Pashtun diaspora

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Pashtuns (Pashto: پښتون Paṣtūn or پختون Paxtūn, also rendered as Pushtuns, Pakhtuns, Pukhtuns), also called Pathans (Urdu: پٹھان, Hindi: पठान Paṭhān) have many communities world-wide. In Pakistan, the word Pathan is beginning to be replaced by Pakhtun. Though their homeland is in the Pakhtunkhwa region of South-Central Asia- a region stretching from southern and eastern Afghanistan to western and southern Pakistan, they are also found in the Middle East, Europe, North America, Australia as well as in other parts of the globe. These communities include substantial numbers who claim Pashtun descent (and perhaps to a lesser extent culturally) and not linguistically.

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[edit] Pashtuns in South Asia

[edit] Afghanistan

Pashtuns, are the largest ethnic group in Afghanistan, comprising between 37% to 42% of Afghanistan's population or 12,500,000 persons and are the 2nd largest ethnic group of Pakistan where have considerable influence in the army, government, business and trade.[1] The term Pashtun is historically synonymous with Afghan, a term currently used to describe a person from the country of Afghanistan. Kandahar is the second major city in Afghanistan and a stronghold of the Pashtun culture.

[edit] Pakistan

Pashtuns are the second largest ethnic group after the Punjabis in Pakistan, comprising over 15% of Pakistan's population (28 million persons).[2] About 3 million are refugees from Afghanistan who migrated there during the Soviet war in Afghanistan. Peshawar and Quetta are Pakistani cities with significant numbers of Pashtuns while Karachi is the world's largest city by number of Pashtuns.

The following delineates the population of Pashtun in the provinces of Pakistan:[citation needed]

In ethnic terms, substantial ethnic communities reside in Attock district and Mianwali. Other communities include large numbers of Muhammadzais in Kasur, and other larger communities have settled around Multan which was formerly part of the Durrani Empire.

In addition to this a large portion of the Urdu Speaking community in Pakistan claim to be ethnically Pashtun. A large community identify themselves as Yousefzai Pathans. Additionally a significant number of descendants of Rohillas are also living in Pakistan after migration from India in 1947.

[edit] India

India, as a British colony, once had a large Pashtun population roughly equal to that of Afghanistan, mostly concentrated in what were then the British Indian provinces of the North-West Frontier Province and Baluchistan. In fact, according to Encyclopædia Britannica, the number of Pashtuns in all of India was nearly 31 million, but the speakers of Pashto numbered less than 14 million.[4] Most of this population was alloted, along with its respective provinces, to Pakistan after the Partition of India. Today the Pashtuns in India are can be separated into those who speak Pashto and those who speak Urdu, with the latter being the far larger.

Pashto-Speaking Communities

A small scattered Pashtun population still exists in some major cities of India with large Muslim populations, with the majority of Pashto-speaking individuals residing in the states of Jammu & Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh.[5][6] These Pathans, numbering around 11,086,[7] have retained the use of the Pashto language and are still able to speak and understand it. This is partially due to the fact that until recently, most of these Indian Pashtuns were able to travel to Pakhtunkhwa.[8] The number of actual Pashto speakers in India may be a lot higher, especially for those living in Jammu & Kashmir due to the remoteness of their villages, and is at least as high as 14,161,[9] according to some censuses. Those settled and living in the Kashmir Valley speak Pashto, and are found chiefly in the southwest of the valley, where Pashtun colonies have from time to time been founded. The most interesting are the Kukikhel Afridis of Dramghaihama, who retain all the old customs and speak Pashto. They wear picturesque dress and carry swords and shields. The Afridis and the Machipurians, who belong to the Yusufzai tribe, are liable to military service, in return for which they hold certain villages free of revenue. The Pashtuns chiefly came in under the Durranis, but many were brought by Maharajah Gulab Singh for service on the frontier.[10]

Urdu-Speaking Communities

The larger number of Pashtuns in India are Urdu-speaking. Despite the loss of most of the Raj-era Pashtun population, India still has a large community of Urdu-speaking Muslims who trace their ancestry to Pashtun-invaders and settlers. They are often referred by the Hindi-Urdu pronunciation of the word Pashtun, "Pathan".

Shabbir Hasan Khan Josh, an Urdu-speaking poet of Pakhtun origin from Malihabad (UP, India), wrote that the Pathans of India took pride in their ethnicity and considered bravery and aggressiveness a part of it. The Pathans of India did not speak Pashto, though, according to H. G. Raverty, 'in the territory of the Rampur Nawwab, whole towns and villages may be found in which the Afghan language' was spoken up to 1860.[11] Their genealogical tables, in common with their Pashto-speaking counterparts, were in Persian, which appears to have been the language of literacy among the Pakhtuns.

Major Indian Pathan tribes lived in the following areas. While, many persons belonging to these tribles moved to the Afghan-Pakistan border, others chose to stay and thus, descendants of these tribes still reside in the parts of India listed below:[12]

  1. Rohillas mainly live in Uttar Pradesh.
  2. Bangashes living in Farrukhabad
  3. Yousafzai other than Rohillas living in Tonk, Baroda, and Bhopal
  4. Mianas in Southern India
  5. Lodhis and Suris of North India

It must be remembered that the term "Pathan" does not refer exclusively and specifically to these Indian Pashtun descendants. Historically the term was used to refer to Pashtuns in general by mainstream Indians, Muslims included. Most Pashtuns, however, find the term to be insensitive and prefer to be called by their native label.

