Laghman (
Dari: ) is one of the 34
provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country. It has a population of about 502,148,
which is multi-ethnic and mostly a rural society. Laghman hosts a large number of historical landmarks, minarets, monuments, and other cultural relics that are manifestation of its old history and culture. The city of
Mihtarlam serves as the capital of the province. In some historical texts the name is written as "Lamghan" or as "Lamghanat".
In 2021, the
Taliban gained control of the province during the
2021 Taliban offensive
A military offensive by the Taliban insurgent group and other allied militants led to the fall of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan based in Kabul and marked the end of the nearly 20-year-old War in Afghanistan, that had begun following the ...
.
Etymology
Laghman or Lamghan is originally named after
Lamech (Mether Lam Baba), the father of
Noah
Noah ''Nukh''; am, ኖህ, ''Noḥ''; ar, نُوح '; grc, Νῶε ''Nôe'' () is the tenth and last of the pre-Flood patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5– ...
.
History
Located currently at the
Kabul Museum are
Aramaic inscriptions that were found in Laghman which indicated an ancient trade route from India to Palmyra.
Aramaic was the bureaucratic script language of the
Achaemenids whose influence had extended toward Laghman. During the invasions of
Alexander the Great, the area was known as Lampaka.
Inscriptions in Aramaic dating from the
Mauryan Dynasty were found in Laghman which discussed the conversion of
Ashoka to Buddhism. The inscription mentions that the distance to
Palmyra is 300 dhanusha or
yojana.
The
Mahamayuri Tantra dated to between the 1-3rd century mentions several popular Yaksha shrines. It mentions Yaksha Kalahapriya being worshipped in Lampaka.
In the seventh century, the Chinese pilgrim
Xuanzang visited Laghman, which he called "Lan-pro" and considered part of India. He indicated the presence of
Mahayana Buddhists and numerous Hindus:
The
Hudud al-'alam which was finished in 982 AD mentioned the presence of some idol worshipping temples in the area.
The Kabul Shahis only retained Lamghan in the
Kabul-
Gandhara
Gandhāra is the name of an ancient region located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, more precisely in present-day north-west Pakistan and parts of south-east Afghanistan. The region centered around the Peshawar Vall ...
area by the time of
Alp-tegin. According to
Firishta,
Sabuktigin had already begun raiding Lamghan under Alp-begin. He crossed the
Khyber Pass
The Khyber Pass (خیبر درہ) is a mountain pass in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, on the border with the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan. It connects the town of Landi Kotal to the Valley of Peshawar at Jamrud by traversing pa ...
many times and raided the territory of
Jayapala.
He plundered the forts in the outlying provinces of the Kabul Shahi and captured many cities, acquiring huge booty.
He also established Islam at many places. Jaipal in retaliation marched with a large force into the valley of Lamghan (
Jalalabad) where he clashed with Sabuktigin and his son. The battle stretched on several days until a snowstorm affected Jaipala's strategies, forcing him to sue for peace.
[
Jayapala then returned to Waihind but broke the treaty and mistreated the amirs sent to collect the tribute. Sabuktigin launched another invasion in retaliation. According to al-Utbi, Sabuktigin attacked Lamghan, conquering it and burning the residences of the "infidels" while also demolishing its idol-temples and establishing Islam. He advanced and butchered the idolaters, destroying the temples and plundering their shrines, even risking frostbite on their hands counting the large booty.
To avenge the savage attack of Sabuktigin, Jayapala, who has earlier taken his envoys as hostage, decided to go to war again in revenge. The forces of Kabul Shahi were however routed and those still alive were killed in the forest or drowned in the river. The second battle that took place between Sabuktigin and Jayapala in 988 A.D., resulted in the former capturing territory between Lamghan and Peshawar. Al-Ubti also states that the Afghans and Khaljis, living there as nomads, took the oath of allegiance to him and were recruited into his army. Sabuktigin won one of his greatest battles in Laghman against Jayapala and his army numbering 100,000. Ghaznavid Sultan ]Mahmud of Ghazni
Yamīn-ud-Dawla Abul-Qāṣim Maḥmūd ibn Sebüktegīn ( fa, ; 2 November 971 – 30 April 1030), usually known as Mahmud of Ghazni or Mahmud Ghaznavi ( fa, ), was the founder of the Turkic Ghaznavid dynasty, ruling from 998 to 1030. At th ...
built the Tomb of Lamech, amid gardens, over the site of his presumed grave, 50 kilometres from Mihtarlam.
