Laghman Province

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This article is about the Afghan province. For the Central Asian soup dish of the same name, please see Ramen.

Laghman لغمان

Capital • Coordinates	Mihtarlam District • ~° N ~° E
Population (~) • Density	285,680 • /km²
Area	~ km²
Time zone	UTC+4:30
Main language(s)	Pashto

Laghman (Pashto: لغمان) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern portion of Afghanistan, the capital is Mihtarlam. The province is composed of several districts including: Alingar, Alishing, Dawlat Shah, Mihtarlam, and Qarghayi. It is estimated that the population is approximately 285,680. ^[1]

1 History
2 Politics
3 Economy
4 Demographics
5 Districts
6 Notable People
7 References
8 See also

[edit] History

During the invasions of Alexander the Great, the area was formerly known as Lampaka.^[2] In the seventh century, the famous Chinese traveller Hsuan Tsang, visited the area and reported that "very few" of the inhabitants of Laghman followed Buddhism, ^[3] while some followed Hinduism. ^[4]

After the introduction of Islam into the region, the Ghaznavids, led by Abu Mansur Sebük Tigin, won one of their greatest battles in Laghman against the Hindu ruler, Jayapala, whose army numbered approximately 100,000. ^[5] After this battle, the men of Laghman swiftly offered their allegiance to the Ghaznavids by joining their army. Later, during the Mughal period, Laghman was recognized as a dependent district of Kabul province. ^[6]

Located currently at the Kabul Museum, are Aramaic inscriptions that were found in Laghman which indicated an ancient trade route from India to Palmyra. ^[7] Aramaic was the bureacratic script language of the Achaemenids whose influence had extended toward Laghman. ^[8]

During the Soviet-Afghan war and the battles that followed between the rivaling warlords, many homes and business establishments in the province were destroyed. In addition, the Soviets employed a "barbarism" strategy that targeted and destroyed the agricultural infrastructure of Laghman. ^[9]

At the moment, 2007, there is a ISAF Provincial Reconstruction Team based at Mehtar Lam which is led by the US.

[edit] Politics

The governor of Laghman was Shah Mahmood Safi, until he was replaced by Gulab Mangal. The Taliban narrowly missed killing Mangal in a bomb attack in late 2006 [1].

On June 20, 2005, three Pakistanis were arrested in Laghman for plotting to kill the U.S. Ambassador, Zalmay Khalilzad while he was visiting the province for reconstruction efforts. The three men were found with various armaments. [2]

[edit] Economy

The Alingar and Alinshing rivers pass through Laghman, as the province is known for its lushness. Laghman has sizable amounts of irrigated land as one can find scores of fruits and vegetables from Laghman in Kabul, notably cucumbers. Other main crops in Laghman include rice, wheat and cotton as many people living in the area are involved in agricultural trade and business.

Laghman also has an array of precious stones and minerals,^[10] as it is well known for being a source of the Tourmaline and Spodumene gemstones which are found in the northern portions of the province.^[11]

[edit] Demographics

Pashtuns constitute the main strata of the ethnic groups of Laghman, however Laghman is quite diverse. There are other groups as well, including a Dardic group known as the Pashai. There are also sizeable numbers of Tajiks as the province is home to a mosaic of Afghanistan's ethnic groups.[3]

In her book, State and Tribe in Nineteenth Century Afghanistan Christine Noelle writes:

“

The southern portion of the Laghman valley was inhabited by Pashtuns and Tajiks, the Pashtuns holding villages on both sides of the Kabul river, whereas the Tajiks were concentrated in the villages of Char Bagh, Haidar Khani, Mandrawar, and Tighari.^[12]

”

Noelle also specifies that Laghman was once dominated by Tajiks,^[13] however during the 15th and 16th century, larger migrations of the Ghilzai Pashtuns into the region increased the diversity of Laghman.

As with the case in many other parts of Afghanistan, the people of Laghman are overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim with fluency in Persian (Dari) and Pashto being quite common.

[edit] Districts

[edit] Notable People

Abdul Zahir - former Afghan Prime Minister
Ahmad Zahir - famous musician/singer
Zalmay Hewadmal - famous Pashtun author and political and cultural advisor to Hamid Karzai, the current president of Afghanistan.
Zalmay Khalilzad - famous Afghan-American who has roots in Laghman.

[edit] References

^ http://www.aims.org.af/aims/maps/national/population/afgpopulationestimates.xls
^ http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0041-977X(1949)13%3A1%3C80%3ATAIOAF%3E2.0.CO%3B2-B
^ On Yuan Chwang's Travels, Watters, pg. 181
^ The Afghans, Vogelsang, pg. 172-173
^ The History of India: The Hindu and Mahometan Periods, Elphinstone, pg 321
^ The Garden of Eight Paradises: Babur and the Culture of Central Asia, Afghanistan
^ http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0001/000155/015575eo.pdf
^ http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/v2f7/v2f7a094.html
^ How the Weak Win Wars: A Theory of Asymmetric Conflict, Arreguin-Toft, pg. 186
^ http://www.palagems.com/afghanistan_bariand.htm
^ Gemstones of Afghanistan, Chamberline, pg. 146
^ State and Tribe in Nineteenth Cwentury Afghanistan, Noelle page 199
^ State and Tribe in Nineteenth Century Afghanistan, Noelle page 161