would be excluded, (3) to define the Pashtuns in terms of patrilineal descent going back to legendary times in accordance with the legend of Qais Abdur Rashid who is seen as the progenitor of the Pashtun people. We may call these the ethno-linguistic definition, religious-cultural definition, and the patrilineal definition.

Ethnic definition

The ethno-linguistic definition is the most prominent and accepted view as to who is and is not a Pashtun. Generally, this most common view holds that Pashtuns are defined within the parameters of having mainly eastern Iranian ethnic origins, sharing a common language, culture and history, living in relatively close geographic proximity to each other, and acknowledging each other as kinsmen. Thus, tribes that speak even disparate yet mutually intelligible dialects of Pashto will acknowledge each other as ethnic Pashtuns and even subscribe to certain dialects as 'proper' such as the Pukhtu spoken by the Yousafzai and the Pashto spoken by the Durrani. These criteria tend to be used by most Pashtuns in Afghanistan and Pakistan as the basis for who can be counted as a Pashtun.

Cultural definition

The religious and cultural definition is more stringent and requires Pashtuns to be Muslim and adherants of the Pashtunwali code. This is the most prevalent view amongst the more orthodox and conservative tribesmen who do not view Pashtuns of the Jewish faith as actual Pashtuns even if they themselves might claim to be of Hebrew ancestry depending upon which tribe is in question. The religious definition for Pashtuns is partially based upon the laws of Pashtunwali, and that those who are Pashtun must follow and honor Pashtunwali. This notion of religion fused with ethnicity is found amongst various other groups as well such as the Armenians who, for example, also identify themselves as Armenian only if there is adherence to the Christian faith. Even amongst predominantly Sunni Muslim Pashtuns, there is a Shia minority amongst the Pashtuns. In addition, the Pashtun Jewish population (once numbering in the thousands) has largely relocated to Israel. Overall, more flexibility can be found amongst Pashtun intellectuals and academics who sometimes simply define who is and is not a Pashtun based upon other criteria that often excludes religion.

Ancestral definition

The patrilineal definition is based on an important orthodox law of Pashtunwali and tradition of Pashtun society. It states simply that if your father is not a Pashtun, neither are you. This law has kept the immemorial trait of the Pashtuns being an exclusively patriarchal tribe intact. Under this definition there is less regard as to what language you speak (Pashto, Persian, Urdu, English, etc.), while more emphasis is placed upon one's father in order to be an ethnic Pashtun. Thus, the Pathans in India, for example, who have lost both the language and presumably many of the ways of their ancestors, can, by being able to trace their fathers' ethnic heritage back to the Pashtun tribes (who some believe are descendants of the four grandsons of Qais Abdur Rashid, a possible legendary progenitor of the Pashtuns), remain 'Pashtun'. The legend states that Qais, after having heard of the new religion of Islam, travelled to meet the Muslim Prophet Muhammad in Medina and returned to Afghanistan a Muslim. Qais, in turn, purportedly had many children and one son, Afghana, had in turn had up to four sons who set out towards the east including one son who went towards Swat, another towards Lahore and India, another to Multan, and finally one to Quetta. This legend is one of many traditional tales amongst the Pashtuns regarding their disparate origins. Thus, under the patrilineal definition language is not in itself a defining issue.

Culture

Throughout Pashtun history poets, prophets, kings and warriors have been the most revered members of society. The term 'Pakhto' or 'Pashto' from which they derive their name is not merely the name of their language, but synonymous with an honour code and religion known as Pashtunwali. The main tenets of 'Pakhto' or formally known as Pashtunwali are:

1. Hospitality and asylum to all guests seeking help.
2. Justice: Ancient Israelite Moses' Law, Tooth for a Tooth.
3. Defense of 'Zan, Zar and Zameen' (Women/Family, Treasury and Property).
4. Personal Independence. Pashtuns are fiercely independent and there is a lot of internal competition.

