Aimaq people
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 650,000 | |
| Languages | |
| Aimaq dialect of Persian | |
| Religion | |
| Sunni Islam | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Hazaras and Tajiks |
The Aimaq (Template:Lang-fa), also transliterated as Aimak and Aymaq, are a collection of Persian-speaking Nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes.[1] Aimaqs are found mostly in the West Central highlands of Afghanistan, immediately to the north of Herat, in Pakistan in the Kyber and Balochistan region and also to a much lesser amount in the Khorasan Province of Iran.[2] They speak a number of subdialects of the Aimaq dialect of Persian, however some southern groups of Taymani and Maleki Aymaqs have adopted Pashto.[3]
Aimaks were originally known as chahar ("four") Aymaqs: the Taymani (the main element in the population of Ghor), the Firozkohi, the Jamshidi and the Temuri.[4] Other sources state that the Aimaq Hazara are one of the Chahar, with the Temuri instead being of the "lesser Aimaqs" or Aimaq-e digar[5] ("other Aimaqs") along with the Tahiri, Zuri, Maleki, and Mishmast.
Origin and classification
Aymāq is a Turkic-Mongolic word that means "tribe" or "grazing territory". Aimaq Hazara and Temuri are most Mongoloid of the Aimaqs. The Temuri and Aimaq Hazara live in yurts, whereas other Aimaqs live in traditional Afghan black tents.[6]
Aimaq tribes
| Name | Tribal kind | Origin |
|---|---|---|
| Chagatai | Aimaq-e digar | Chagatai people of Chagatai Khanate |
| Changezi | Aimaq-e digar | named after Changez khan/Genghis Khan |
| Damanrigi | Aimaq-e digar | |
| Durzai | Aimaq-e digar | Pashtuns |
| Firozkohi | Chahar Aimāq | |
| Ghori | Aimaq-e digar | |
| Jamshidi | Chahar Aimāq | |
| Kakar | Aimaq-e digar | Pashtuns |
| Kakeri | Aimaq-e digar | |
| Khamidi | Aimaq-e digar | |
| Kipchak | Aimaq-e digar | Kipchaks |
| Maleki | Aimaq-e digar | |
| Mishmast | Aimaq-e digar | |
| Mobari | Aimaq-e digar | |
| Tahiri[7][better source needed] | Aimaq-e digar | Arabs? |
| Taimuri/Temuri | Chahar Aimāq | Turkic and Mongol peoples |
| Taymani | Chahar Aimāq | |
| Zuri/Zohri | Aimaq-e digar |
Demographics
Estimates of the Aimaq population vary between 250,000 and 500,000. They are largely Sunni Muslims, in contrast to the Hazara, who are mostly Shia Muslims. The Temuri Aimaqs are of Mongolian origin, apparent in their physical appearance and their housing (Mongolian-style yurts).[8] However, the Taymanis, Firozkohis, and Jamshidis are of Iranian origin.
See also
References
- ^ Tom Lansford -A bitter harvest: US foreign policy and Afghanistan 2003 Page 25 "The term Aimaq means "tribe" but the Aimaq people actually include several different ethnic groups. The classification has come to be used for a variety of nonaligned nomadic tribes"
- ^ Janata, A. "AYMĀQ". In Ehsan Yarshater (ed.). Encyclopædia Iranica (Online ed.). United States: Columbia University.
- ^ Vogelsang, Willem (2002). The Afghans. Wiley-Blackwell. p. 18. ISBN 0631198415. Retrieved 23 January 2012.
- ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Aimak". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 1 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 439.
- ^ Willem Vogelsang (2002). The Afghans. Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 37–. ISBN 9780631198413. Retrieved 1 April 2011.
- ^ http://www.tribalanalysiscenter.com/PDF-External/Hazara%20Baluchistan.pdf A SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY OF THE HAZARA TRIBE IN BALUCHISTAN (AN ANALYSIS OF SOCIO-CULTURAL CHANGE)
- ^ ar:طاهريون
- ^ "Afghanistan". Encyclopædia Britannica. Ultimate Reference Suite. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, 2008.
Further reading
- Macgregor, Central Asia, (Calcutta, 1871)
