Zadian (
Pashto
Pashto (,; , ) is an Eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family. It is known in historical Persian literature as Afghani ().
Spoken as a native language mostly by ethnic Pashtuns, it is one of the two official languages ...
/
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
: زادیان) is a
village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...
in
Dawlatabad District
Dawlatabad District (Pashto and fa, ) is a landlocked district, located in the northwestern part of Balkh province, in northern Afghanistan. The population is 101,900 people. The capital is the village of Dowlatabad (Pop: 12,400) at 298 m h ...
,
Balkh Province in northern
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 ...
.
History
The
Zadian Minaret (named after the village) was built by the
Seljuk dynasty
The Seljuk dynasty, or Seljukids ( ; fa, سلجوقیان ''Saljuqian'', alternatively spelled as Seljuqs or Saljuqs), also known as Seljuk Turks, Seljuk Turkomans "The defeat in August 1071 of the Byzantine emperor Romanos Diogenes
by the Turk ...
, during the 12th century. According to the ''Archaeological Gazetteer of Afghanistan'', the minaret was built in 1108–09.
However, some archaeological studies suggest that the date of the construction of the minaret is approximately around the year 760.
As the minaret is climbable, local citizens have scaled the tower and some have fallen to their deaths in attempts.
Near the minaret is the
Shrine of Hazrat Saleh, which is an Islamic pilgrim site.
In the 12th century, the village was missed by
Genghis Khan
''Chinggis Khaan'' ͡ʃʰiŋɡɪs xaːŋbr />Mongol script: ''Chinggis Qa(gh)an/ Chinggis Khagan''
, birth_name = Temüjin
, successor = Tolui (as regent)Ögedei Khan
, spouse =
, issue =
, house = Borjigin
, ...
and the
invading Mongols.
Archaeology has taken place in the village, including works by the
French Archaeological Delegation in Afghanistan (DAFA).
Gallery
Budynek szkoły - Zodjon - 001209n.jpg, School in Zadian
Widok wsi ze szczytu minaretu - Zodjon - 001211n.jpg, Skyline of Zadian in 1976
Widok z minaretu - Zodjon k. Dāulātābadu - 001592s.jpg, View from the minaret in 1976
Widok z minaretu - Zodjon k. Dāulātābadu - 001594s.jpg, Skyline of Zadian
Widok z minaretu - Zodjon k. Dāulātābadu - 001595s.jpg, Zadian village
References
{{Balkh-geo-stub
Populated places in Balkh Province