Pashtun people

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The Pashtun flag

Pashtuns (also known as Pakhtuns, Pathans) are an Eastern Iranian ethnic group primarily located in southern Afghanistan and in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces of western Pakistan. Pashtuns primarily speak the Pashto language, although there is a Dari-speaking minority. Dari is, however, the lingua franca of Afghanistan. Many Pashtuns of Balochistan speak Brahui, a Dravidian language. Pashtuns who settled in India were mainly of the Lodi clan of the Gilzai, and have throughout the centuries adopted the Muslim language and customs which were locally dominant, although they continue to retain their Pashtun identity.

History

According to Vogelsang (2002), looking for the origin of the Afghans and Pashtuns is like "looking for the source of the Amazon river". It is unknown if there is a specific beginning, and whether the Pashtuns were originally identical with other Afghan ethnic groups. Although their culture is different, Pashto is an Eastern Iranian language, and many Pashtuns speak Dari, a form of Persian generally associated with the Tajik language.

In his Histories, Herodotus was the first writer to mention ethnic groups in what became Afghanistan, then known as Pakht or Pakhtria; and as Bactria in western literature. The term he used for the ethnic group was Pactyans. Although it is not certain if this was the Pashtun ethnic group, there are similarities between Pakht, Pakhtun (or Pukhtun), and Pactyan.

Modern era

In the late 1800s, the Durani king Abdur Rahman Khan initiated a resettlement program with two goals in mind, firstly, to move his Pashtun enemies as far away from Kabul as possible, and secondly, to break-up and displace the other major ethnic groups. Most Gilzais were thus relocated to the north of the Hindu Kush mountains, increasing tensions between the Gilzai and Durani.

The First (1839-42) and Second (1878-80) Anglo-Afghan Wars resulted in the Pashtun homeland being divided between Afghanistan and Pakistan (then part of British India), but the Durani kings subsequently refused to recognise Pashtun areas as part of Pakistan, creating tensions between the governments of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

In the late twentieth century, the Marxist faction in the country was led by Nur Muhammed Taraki, a Gilzai, who organised a coup and overthrew the monarchy, which eventually led to the Soviet occupation. In the aftermath of the occupation, Pashtuns continued to dominate the government. During the occupation, tribal rivalries increased, and were influence by foreign factors. After the Soviet invasion, the Pakistani dictator General Zia-ul-Haq effectively prevented the Durani monarchs from having any role in the resistance, thereby preventing any re-establishment of the monarchy and giving rise to the Gilzai-based Taliban. Meanwhile, the tribal divide remained evident in the Afghan Communist Party, which split into Durani and Gilzai factions, both distrusting each other and working to undermine the other's power and influence.

Culture

Pashtunwali

(CC) Photo: Keith Stanski
Pashtun clan elders influence all the important decisions

Pashtunwali is the Pashtun code of conduct and honour, considered to be a combination of a Knight's chivalry and a Samurai's bushidō. It describes a Pashtun as a man of honour or ghairath, and holds him to a certain standard in conducting his affairs, whether social, tribal, or national. The term "Pashtun" literally means man of honour. Regardless of location, a Pashtun must adhere to the law of Pashtunwali, even with strangers, showing proper hospitality. Pashtunwali holds the guests to certain standards, to refrain from stretching his host's hospitality to the limits, and to avoid shameful acts. Manliness is a complex ideal in Pashtunwali. A Pashtun must protect anyone who seeks protection, even his enemies fleeing from their enemies. However, if a man has committed a shameful act, such as raping a woman, he then forfeits this right to protection, along with any other right to a Pashtun's hospitality. Elders play important roles in the clans and all important decisions are influenced by them.

Pashtunwali guarantees the protection of the three Zs — Zan (woman), Zar (gold or property), and Zamin (land). These are the most important assets to a Pashtun, especially the women. Insulting, sexually harassing, or molesting a Pashtun woman can mean ruin for the culprit and his family, as it is the most un-Pashtun act a man can do. Violation of any of the three Zs can only be re-dressed by taking revenge (badlaa). A son can be killed for his father's crime, and vice-versa. This way, a single crime or act can lead to family feuds that may last generations. The phrase "revenge is a dish best served cold" is of Pashtun origin, borrowed by the British and popularised in the west.

Marriage

Most Pashtuns follow a type of hypergamy by which they arrange the marriage of their sisters and daughters to other Pashtuns. This is prevalent in Afghanistan, where most ethnic groups marry their womenfolk to within the ethnic group and above it, while the men marry within the ethnic group and below it. As the Pashtuns consider themselves the top ranked ethnic group, Pashtun women may marry only Pashtun men.

Tribes and clans

The two main Pashtun tribes are the Gilzai and the Durani. Traditionally, the Durani have controlled Afghanistan's political affairs, although the Gilzai are the majority. In fact, Afghanistan's monarchy was founded by Ahmad Shah Durani in 1747. He had been a Persian general, but was elected at a loya jirga and also approved by the Muslim ulama. He styled himself "Dur-i-Duran" (Pearl of Pearls) and his Pashtun Abdali tribe became known as the Durani. His family immediately lost the support of the tribes after his death in 1772, and control passed to the Mohammadzai lineage within the Barakzai section of the Durani Pashtun. The other important tribal groups are the Jaji, Mangal, Safi, Mamund, and Mohmand.

Durani

The Durani are dominated by two main clans, the Zirak and the Panjpia. The Zirak have historically been the elite, and the Afghan royal family came from the Mohamedzai sub-clan of the Ziraks. The Panjpia sub-clans include the Alizaj, Izhak, Koginaj, Maku, and Nurzai.

Gilzai

The Gilzai have been well known for their bravery and chivalry for many centuries. They are believed by most historians to be descended from Khilji Turks. Traditional historians are, however, of a different view. According to them, Ghilji and Lodi/Lodhi (Ibrahim Lodhi) were the offspring of Shah Hussain Ghauri by his first wife, Bibi Mato bint Bait Nikka bin Qais Abdul Rashid. The Gilzai may be the descendents of the Wu'chi (Indo-European/Turk) which absorbed the remnants of the Tocharian people (Indo-European) after the fall of the Tarim Basin to the Han Chinese. Important Gilzai clans include the Lodi, Suleiman Khel, Nasir Khel, Hotak, and Kharoti.