Afridi: Difference between revisions
Yousafzaai (talk | contribs) Referencing Notable Afridis |
m Tijuana Brass moved page Afridi (Pashtun tribe) to Afridi: Per discussion on Talk |
(No difference)
| |
Revision as of 03:52, 1 October 2012
| File:Afghan Tribal Flag - Afridi.jpg Modern amalgamation of Afridi tribal flags. | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| ~70,000[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 Pakistan | ~50,000[2] |
 Afghanistan | ~10,000[1] |
| Languages | |
| Vernacular: Pashto Diaspora: Urdu | |
| Religion | |
| Sunni Islam | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Mehsuds · Orakzais · Wazirs · Khattaks and other Karlan Pashtun tribes | |
The Afridis (Template:Lang-ps Apriday, plur. اپريدي Afridi; Template:Lang-ur; Template:Lang-hi) are a Pashtun tribe based in present-day Pakistan, with substantial numbers in Afghanistan. The Afridis are most prominent in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas, inhabiting about 1,000 square miles (3,000 km²) of rough hilly area in the eastern Spin Ghar range west of Peshawar, covering most of Khyber Agency, FR Peshawar and FR Kohat.[2] Their territory includes the Khyber Pass and Maidan in Tirah. Afridi migrants are also found in India, mostly in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jammu and Kashmir.[3]
The Afridis are historically known for the strategic location they inhabit, and for belligerence against outside forces; battling Mughal armies periodically sent by Emperors Akbar, Jahangir and, most bloodily, Aurangzeb.[1] Their later clashes against British expeditions comprised the most savage fighting of the Anglo-Afghan Wars.[4] After independence, Afridi tribesmen played a leading role in attacking Jammu and Kashmir for Pakistan during the Indo-Pakistani war of 1947.[5] Today, Afridis make use of their dominant social position in FATA and areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by controlling transport and various businesses, including trade in arms, munitions, and other goods.[1]
Etymology and origins
The Afridis, classically called the Abaörteans (/[invalid input: 'icon']ˌæbə.ɔːrˈtiːənz/; Template:Lang-lat), have their original homeland in the Spin Ghar, a mountain range on both sides of the Durand line, located east of Kabul and west of Peshawar. The great Sanskrit grammarian and historian Pāṇini, who himself hailed from the nearby Shalatur, a village located near the confluence of the Kabul and Indus rivers, mentioned the names of tribes such as the Aprits (identified with the modern Afridis) and the Madhumants who inhabited the northwestern areas, in his Ashtadhyayi in the 5th century BC.[6]
The famous historian Herodotus mentions a region bordering on the banks of the Indus occupied by a people called the Pactyans who were divided into four tribes, one which were the Aparthea or Aparutai, likely to be the Aprit mentioned by Panini.[7] The Pactyans were overwhelmingly Hindus[citation needed]. They laid claim to an inaccessible upland area and forced passing invaders to pay toll tax[citation needed] for passage towards India through the Khyber Pass. Olaf Caroe and Aurel Stein are reported to have suggested that the Afridis may be the original inhabitants of the Gandhara area (which they still inhabit).
According to Pashtun folklore, the Afridi tribe can trace its origin back to the eponymous ancestor of all Pashtuns, Qais Abdur Rashid, through his youngest son, Karlan. Thus, the Afridi tribe may be one of the infamous Karlani tribes, who had a formidable reputation as warriors.
Theory of Afridi descent from Israelites
The Afridis and other Pashtuns of Afghanistan and Pakistan have also been alleged to be the descendants of the lost Jewish tribes such as the Efraim[citation needed]. However, DNA and other research towards validating such claims has been inconclusive.[8][9][10]
History
The Afridis have been known for their strategy and tenacity in the mountains. The Afridis once destroyed two large Mughal army of Emperor Aurangzeb: in 1672 in a surprise attack between Peshawar and Kabul, and in the winter of 1673 in an ambush in the mountain passes.[11] The emperor himself had to lead an army into the mountains to suffocate the revolt and liberate the mountain passes, and even then another large army was "badly mauled" in Bajaur.[11][12] Allegedly, only five Mughals made it out of the battle alive.[13][14][15]
The Afridis were first mentioned in the memoirs of Mughal Emperor Babar, as a violent tribe in need of subduing.[16].
Clans
The British classified the Afridi in 8 different clans, with many subtribes in a hierarchical structure:[17]
- Kuki Khel
- Malikdín Khel
- Qambar Khel
- Kamar Khel
- Zakha Khel
- Aka Kel
- Sepáh
- Adam Khel/bazid khel
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (August 2008) |
All of the Afridi clans have their own areas in the Tirah, and most of them extend down into the Khyber Pass over which they have always exercised the right of toll. The Malikdin Khel live in the center of the Tirah and hold Bagh, the traditional meeting place of Afridi jirgas or assemblies. The Aka Khel are scattered in the hills south of Jamrud. All of this area is included in the Khyber Agency. The Adam Khel live in the hills between Peshawar and Kohat. Their preserve is the Kohat Pass. In which several of the most important Afridi gun factories are located. The Adam khel Afridis are further divided into four clans.
Religion
All modern Afridis follow Islam. Their conversion to Islam is attributed to Sultan (Emperor) Mahmud of Ghazni by sources such as Ibbetson[18] and Haroon Rashid.[19]
Cuisine
Meat is an important part of their diet which they eat in the form of kabab (minced meat fried in oil), lamb curry, chicken curry, goat curry and much more. The hotels in Peshawar Namak Mandi Bazar represent the traditional food of Afridis, especially Lamb Karahi. In vegetable cuisine bindi (okra), rajma (kidney beans), dal (lentils) and sag (spinach) are notable. Their desserts include kheer (rice pudding), meenchai (sugared noodles).
