Faryab Province
Template:Geobox Fāryāb (Persian: فاریاب) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is in the north of the country. Its capital is Maymana. The majority of the population is Uzbek.
History
Faryab is a Persian word meaning "irrigated land".[1] The modern province is named after a town that was founded by the Sassanids and later destroyed by the invading Mongols in 1220.[1] This town should not be confused with the similarly-named Farab on the Syr Darya river (the Jaxartes of the ancients), in modern day Kazakhstan that was the home town to the famed Islamic philosopher, al-Farabi, per the biographer Ibn al-Nadim.
Afghan Civil War
During the Afghan Civil War, the front line between Taliban and opposition forces often fell between Badghis and Faryab provinces in the mid-1990s. Former Herati warlord Ismail Khan also fled to Faryab to reconstitute his forces following the Taliban takeover of Herat, but was betrayed by Abdul Malik Pahlawan.[2]
On 23 May 1997, Abdul Malik Pahlawan raised the Taliban flag over the capital of Maimana, switching sides and initiating a renewed Taliban offensive from the west.[3] Following a series of changing allegiances and falling out with Malik, the Taliban withdrew from the area, but in 1998 a contigent of 8,000 Taliban troops pressed through Faryab, seizing Abdul Rashid Dostum's headquarters in Sheberghan, in neighboring Jowzjan province.[4]
Political and economic situation
Faryab province has been one of the more peaceful areas in Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban after the U.S. invasion of 2001. Recent development projects in the province have focused on expanding the agricultural potential of the province, in particular the re-forestation of areas of the province that were denuded in the recent past.
As of 2006, it was reported that the Abdul Malik Pahlawan's Freedom Party of Afghanistan still maintained an armed militant wing, which was contributing to instability in province.[5]
At the province is a Provincial Reconstruction Team, which is led by Norway. The Norwegian PRT has its base at Maymana and has also been given the responsibility for the Ghormach District which used to be in neighboring Badghis Province but is now, as of December 2008, part of Faryab Province.
Afghanistan signed a deal with China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) for the development of oil blocks in the Amu Darya basin, a project expected to earn billions of dollars over two decades; the deal covers drilling and a refinery in the northern provinces of Sar-e Pol and Faryab and is the first international oil production agreement entered into by the Afghan government for several decades.[6]
Politics
Governors
The Governor of the province is Abdul Haq Shafaq, an ethnic Hazara, and a member of Hezbe Wahdat.
Demographics
The Turkmen population (53%) represent the majority in Faryab, followed by Tajiks (ca. 27%-30%). Other are Pashtuns (13%) and Uzbek people (ca. 4%-6%).[7] Other sources indicate the number of Turkmens as 60%, of Tajiks as 20%, of Pashtun and Hazaras as 10% and for Uzbek people goes the same percentage number (10%).[8][9] However, the number of Pashtuns in Faryab is decreasing drastically like elsewhere in northern Afghanistan[10][11] because many non-Pashtuns still take revange for the crimes of Taliban Pashtuns against non-Pashtuns.
turkmeni is spoken by over half (53.5%) of the population. The second most frequent language is Persian (Dari), followed by Pashtu (17%), a bit more than the actual number of their population, and Uzbeki language.[7]
Around 89% of the population live in rural regions, while 11% live in urban areas.[7]
Districts
| District | Capital | Population | Area[12] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Almar | ||||
| Andkhoy | Sub-divided in 2005 | |||
| Bilchiragh | Sub-divided in 2005 | |||
| Dawlat Abad | 39,000 | |||
| Ghormach | Added to Faryab Province in December 2008 by Presidential decree | |||
| Gurziwan | Created in 2005 within Bilchiragh District | |||
| Khani Chahar Bagh | 22,000 | |||
| Khwaja Sabz Posh | ||||
| Kohistan | 38,200 | |||
| Maymana | 68,000 | |||
| Pashtun Kot | 159,300 | |||
| Qaramqol | 17,100 | |||
| Qaysar | 122,300 | |||
| Qurghan | Created in 2005 within Andkhoy District | |||
| Shirin Tagab | 65,800 |
Cities
References
- ^ a b Balland, Daniel. Ehsan Yarshater (ed.). "FAÚRYAÚB". Encyclopædia Iranica (Online Edition ed.). United States: Columbia University. Archived from the original on May 27, 2008. Retrieved January 2008.
{{cite web}}:|edition=has extra text (help); Check date values in:|accessdate=(help) - ^ Kamal Matinuddin (30 April 1999). The Taliban phenomenon: Afghanistan 1994-1997. Oxford University Press US. pp. 98–. ISBN 9780195792744. Retrieved 30 March 2011.
- ^ Roy Gutman (2008). How we missed the story: Osama bin Laden, the Taliban, and the hijacking of Afghanistan. US Institute of Peace Press. pp. 104–. ISBN 9781601270245. Retrieved 30 March 2011.
- ^ Larry P. Goodson (2001). Afghanistan's endless war: state failure, regional politics, and the rise of the Taliban. University of Washington Press. pp. 79–. ISBN 9780295980508. Retrieved 30 March 2011.
- ^ Amin Tarzi. Afghanistan: Government Turns Its Sights On Northern Warlords. Radio Free Europe - Radio Liberty. August 21, 2006
- ^ Harooni, Mirwais (12-28-2011). "REFILE-Afghanistan signs major oil deal with China's CNPC". Reuters. Retrieved 01-01-2012.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=and|date=(help) - ^ a b c Faryab provincial profile
- ^ www.norway.org.af/NR/rdonlyres/.../71443/Faryabwaterfinal081207.doc
- ^ Bauck, Petter, Arne Strand, Mohammad Hakim, and Arghawan Akbari. "Afghanistan: An Assessment of Confict and Actors in Faryab Province to Establish a Basis for Increased
- ^ Human Rights Watch, Band 14 Von Human Rights Watch (Organization),Human Rights Watch,Human Rights Watch Children's Rights Project
- ^ http://www.hewad.com/news2.htm
- ^ Afghanistan Geographic & Thematic Layers
External links
- Faryab Province at the Geographical Database
Places adjacent to Faryab Province | |
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