Most decisions in tribal life are made by a 'Jirga' or 'Senate' of elected elders and wise men. However, Pashtun society is also marked by its matriarchal tendencies. Folktales involving reverence for Pashtun mothers and matriarchs are common and are passed down from parent to child, as most Pashtun heritage, through a rich oral tradition.

As noted above, some historians believe that the name Pakhtun has its origin in Pactyan, the name of an ancient Iranian tribe that lived in the Persian Satrapy Arachosia, and reported by Herodotus and contemporaries. This identification is uncertain.

Institutions

The Pashtuns are predominantly a tribal people, however, increasing numbers now dwell in cities and urban settlements. Many still identify themselves with various clans.

More precisely, there are several levels of organization: the tabar (tribe) is subdivided into kinship groups each of which is a khel. The khel in turn is divided into smaller groups (pllarina or plarganey), each of which consists of several extended families or kahols. [Wardak, 2003, p. 7] "A large tribe often has dozens of sub-tribes whose members may see themselves as belonging to each, some, or all of the sub-tribes in different social situations (co-operative, competitive, confrontational) and identify with each accordingly." [ibid., p. 10]

Established Pashtun tribes

Ahmadzai Achakzai Afridi Akakhel Akbarzai Alekozai Alizai Amerkhel Aminzai Awan Baburkhel Bahadurzai Bangash Barakzai Bhittani

Chamkanni Daudzai Daulatzai Dilazak Durrani Edo-Khel Ferozkhel Gandapur Gigiani Ghilzai/Ghalji Ghoriakhel Hakimzai Ibrahimkhel Ishaqzai Jabarkhel

Jadoon Kakar Kakazai Katawazi Karimzai Kuchi Kundi Khaksar Kharoti Khattak Lodhi Mahsud Mallagori Mamund Mangal

Mashwanis Marwat Mirzakhel Mohabbat Mohamedzai Mohmand/Moomand Musazai Musakhel Naftali Nasseri/Nasiri Nayebkhel Niazi Noorzai Omarkhel Omarzai

Orakzai Popalzay Pyarokhel Sapai Safi Salarzai Shamalzai Swati Sherzai Shilmani Shirani Shatak Stanekzai Suleimonkhel Suri

Tanoli Taraki Tarkani Tareens Totakhel Tor Umarzai Utman Khel Wardak Waziri Yousafzai/Esapzey Zadran Zazi (Dzadzi)

Pashtun tribes are divided into four tribal groups: Sarbans, Batans, Ghurghusht and Karans.

Social conditions

The Pashtuns today are a diverse population with widely varying lifestyles and perspectives. The effects of globalization have led to the proliferation of so-called 'Western' ideas as well as the infilitration of Saudi-style Wahhabist Islam. Though many Pashtuns remain tribal and illiterate, others have become urbanized and highly educated. The ravages of the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan and the Afghan wars leading up to the rise and fall of the Taliban have caused substantial misery amongst the Pashtuns. Currently, Afghanistan is in a rebuilding phase, while Pashtuns in Pakistan have grown in numbers and influence. Stability remains elusive for Pashtuns who have had to balance a practical necessity to survive with a desire to work hard and seek out opportunity. However, changes amongst the Pashtuns have not come without difficulty.

Pashtun women

Pashtun women greatly vary from the traditional housewives who live in seclusion to urban workers some of whom seek (and have attained) parity with men.

Social obstacles

Due to numerous social hurdles, the literacy rate for Pashtun women remains considerably lower than that of males. Abuse against women is also widespread and yet is increasingly being challenged by women's rights organizations who find themselves struggling with conservative religious groups as well as government officials in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. According to researcher Benedicte Grima's book Performance of Emotion Among Paxtun Women, "a powerful ethic of forbearance severely limits traditional Pashtun women's ability to mitigate the suffering they acknowledge in their lives."