List of notable Afridis
- Darya Khan Afridi and Aimal Khan Afridi, resistance leaders allied with Khushal Khan Khattak against Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, defeating the Mughal army around the Khyber Pass in 1672.[20]
- Sher Ali Afridi, a former policeman from Peshawar who assassinated Lord Mayo, the Viceroy of British India, in 1872.[21]
- Ajab Khan, who murdered the wife of Major Ellis and kidnapped his daugher, Mollie Ellis, from a bungalow adjoining a British cantonment in Kohat, in 1923. Ajab and his accomplices were declared enemies by their own tribe, and sentenced to jail by a jirga of fellow Afridis after surrendering.[22]
- Rahimuddin Khan, Pakistani general and military governor of Balochistan and Sindh, who ended hostilities between the Pakistan Army and Baloch nationalists in 1978.[23]
- Shahid Afridi, Pakistani cricketer and former national captain, and the world record-holder for the fastest century in One Day International cricket.[24]
- Mangal Bagh, leader of Pakistani militant group Lashkar-e-Islam, opposed to the Pakistani Taliban, from 2005.[25]
Diaspora
- Zakir Hussain, Indian politician and educationist who served as the first Muslim President of India from 1967 to 1969.[26] Hussain was a descendant of Hussain Khan, an Afridi who migrated from Kohat to Kaimganj in 1715.[27]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d Afridi demographics in Pakistan and Afghanistan The excessive figure sometimes mentioned in Afghanistan reflects in a particular way the Afghan claim to Pashtunistan and actually represents an estimate of the whole of the Afridi tribe on both sides of the frontier.
- ^ a b Afridi demographics in FATA and FR Kohat
- ^ Study of the Pathan Communities in Four States of India, Khyber.org (retrieved 30 January 2008)
- ^ L. Thomas, Beyond Khyber Pass, London, n.d. (ca. 1925)
- ^ M.K. Teng (2001) Kashmir: The Bitter Truth Kashmir Information Network
- ^ page 64 India and Central Asia By J. N. Roy, J.N. Roy And B.B. Kumar, Astha Bharati (Organization), Indian Council for Cultural Relations
- ^ Pakistan and the emergence of Islamic militancy in Afghanistan By Rizwan Hussain Page 16
- ^ Amir Mizroch (2010-01-09). "Are Taliban descendants of Israelites?". The Jerusalem Post.
- ^ Sachin Parashar (2010-01-11). "Lucknow Pathans have Jewish roots?". Times of India.
- ^ Rory McCarthy (2010-01-17). "Pashtun clue to lost tribes of Israel". The Observer.
- ^ a b John F. Richards (1996), "Imperial expansion under Aurangzeb 1658-1869. Testing the limits of the empire: the Northwest.", The Mughal Empire, New Cambridge history of India: The Mughals and their contemporaries, vol. 5 (illustrated, reprint ed.), Cambridge University Press, pp. 170–171, ISBN 978-0-521-56603-2
- ^ Khyber Agency Khyber.org, 3 July 2005
- ^ Geoffrey Powell, J. S. W. Powell (1983), Famous regiments (illustrated ed.), Secker & Warburg, p. 69, ISBN 978-0-436-37910-9,
The
- ^ Robert E. L. Masters, Eduard Lea (1963). Perverse crimes in history: evolving concepts of sadism, lust-murder, and necrophilia from ancient to modern times. Julian Press. p. 211. Retrieved 5 April 2011.
- ^ Robert E. L. Masters, Eduard Lea (1963). Sex crimes in history: evolving concepts of sadism, lust-murder, and necrophilia, from ancient to modern times. Julian Press. p. 211. Retrieved 5 April 2011.
- ^ A. S. Beveridge, Babor-nama London, 1922 [repr. 1969], p. 412
- ^ H.A. Rose, IBBETSON, Maclagan (1996). Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North West Frontier Province (re-edition, first edited in 1919, 1911,1914 ed.). Asian Educational Services. pp. 252–253. ISBN 81-206-0505-5, 9788120605053.
{{cite book}}: Check|isbn=value: invalid character (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Denzil Ibbetson, Edward MacLagan, H.A. Rose "A Glossary of The Tribes & Casts of The Punjab & North-West Frontier Province", 1911 AD, Page 217, Vol III,Published by Asian Educational Services
- ^ History of the Pathans By Haroon Rashid Published by Haroon Rashid, 2002 Item notes: v. 1 Page 45 Original from the University of Michigan
- ^ Farhat Taj Orientalism in civilisational narcissism "The fieriest clashes were led by Khushhal Khan Khattak, Aimal Khan Afridi and Darya Khan Afridi against the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb."
- ^ Helen Ellis (July 2009) The Assassination of Lord Mayo: The 'First' Jihad? Australian National University
- ^ Michael Lambert (2009), The Kidnapping of Mollie Ellis by Afridi Tribesmen, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- ^ Foreign Policy Centre (2006), On the Margins of History: The Baloch of Pakistan
- ^ ODI Records:- Fastest 100s
- ^ Zaidi, Syed Manzar Abbas (2008-11-01). A Profile of Mangal Bag. The Long War Journal. Retrieved August 26, 2012.
- ^ Sharma, Vishwamitra (2007). Famous Indians of the 21st century. Pustak Mahal. p. 60. ISBN 81-223-0829-5. Retrieved 18 September 2010
- ^ Zia-ul-Hasan Faruqi (1999) Dr. Zakir Hussain: Quest for Truth APH Publishing, India
External links
