Ghor Province

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Coordinates: 34°N 65°E / 34, 65
Ghor (غور)
Province
Country Flag of Afghanistan Afghanistan
Capital Chaghcharan
 - coordinates 34°N 65°E / 34, 65
Area 36,479 km² (14,085 sq mi)
Population 485,000 (2002) [1]
Density 13.29 /km² (34 /sq mi)
Timezone UTC+4:30
Main language Persian (Dari)
Map of Afghanistan with Ghowr highlighted
Map of Afghanistan with Ghowr highlighted

Ghor, also spelled Ghowr or Ghur (Persian: غور), is today one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is located in central Afghanistan, towards the north-west. The capital of Ghor is Chaghcharan.

Contents

[edit] History

Ghor, which was part of Persia for many centuries in the past, was one of the regions which participated in the Persian Cultural Revival after the Arab invasion of Persia.

[edit] Islam

“ ' The region had previously been conquered by Mahmud of Ghazni, and the population converted to Islam. [1] ”

[edit] Attack by Ghazny

“ 'In the following year AH 401 (AD 1010), Mahmood led his army towards Ghoor. The native prince of the country, Mahomed, of the Afghan tribe of Soor (the same race which gave birth to the dynasty that eventually succeeded in subverting the family of Sebüktigin), occupied an entrinched camp with 10000 men. Mahmood was repulsed in repeated assults which he made from morning till noon. Finding that the troops of Ghoor defended their entrenchments with such obstinacy, he caused his army to retreat in apparent confusion, in order to allure the enemy out of his fortified position. The Ghoorians, deceived by the stratagem, pursued the army of Ghizny; when the king, facing about, attacked and defeated them with great slaughter. Mahommed Soor, being made prisoner was brought to the king, but having taken poison, which he always kept under his ring, he died in a few hours; his country was annexed to the dominions of Ghizny. The author of the Towareekh Yumny affirms, that neither the sovereigns of Ghoor nor its inhabitants were Mahomedans till after this victory; whilst the author of the Tubkat-Nasiry, and Fukhr -ood -Deen Moobarik Shah Lody, the latter of whom wrote a history of the Kings of Ghoor in verse, both affirm, that they were converted many years before, even so early as the time of Ally[2] ”

Ghor was also the centre of the Ghurid dynasty in the 12th and 13th century. The remains of their capital Firuzkuh, including UNESCO World Heritage site the Minaret of Jam, are located in the province.

“ 'The rise to power of the Ghurids at Ghur , a small isolated area located in the mountain fastness between the ghaznavid empire and the Seljukids , was an unusual and unexpected development . The area was so remote that till the 11th century , it had remained a pagan enclave surrounded by Muslim principalities . It was converted to Islam in the early part of the 12th century after Mahmud raided it , and left teachers to instruct the Ghurids in the pricipts of Islam . Even then it is believed that paganism , ie . a variety of Mahayana Buddhism persisted in the area till the end of the century .[3] ”

In the 19th century, American adventurer Josiah Harlan claimed the title Prince of Ghor for himself and his descendants in perpetuity, in exchange for military aid during local factional fighting. As a result, American actor Scott Reiniger is (only theoretically) the current Prince.[4]

On June 17, 2004, hundreds of troops of Abdul Salaam Khan, who had rejected the Afghan government's plan to disarm regional militias, attacked Chaghcharan and took over the city in an afternoon-long siege. Eighteen people were killed or wounded in the fighting and province governor Mohammed Ibrahim fled. Three days later the Afghan government announced that it would not retake Chaghcharan. However, Khan and Ibrahim began negotiations soon after, but reached no agreements. Khan's troops left Chaghcharan on June 23, a day ahead of the arrival of an Afghan National Army battalion, led by Lieutenant-General Aminullah Paktiyanai, arrived with the support of about twenty U.S. soldiers.

In his 2004 travel book, The Places in Between, Rory Stewart travels by foot from Herat to Kabul and on his way, he provides a riveting portrait of Ghor Province as well as much historical information about the region.

[edit] Population

The population of Ghor was, and is even today, predominately Tajik.[5]

[edit] Geography & Weather

Ghor occupies the end of the Hindu Kush mountains. Ghor is 2,500m above sea level and heavy snowfalls often block many of its rugged passes from November to April. It is also a drought-prone area in the summer.

[edit] Districts

Districts of Ghor.
Districts of Ghor.

[edit] Politics

The current Governor of the province is Baz Mohammad Ahmadi. A Lithuanian contingent of the ISAF force is stationed in the province.

[edit] References

  1. ^ The wonder that was India II by S A A Rizvi published by Picador India page 16
  2. ^ Ferishta -Translation John Briggs page 28 vol 1
  3. ^ Medieval India Part 1 Satish Chandra Page 22
  4. ^ BBC News article: US movie actor is 'Afghan prince'
  5. ^ Bosworth, C. Edmund "GÚUR". Encyclopædia Iranica (Online Edition). United States: Columbia University. Retrieved on January 2008. 

[edit] See also

[edit] External links


v • d • e
Provinces of Afghanistan

Badakhshan · Badghis · Baghlan · Balkh · Bamiyan · Daykundi · Farah · Faryab · Ghazni · Ghor · Helmand · Herat · Jowzjan · Kabul · Kandahar · Kapisa · Khost · Kunar · Kunduz · Laghman · Lowgar · Nangarhar · Nimruz · Nuristan · Oruzgan · Paktia · Paktika · Panjshir · Parwan · Samangan · Sar-e Pol · Takhar · Wardak · Zabul
Flag of Afghanistan
v • d • e
Districts of Ghor
Chaghcharan (Capital) • Chaghcharan • Charsada • Dawlat Yar • Du Layna • Lal Wa Sarjangal • Pasaband • Saghar • Shahrak • Taywara • Tulak