Many Pashtuns worked in the Indian independence movement. While many supported the Muslim League's demand for Pakistan, several Pashtuns opposed it in favor of a united and secular India. These included Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, his son Khan Wali Khan, Indian diplomat Mohammed Yunus, Pakistani opposition leader Mufti Mahmud and Balochistan-based Pashtun leader Abdul Samad Achakzai.

Today around 11,904,000 Urdu-speaking people who claim Pathan descent reside in post-partition India.[13] The following delineates the population of Pathans in the states of India.[8]

The following are the some famous Indian Pathans:

Also included among the Pashtuns in India are students from Afghanistan who are in India to obtain a quality education[14] and Kabuliwallah Pashtuns who are doing business in India.[15] In addition, India has a large number of Hindu and Sikh refugees from Afghanistan who are very fluent in Pashto, Hindko and Dari.

[edit] Pashtuns in the Middle East

A significant population of Pasthuns serving as migrant workers is found in the Middle East particularly in United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and other Arab countries. Majority of them are involved in the import-export business, while others are owners of construction companies.

[edit] Pashtuns in Europe

A large number of Pashtuns have migrated from their homeland, South Asia, to Europe. The following statistics give information on the number of Pashtuns in European countries:

[edit] Pashtuns in Other parts of the World

[edit] United States

Since the late 1970s and onwards, Pashtuns began immigrating to the USA in large numbers and are well established there. The current U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations (Zalmay Khalilzad) is Pashtun, who originates from Mazari Sharif in northern Afghanistan. Pashtuns in the United States are famous for running top Afghan cuisine restaurants[17][18][19] as well as owners of the fast-food restaurant chain Kennedy Fried Chicken that is based in New York City.

Pashtuns have been present in California at least since agricultural labor was imported in the early 20th Century. A prominent example is the town of Lodi, which has a large community which was in the news with the case of the Hayats, a father-and-son duo arrested by the FBI on allegation of terrorism training, in 2006.[20]

[edit] Australia

Large numbers of Afghans were recruited in the 19th century during the initial British development of Australia. These consisted of men who were not allowed to bring their families with them, many married local aborigines and are now known as Ghans.[21] During the 1980s and 90s, Pashtuns began settling in Perth, Melbourne, Sydney and other major cities of Australia.

[edit] Latin America

There is a small number of Pashtuns in some of the South American countries, in Ecuador, Peru, Mexico, Chile, Paraguay, etc.

[edit] Guyana & Suriname

There are living some people in Guyana & Suriname who claim to have Afghan descent. Most of them came to the South American nations during the Indian immigration.[22]

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ CIA - The World Factbook - Afghanistan
  2. ^ Population Census Organization, Government of Pakistan - Population by Mother Tongue
  3. ^ Part of the region bordering Pakistan falls in the disputed Kashmir region which is claimed by India
  4. ^ Pathan. Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition. Retrieved on 2007-06-07.
  5. ^ Pathan. Lucknow for Jesus. Retrieved on 2007-06-07.
  6. ^ Rampur. Christopher Buyers. Retrieved on 2007-06-07.
  7. ^ Abstract of speakers’ strength of languages and mother tongues – 2001, Census of India (retrieved 17 March 2008)
  8. ^ a b Study of the Pathan Communities in four States of India. Khyber. Retrieved on 2007-06-07.
  9. ^ Phonemic Inventory of Pashto. CRULP. Retrieved on 2007-06-07.
  10. ^ Saiyids, Mughals, Pashtuns and Galawans. OPF. Retrieved on 2007-06-07.
  11. ^ Shabbir Hasan Khan Josh, Yadon ki Barat [Urdu: The Wedding Procession of Memories] (Lahore: Maktaba Sher-o-Adab, 1964), p 341, passim.
  12. ^ Pashto Language & Identity Formation. Contemporary South Asia, July 1995, Vol 4, Issue 2, p151,20 (Khyber). Retrieved on 2007-06-07.
  13. ^ Pashtun, Northern of India. Joshua Project. Retrieved on 2008-05-11.
  14. ^ President Karzai Meets Afghan Students Studying in India. Office of the President (Islamic Republic of Afghanistan). Retrieved on 2007-06-07.
  15. ^ The Kabuliwallahs of Ballimaran. The Hindu. Retrieved on 2007-06-07.
  16. ^ Ethnologue report for Southern Pashto: Iran (1993)
  17. ^ Helmand - Baltimore, Maryland
  18. ^ Helmand - San Francisco, California
  19. ^ Helmand - Cambridge, Massachusetts
  20. ^ Blog: Hamid Hayat
  21. ^ Afghan histories in Australia: The story of the Ghans
  22. ^ Afghans of Guyana, Afghanland.com (retrieved 18 January 2007)

[edit] Bibliography

  • Ahwalay Riyasatay Rampur (Tarikhi wa Maashrati Pusmanzar) by Syed Asghar and Ali Shadami, compiled and edited by Rizwanullah Khan Enayati and Tanzim Ahbab Rampur