Afghan Turkmens or Turkmens of Afghanistan ( fa, ترکمن های افغان, tk, Owgan türkmenleri, ) live in the north-west of
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
along the border with
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...
and
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...
, surrounded by a larger group of Afghan
Uzbeks
The Uzbeks ( uz, , , , ) are a Turkic ethnic group native to the wider Central Asian region, being among the largest Turkic ethnic group in the area. They comprise the majority population of Uzbekistan, next to Kazakh and Karakalpak mino ...
. The number of Turkmens in Afghanistan is estimated at 1 million people or roughly 2-3% of the
population of Afghanistan
The population of Afghanistan is around 40 million as of 2021. The nation is composed of a multi-ethnic and multilingual society, reflecting its location astride historic trade and invasion routes between Central Asia, South Asia, and Western ...
.
History
Turkmens were one of the divided peoples in
Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
nearing the end of the 19th century as a result of
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
,
Iranian
Iranian may refer to:
* Iran, a sovereign state
* Iranian peoples, the speakers of the Iranian languages. The term Iranic peoples is also used for this term to distinguish the pan ethnic term from Iranian, used for the people of Iran
* Iranian lan ...
and
Afghan counteraction, as well as the halt of the
Russian expansion into
Turkestan
Turkestan, also spelled Turkistan ( fa, ترکستان, Torkestân, lit=Land of the Turks), is a historical region in Central Asia corresponding to the regions of Transoxiana and Xinjiang.
Overview
Known as Turan to the Persians, western Turk ...
and
Transoxiana
Transoxiana or Transoxania (Land beyond the Oxus) is the Latin name for a region and civilization located in lower Central Asia roughly corresponding to modern-day eastern Uzbekistan, western Tajikistan, parts of southern Kazakhstan, parts of Tu ...
.
The original Turkmen groups arrived from the east of the
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central Asia ...
into northwestern Afghanistan at various periods, particularly after the end of the 19th century when the
Russians
, native_name_lang = ru
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, population =
, popplace =
118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 '' Winkler Prins'' estimate)
, region1 =
, pop1 ...
moved into their territory. They established settlements from
Balkh Province
Balkh (Dari: , ''Balx'') is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the north of the country. It is divided into 15 districts and has a population of about 1,509,183, which is multi-ethnic and mostly a Persian-speaking society. The c ...
to
Herat Province
Herat ( Persian: ) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, located in the north-western part of the country. Together with Badghis, Farah, and Ghor provinces, it makes up the north-western region of Afghanistan. Its primary city a ...
, where they are now concentrated; smaller groups settled in
Kunduz Province. Others came in considerable numbers as a result of the failure of the
Basmachi revolts against the
Bolsheviks
The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
in the 1920s.
Though the majority of Turkmens are recent immigrants who crossed the Soviet border in the years between 1915 and 1940, the chronicles of the 18th and even 17th centuries show that large groups of Turkmens were already present in Afghan Turkestan.
Turkmen tribes
The major modern Turkmen tribes are Teke, Yomut, Ersari, Chowdur, Gokleng and Saryk. The most numerous are the Teke.
The origin of all of these tribes is traced to 24 ancient Oghuz tribes, among which the Salur tribe played a prominent role ...
, of which there are twelve major groups in Afghanistan, base their structure on genealogies traced through the male line. Consequently, senior male members of the family wield considerable authority. The following major
Turkmen tribes
The major modern Turkmen tribes are Teke, Yomut, Ersari, Chowdur, Gokleng and Saryk. The most numerous are the Teke.
The origin of all of these tribes is traced to 24 ancient Oghuz tribes, among which the Salur tribe played a prominent role ...
live in Afghanistan:
Ersari
Ersari ( tk, Ärsary, where ''Er'' - brave man, master; ''sari'' - light, bright, yellow) are one of the major tribes of the Turkmen people of Central Asia and one of the five major tribes of the country of Turkmenistan. They live mainly in Tur ...
,
Teke
Teke or Tekke can refer to:
People
* Teke (Turkmen tribe) or Tekke, a tribe of southern Turkmenistan
* Teke people or Bateke, a Central African ethnic group
* Fatih Tekke (born 1977), Turkish footballer
* Kent Tekulve (born 1947), American baseba ...
, Alili,
Saryks and
Salyrs. More than half of the Afghan Turkmens are descendants of the refugees who escaped
collectivization
Collective farming and communal farming are various types of, "agricultural production in which multiple farmers run their holdings as a joint enterprise". There are two broad types of communal farms: agricultural cooperatives, in which member- ...
in
Soviet Turkmenistan in the 1920s.