During the early years of the 16th century, the Mughal
Mughal or Moghul may refer to:
Related to the Mughal Empire
* Mughal Empire of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries
* Mughal dynasty
* Mughal emperors
* Mughal people, a social group of Central and South Asia
* Mughal architecture
* Mug ...
ruler Babur
Babur ( fa, , lit= tiger, translit= Bābur; ; 14 February 148326 December 1530), born Mīrzā Zahīr ud-Dīn Muhammad, was the founder of the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent. He was a descendant of Timur and Genghis Khan through his ...
spent much time in Laghman, and in ''Baburnama
The ''Bāburnāma'' ( chg, ; literally: ''"History of Babur"'' or ''"Letters of Babur"''; alternatively known as ''Tuzk-e Babri'') is the memoirs of Ẓahīr-ud-Dīn Muhammad Bābur (1483–1530), founder of the Mughal Empire and a great-great- ...
'' (memoirs of Babur) he expatiated on the beauty of forested hillsides and the fertility of the valley bottoms of the region. Laghman was recognized as a dependent district of Kabulistan in the Mughal era, and according to Baburnama, "Greater Lamghanat" included the Muslim-settled part of the Kafiristan, including the easterly one of Kunar River. Laghman was the base for expeditions against the non-believers
An infidel (literally "unfaithful") is a person accused of disbelief in the central tenets of one's own religion, such as members of another religion, or the irreligious.
Infidel is an ecclesiastical term in Christianity around which the Chur ...
and was frequently mentioned in accounts of jihad
Jihad (; ar, جهاد, jihād ) is an Arabic word which literally means "striving" or "struggling", especially with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it can refer to almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with Go ...
s led by Mughal emperor Akbar
Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar (25 October 1542 – 27 October 1605), popularly known as Akbar the Great ( fa, ), and also as Akbar I (), was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Hum ...
's younger brother, Mohammad Hakim, who was the governor of Kabul. In 1747, Ahmad Shah Durrani
Ahmad Shāh Durrānī ( ps, احمد شاه دراني; prs, احمد شاه درانی), also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī (), was the founder of the Durrani Empire and is regarded as the founder of the modern Afghanistan. In July 1747, Ahm ...
defeated the Mughals and made the territory part of the Durrani Empire
The Durrani Empire ( ps, د درانيانو ټولواکمني; fa, امپراتوری درانیان) or the Afghan Empire ( ps, د افغانان ټولواکمني, label=none; fa, امپراتوری افغان, label=none), also know ...
. In the late nineteenth century, Amir Abdur Rahman Khan forced the remaining
Recent history
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 are said to have employed a strategy that targeted and destroyed the agricultural infrastructure of Laghman. As of 2007, an International Security Assistance Force Provincial Reconstruction Team led by the United States is based at Mihtarlam.
In 2021, the first stadium in Laghman opened in Mihtarlam.
Healthcare
The percentage of households with clean drinking water fell from 39% in 2005 to 34% in 2011.[Archive, Civil Military Fusion Centre](_blank)
The percentage of births attended to by a skilled birth attendant increased from 3% in 2005 to 36% in 2011. There are 57 medical health clinics and 2 government hospitals.
Infrastructure and economy
The Alingar and Alishing 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. 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, as it is well known for being a relatively untapped source of the Tourmaline and Spodumene gemstones which are reported to be in abundance at the northern portions of the province. There are also marble mines.
Places of interest
* Qala-e-Seraj
*Hajji Dunya Gul Niazi Jamia Masjid
Hajji Dunya Gul Niazi Jamia Masjid ( ps, حاجی دنیا ګل نیازی جامعه مسجد) is a mosque in the city of Mihtarlam in Laghman Province, Afghanistan.
Construction work on two mosques was launched in 2017. The second mosque opened ...
Education
The overall literacy rate (6+ years of age) increased from 14% in 2005 to 26% in 2011. The overall net enrolment rate (6–13 years of age) increased from 48% in 2005 to 52% in 2011.
Universities
*Laghman University
Laghman University ( fa, د لغمان پوهنتون) is a state university located in Mihtarlam, Laghman Province, in eastern Afghanistan. It was established in 2011. Laghman University has 72 bachelor's and master's degree teachers in five fa ...
