Pashai
Encyclopedia
Pashayi or Pashai are a Dardic
ethno-linguistic group living primarily in eastern Afghanistan
and in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan
. Their total population is estimated to be 500,000. They are mainly concentrated in the northern parts of Laghman and Nangarhar
provinces and eastern Kapisa province
. Some believe the Pashai are descendants of ancient Gāndhārī. Many Pashai consider themselves Pashtuns
speaking a special language
, and many are bilingual in Pashto
. Small Pashai communities can also be found in the Chitral district
of northwestern Pakistan
. The majority of Pashai are Sunni Muslim
s and are often referred to as Kohistani, while a minority are Nizari
Ismaili
Muslim
s.
Dard people
The Dards are a group of people defined by linguistic similarities, and not common ethnicity, predominantly found in Eastern Afghanistan, in the Indian State of Jammu and Kashmir and in the Northern Areas and North West Frontier Province of Pakistan...
ethno-linguistic group living primarily in eastern Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
and in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. Their total population is estimated to be 500,000. They are mainly concentrated in the northern parts of Laghman and Nangarhar
Nangarhar Province
Nangarhar is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan in the east of the country. Its capital is the city of Jalalabad. The population of the province is 1,334,000, which consists mainly of ethnic Pashtuns with a sizable community of Arabs and Pashais....
provinces and eastern Kapisa province
Kapisa Province
Kapisa is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. It is in the north-east of the country. Its capital is Mahmud-i-Raqi, and other districts include Kohistan, Nijrab and Tagab. The population of Kapisa is estimated to be 364,900, although there has never been an official estimate...
. Some believe the Pashai are descendants of ancient Gāndhārī. Many Pashai consider themselves Pashtuns
Pashtun people
Pashtuns or Pathans , also known as ethnic Afghans , are an Eastern Iranic ethnic group with populations primarily between the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan and the Indus River in Pakistan...
speaking a special language
Pashayi language
Pashayi - also known as Pashai - is a language spoken by the Pashai people in parts of Kapisa, Laghman, Nuristan, Kunar, and Nangarhar Provinces in Northeastern Afghanistan....
, and many are bilingual in Pashto
Pashto language
Pashto , known as Afghani in Persian and Pathani in Punjabi , is the native language of the indigenous Pashtun people or Afghan people who are found primarily between an area south of the Amu Darya in Afghanistan and...
. Small Pashai communities can also be found in the Chitral district
Chitral District
Chitral is a district in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan that contains the town of Chitral. It has an area of 14,850 km² and a population of 318,689 at the 1998 Census, which had subsequently risen to about 378,000 people by 2004. It has one of the highest mountains of the world,...
of northwestern Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. The majority of Pashai are Sunni Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s and are often referred to as Kohistani, while a minority are Nizari
Nizari
'The Shī‘a Imami Ismā‘īlī Tariqah also referred to as the Ismā‘īlī or Nizārī , is a path of Shī‘a Islām, emphasizing social justice, pluralism, and human reason within the framework of the mystical tradition of Islam. The Nizari are the second largest branch of Shia Islam and form the majority...
Ismaili
Ismaili
' is a branch of Shia Islam. It is the second largest branch of Shia Islam, after the Twelvers...
Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s.
Notable individuals
- The Northern AllianceUnited Islamic Front for the Salvation of AfghanistanThe United Islamic Front , known in the West and Pakistan as the Northern Alliance, was a military-political umbrella organization created by the Islamic State of Afghanistan in 1996 under the leadership of Defense Minister Ahmad Shah Massoud...
commander Hazrat AliHazrat AliHajji Hazrat Ali bin Bahawal Sheir is a military commander in eastern Afghanistan.-Biography:He was born in 1964 and is an ethnic Pashai....
.