Culture
Occupation
Formerly a
nomadic
A nomad is a member of a community without fixed habitation who regularly moves to and from the same areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the popu ...
and fierce warriors feared for their lightning raids on caravans, Turkmens in Afghanistan today are farmer-herdsmen and important contributors to the economy. They introduced
karakul sheep
Karakul or Qaraqul (named after Qorakoʻl, a city in Bukhara Region in Uzbekistan) is a breed of domestic sheep which originated in Central Asia. Some archaeological evidence points to Karakul sheep being raised there continuously since 1400 BC ...
to Afghanistan and are also renowned
makers of carpets, which, with karakul pelts, are major
hard currency
In macroeconomics, hard currency, safe-haven currency, or strong currency is any globally traded currency that serves as a reliable and stable store of value. Factors contributing to a currency's ''hard'' status might include the stability and ...
export commodities.
Turkmen jewelry
Turkmen jewelry is a type of jewelry originating among the various Turkmen cultures of Western and Central Asia. The jewelry was crafted both for cosmetic and spiritual reasons, and the amount of jewelry an individual adorned themselves with was ...
is also highly prized.
Mostly, Afghan Turkmens are economically well established in the country largely due to significant importance to the Afghan economy of the carpets.
Language
Afghan Turkmens mostly speak the
Ersari
Ersari ( tk, Ärsary, where ''Er'' - brave man, master; ''sari'' - light, bright, yellow) are one of the major tribes of the Turkmen people of Central Asia and one of the five major tribes of the country of Turkmenistan. They live mainly in Tur ...
dialect of the
Turkmen language
Turkmen (, , , or , , , ), sometimes referred to as "Turkmen Turkic" or "Turkmen Turkish", is a Turkic language spoken by the Turkmens of Central Asia, mainly of Turkmenistan, Iran, and Afghanistan. It has an estimated 5 million native speake ...
, which itself is a
Turkic language
The Turkic languages are a language family of over 35 documented languages, spoken by the Turkic peoples of Eurasia from Eastern Europe and Southern Europe to Central Asia, East Asia, North Asia (Siberia), and Western Asia. The Turkic languag ...
of the
Oghuz group. It has an estimated five million native speakers in Turkmenistan, and a further 719,000 speakers in Northeastern
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
.
The Turkmen language is closely related to
Azerbaijani and
Turkish languages, sharing common linguistic features and enjoying a high degree of mutual intelligibility with each of these languages.
Religion
The Turkmens of
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
just as their kin in
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...
,
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...
, and
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
are predominantly
Sunni Muslims.
Turkmens adopted
Islam between the 12th and 14th centuries.
Sufi orders like the
Yasawiya and
Kubrawiya
The Kubrawiya order ( ar, سلسلة کبرویة) or Kubrawi order, also known as ''Firdausia Silsila'', is a Sufi order that traces its spiritual lineage ('' Silsilah'') to the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, through Ali, Muhammad's cousin, son-in ...
greatly contributed to the conversion of the Turkmens to Islam.
The great majority of
Turkmens
Turkmens ( tk, , , , ; historically "the Turkmen"), sometimes referred to as Turkmen Turks ( tk, , ), are a Turkic ethnic group native to Central Asia, living mainly in Turkmenistan, northern and northeastern regions of Iran and north-weste ...
readily identify themselves as
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
and acknowledge
Islam as an integral part of their cultural heritage.
Notable people
*
Eypio- Afghan-born Turkish rapper, songwriter and musician.
See also
*
Turkmen people
Turkmens ( tk, , , , ; historically "the Turkmen"), sometimes referred to as Turkmen Turks ( tk, , ), are a Turkic ethnic group native to Central Asia, living mainly in Turkmenistan, northern and northeastern regions of Iran and north-weste ...
*
Turks in Afghanistan
*
Turkoman horse
The Turkoman horse, or Turkmene, was an Oriental horse breed from the steppes of Turkoman desert. Its closest modern descendant is thought to be the Akhal-Teke. It influenced many modern horse breeds, including the Thoroughbred horse. Some h ...
*
Music of Turkmenistan
*
Iranian Turkmens
Iranian Turkmens ( fa, ترکمنهای ایران; tk, ایران تۆرکمنلری, Eýran Türkmenleri) are a branch of Turkmen people living mainly in northern and northeastern regions of Iran. Their region is called Turkmen Sahra an ...
*
Turkoman (ethnonym)
Turkoman (Middle Turkic: تُركْمانْ, ota, تركمن, Türkmen and ''Türkmân''; az, Türkman and ', tr, Türkmen, tk, Türkmen, Persian: ترکمن sing. ''Turkamān'', pl. ''Tarākimah''), also called Turcoman and Turkman, is a ter ...
*
Oghuz Turks
References
{{Ethnic groups in Afghanistan
Ethnic Turkmen people
Ethnic groups in Afghanistan