Demography
As of 2021, the total population of the province is about 502,148, which is multi-ethnic and mostly a rural society. According to the Naval Postgraduate School
The Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a public graduate school operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California.
It offers master’s and doctoral degrees in more than 70 fields of study to the U.S. Armed Forces, DOD ci ...
, as of 2010 the ethnic groups of the province are as follows: 51.3% Pashtun, 27% Pashai and Nuristani (Kata), and 21.7% Tajik
Tajik, Tadjik, Tadzhik or Tajikistani may refer to:
* Someone or something related to Tajikistan
* Tajiks, an ethnic group in Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Uzbekistan
* Tajik language, the official language of Tajikistan
* Tajik (surname)
* Tajik cu ...
. The people of Laghman are overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim
Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word ''Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagree ...
.
Laghman has a population of 396,000 people in 2008. The province has 60,048 households, with an average of six persons per home. Rural areas are home to 99 percent of the population. Sapi, Tajik, Nasir, Ibrahimkhail, Hoodkhail, Nuristani, Kharoti, Jabarkhail, Pashaie, Niazi, Pashtun, and Gujjars are the major ethnic groupings. Pashto is spoken in 345 of the 620 villages, accounting for about 58 percent of the population. Pashayi languages is the second most common language, spoken by a third of the people in 210 localities. Dari is spoken in 57 localities, accounting for slightly more than 9% of the population. Kochi people (nomads) live in Laghman province, and their numbers fluctuate depending on the season. In the winter, 94,020 people, or around 4% of the Kuchi population, stay in Laghman living in 40 communities.
Districts
Notable people from the province
*Haneef Atmar
Mohammad Haneef Atmar (Pashto: محمد حنیف اتمر; born 10 September 1968) is the former Minister of Foreign Affairs and a former Interior Minister of Afghanistan. He was removed from the Ministry of Interior Affairs by Hamid Karzai in ...
- national security advisor, former Education and Interior Minister
* Mirwais Azizi - founder and owner of Azizi Bank
*Tariq Shah Bahramee
Tariq Shah Bahramee (born 1967) is a general in the Afghan National Army and current ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; Romanization of Arabic, tr. ' ), officially ...
- former Defence Minister
*Mohammad Shafiq Hamdam
Mohammad Shafiq Hamdam (Pashto: ډاکټر محمد شفیق همدم) is a writer, a leader in information technology and cybersecurity, and a political analyst from Afghanistan. He worked as a Deputy Senior Advisor to The President Islamic Repub ...
- writer and political activist
*Abdul Khaliq Hussaini
Abdul Khaliq Hussaini is an ambassador for peace, journalist, social and community activist. Currently, he works as an international affairs journalist for Khaama Press, a leading news agency for Afghanistan. He was also a candidate of the Woles ...
- Former Senator, political activist
* Hafizullah Khaled - humanitarian, peace activist and writer
* Zalmay Khalilzad - statesman, diplomat and businessman
*Abdullah Laghmani
Abdullah may refer to:
* Abdullah (name), a list of people with the given name or surname
* Abdullah, Kargı, Turkey, a village
* ''Abdullah'' (film), a 1980 Bollywood film directed by Sanjay Khan
* '' Abdullah: The Final Witness'', a 2015 Paki ...
- former Deputy Intelligence Officer of Afghanistan
* Wafadar Momand - cricketer
*Mohammed Asif Safi
General Mohammed Asif Safi (1923 — July 26, 2009) (Pashto language, Pashto:تور نجنرال اركا نحرب محمد آصف صافي) was an Army General in the Afghan National Army during King Muhammed Zahir Shah, Zahir Shah's rule in Af ...
- General in Afghan Army during 1970's
* Hafiz Sahar - Editor-in-Chief of Eslah national newspaper in early 1970s, Fulbright Scholar, and Professor of Journalism in Afghanistan and United States.
*Gul Pacha Ulfat
Gul Pacha Ulfat ( ps, ګل پاچا الفت) was born in 1909 in Qarghayi District of Laghman Province, Afghanistan. Ulfat was a prominent poet and author of the Pashto language.
Early life
Gul Pacha Ulfat, son of Meer Sayed Pacha, was born in ...
- poet and writer
* Abdul Zahir (politician) - prime minister of Afghanistan in early 1970s
* Ahmad Zahir - singer and songwriter
References
External links
*
*
{{Authority control
Provinces of Afghanistan
History of Laghman Province
Buddhism in Afghanistan
Afghan politicians by province
Provinces of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan