History of Arabs in Afghanistan

Ethnic Arab fighters who battled or migrated to the area now known as Afghanistan during conflicts dating back from the 7th century till the recent Soviet-Afghan War when they assisted fellow Muslims in fighting the Soviets and pro-Soviet Afghans. Most of these Arabs gradually lost their Arabic hegemony and ultimately mixed with the local population.

First Wave of Arabs into Afghanistan

Further information: Rashidun Empire

File:Sibghatullah Mojaddedi.jpg

Former President of Afghanistan, Sibghatullah Mojadadi, a descendant of the first wave of Arabs into the region.

After decisively defeating the Sassanians in Nihawand, Arabs entered into the area now comprised of Afghanistan through north-eastern Iran where they stationed a large portion of their army in Herat before advancing toward eastern Afghanistan. During this time, some Arabs settled in the area and married locals while adopting their customs. Other groups and contingents who elected not to settle gradually pushed eastwards and encoutered fierce resistance in Bamiyan. They ultimately reached Kabul where they were subsequently confronted by the Shahis. Although the details of this battle remains somewhat unknown, the Arabs were nonetheless victorious. A famous religious legacy of this battle remains in Kabul, notably the tomb and the Mosque of Shah-e Do Shamshera (translated into, The King with the Two Swords in Persian), named after the Arab commander who fought the Shahis with two swords in his hands until each of his arms were severed, as he continued to do battle.

Following the confrontation, Arabs increasingly blended with locals as the Arabic identity began to undergo a significant change. Arabic contigents settled throughout various parts of present day Afghanistan including Wardak, Logar, Kabul and Balkh. They adopted local customs and Persian as their main language. Despite maintaining some clothing customs and attire, most of these Afghan-Arabs (or Arab-Afghans) gradually lost their original tongue of Arabic. This is confirmed in the 15th century work, Baburnama, which notes that the Arabs of Afghanistan have virtually lost the Arabic language and instead speak Persian. Although the exact number of Arab Afghans remains unknown, mostly due to ambiguous claims of descent, an 18th century academic estimated that the number of Afghan-Arabs/Arab-Afghans is at approximately 60,000 families. Currently, some notable descendants of the first wave of Arabs into Afghanistan, include the former President of Afghanistan, Sibghatullah Mojadadi.

Second Wave of Arabs into Afghanistan

Further information: Arab diaspora

Russian soldier menacingly glowering at an Arab Muslim family.

After the Bolshevik Revolution, many Arabs residing in Bukhara and other areas of Central Asia migrated to Afghanistan where they were more able to practice their religion. One estimate indicated that approximately 30,000 Arabs lived in Bukhara during the mid-nineteenth century. The Arabs who entered into Afghanistan during this time still retained some Arabic in contrast to the Afghan Arabs who came during the first wave. Nevertheless, the Arabic they spoke was heavily mixed with Persian and Uzbeki words. Additionally, many Arabs from the second wave were keen to mix with the local population as they adopted the languages of Northern Afghanistan, namely Uzbek, Turkmen, and Persian. Many settled in Kunduz, Takhar and Baghlan provinces. Currently, while they still view themselves as Arab, almost all the Arabs from the second wave have lost their language of Arabic and have completely blended with the local population. Many of these Afghan Arabs work in the agricultural industry, often in growing cotton and wheat.

Third Wave of Arabs into Afghanistan

Further information: Defensive Jihad and Afghan Arabs

During the Soviet-Afghan War, many Muslims, most of them Arabs, came to Afghanistan to help Afghans fight the Marxist regime and Soviet military. Some remained and intermarried with local Afghans.

See also

• Central Asian Arabic
• Arab
• Sayyid
• Siddiqui
• Farooqi
• Osmani
• History of Afghanistan
• Soviet war in Afghanistan