Pashtun women often have their legal rights curtailed in favor of their husbands or male relatives as well. For example, though women are technically allowed to vote in Afghanistan and Pakistan, many have been kept away from ballot boxes by males.[2] Traditionally, Pashtun women have few inheritance rights and are often charged with taking care of large extended families of their spouses.[3]

Positive changes

In-spite of obstacles, many Pashtun women have begun a process of slow change. Some Pashtun women in cities in Pakistan have abandoned the burqa and often either use the chador or do not cover their heads at all. Others have joined men in business and finance. While most Pashtun women are illiterate a rich oral tradition and resurgence of poetry has sparked some interest on the part of both men and women and given hope to many Pashtun women seeking to learn to read and write.[4] In addition, numerous Pashtun women have attained high political office in both Pakistan and, following recent elections, in Afghanistan where female representatives compose one of the highest percentages in the world.[5] Substantial work remains though for Pashtun women who hope to gain equal rights with Pashtun men who remain disproportionately dominant in most aspects of Pashtun society. Human rights organizations including the Afghan Women's Network continue to struggle for greater women's rights as does the Aurat Foundation in Pakistan which often attempts to safeguard women from domestic abuse.

References

• Ahmad, Aisha and Boase, Roger. 2003. "Pashtun Tales from the Pakistan-Afghan Frontier: From the Pakistan-Afghan Frontier." Saqi Books (March 1, 2003). [6].
• Ahmed, Akbar S. 1976. Millennium and Charisma among Pathans: A Critical Essay in

Social Anthropology. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.

• Ahmed, Akbar S. 1980. Pukhtun economy and society. London: Routledge and Kegan

Paul.

• Banuazizi, Ali and Myron Weiner (eds.). 1994. "The Politics of Social Transformation in Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan (Contemporary Issues in the Middle East)." Syracuse University Press. [7].
• Banuazizi, Ali and Myron Weiner (eds.). 1988. "The State, Religion, and Ethnic Politics: Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan (Contemporary Issues in the Middle East)." Syracuse University Press. [8].
• Caroe, Olaf. 1984. "The Pathans: 500 B.C.-A.D. 1957 (Oxford in Asia Historical Reprints)". Oxford University Press.

[9]

• Dani, Ahmad Hasan. 1985. "Peshawar: Historic city of the Frontier." Sang-e-Meel Publications (1995). [10].
• Dupree, Louis. 1997. "Afghanistan." Oxford University Press. [11].
• Elphinstone, Mountstuart. 1815. "An account of the Kingdom of Caubul and its dependencies in Persia, Tartary, and India,: comprising a view of the Afghaun nation." Akadem. Druck- u. Verlagsanst (1969). [12].
• Habibi, Abdul Hai. 2003. "Afghanistan: An Abridged History." Fenestra Books. [13].
• Hopkirk, Peter. 1984. "The Great Game: The Struggle for Empire in Central Asia." Kodansha Globe; Reprint edition. [14].
• Wardak, Ali "Jirga - A Traditional Mechanism of Conflict Resolution in Afghanistan", 2003, online at UNPAN (the United Nations Online Network in Public Administration and Finance).
• A Study of the Greek Ancestry of Northern Pakistani Ethnic Groups Using 115 Microsatellite Markers. A. Mansoor, Q. Ayub, et al.Am. J. Human Genetics, Oct 2001 v69 i4 p399.
• Y-Chromosomal DNA Variation in Pakistan [15].
• Where west meets east: the complex mtDNA landscape of the southwest and Central Asian corridor. [16].

See also

• Pashtunistan
• Iranian peoples
• Iranian languages
• Afghan people
• Bactrian language
• Kambojas
• Pan-Iranism
• Sakas
• Bnai Israel
• Theory of Pashtun descent from Israelites

External links

• Studies of the Pashtun family
• Afghan Women's Network
• A Nation Displaced: The world's largest refugee population
• Ethnologue Pashto
• Pathan/Pashtun population geographic distribution and statistics
• UNHCR “BETRAYED AND ABANDONED” AFGHAN REFUGEES: HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT
• Afghan refugees in Iran