Tajiks (تاجک Тоҷик)
Avicenna • al-Khwarizmi • Biruni • Ahmad Shah Massoud
Total population
ca. 16.5 to 28.5 million Image File history File links Avicenna_Persian_Physician. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 447 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (735 × 985 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 447 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (485 × 650 pixel, file size: 67 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Abu-Rayhan Biruni 1973 Afghanistan post stamp File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old... (Persian: ابن سينا) (c. ... Soviet postage stamp commemorating the 1200th anniversary of Muhammad al‑Khwarizmi in 1983. ... Biruni commemorated on a Soviet stamp for his millennial anniversary. ... Ahmad Shah Massoud(Persian: ) (c. ... Look up Circa on Wiktionary, the free dictionary The Latin word circa, literally meaning about, is often used to describe various dates (often birth and death dates) that are uncertain. ...
Regions with significant populations
Afghanistan 8,610,279 [1]  Tajikistan 5,849,331 [2]  Uzbekistan         (estimates vary) 1,365,356 4,915,284 11,000,000 [3] [4] [5]  Iran 1,700,000  Pakistan 1,220,000 [6]  Russia 500,000  Germany 120,000  Qatar 87,000  United States 52,000 [7]  China 41,083 [8]  Canada 15,870 [9]
Languages
Persian varieties of Dari and Tajiki
Religions
Islam (predominantly Sunni (Hanafi), with Shi'a (Twelver and Ismaili) minorities)

Tājik (Persian: تاجيک; UniPers: Tâjik; Tajik: Тоҷик) is a term generally applied to Persian-speaking peoples of Iranian origin living east and northeast of present-day Iran. The traditional Tajik homelands are in present-day Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and southern Uzbekistan. Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Tajikistan. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Uzbekistan. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Iran. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Russia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Qatar. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Peoples_Republic_of_China. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Farsi redirects here. ... Dari (Persian: ) is the official name for the Persian language spoken in Afghanistan[1] and is a synonymous term for Parsi]. // There are different opinions about the origin of the word Dari. ... Tajik or Tadjik (тоҷикӣ, تاجیکی, tojikí) is a descendant of the Persian language spoken in Central Asia. ... For people named Islam, see Islam (name). ... Sunni Islam (Arabic سنّة) is the largest denomination of Islam. ... The Hanafi (Arabic حنفي) school is the oldest of the four schools of thought (Madhhabs) or jurisprudence (Fiqh) within Sunni Islam. ... Shia Islam ( Arabic شيعى follower; English has traditionally used Shiite or Shiite) is the second largest Islamic denomination; some 20-25% of all Muslims are said to follow a Shia tradition. ... Twelvers or the Ithna Asharia are members of the group of Shias who believe in twelve Imams. ... The IsmāʿīlÄ« (Urdu: اسماعیلی IsmāʿīlÄ«, Arabic: الإسماعيليون al-IsmāʿīliyyÅ«n; Persian: اسماعیلیان Esmāʿīliyān) branch of Islam is the second largest part of the ShÄ«a community, after the Twelvers (Ithnāʿashariyya). ... Farsi redirects here. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Romanization of Persian. ... Tajik or Tadjik (тоҷикӣ, تاجیکی, tojikí) is a descendant of the Persian language spoken in Central Asia. ... Farsi redirects here. ... Language(s) Persian, Kurdish, Pashto, Balouchi, Ossetian and various other Iranian languages. ...

Alternative names for the Tajiks are Fārsī (Persian), Fārsīwān (Persian-speaking), and Dīhgān (literally "village settlers", in a wider sense "urban"; in contrast to "nomadic").^[10]

History

Main articles: Iranian peoples, Persian people, Farsiwan, and Persian language

Like all Iranic peoples, and also the Indic, Dard, and Nuristani peoples, the Tajiks trace their origins to the ancient Aryan nomads^[11] who settled in Central Asia as early as 4000 years ago. Language(s) Persian, Kurdish, Pashto, Balouchi, Ossetian and various other Iranian languages. ... This article is about the Persian people, an ethnic group found mainly in Iran. ... Fārsīwān or Pārsīwān (Persian-speakers), or simply Pārsī (Persians), is another term often used for urbanized Tajiks of Afghanistan and Pakistan. ... Farsi redirects here. ... The Indo-Aryans are a wide collection of peoples united by their common status as speakers of the Indo-Aryan (Indic/Indian) branch of the family of Indo-European and Indo-Iranian languages. ... The Dards are various ethnic groups living in Afghanistan, India-occupied Kashmir, and Pakistan. ... The Nuristani are a religious/ethnic group in the Nurestan Province of Afghanistan. ... Aryan (/eərjən/ or /ɑːrjən/, Sanskrit: ) is a Sanskrit and Avestan word meaning noble/spiritual one. ... Map of Central Asia showing three sets of possible boundaries for the region Central Asia located as a region of the world Central Asia is a vast landlocked region of Asia. ...

The Tajiks trace their more immediate ancestry to the East Iranian-speaking Bactrians, Sogdians, and Parthians, which means that the historical ancestors of the Tajiks did not speak Persian - the southwestern Iranian language, today known as 'Farsi' in Iran and Afghanistan. The 'Tajiks' adoption of the now dominant southwestern branch Persian language is believed to have as its root cause, the Islamic conquest of Central Asia by the Arabs. This conquest sent large numbers of Persians fleeing into Central Asia, South Asia (Pakistan) and even into southwestern China. Subsequently, many Persians, after conversion to Islam, entered Central Asia as military forces and settled in the conquered lands. As a result of these waves of Persian migration (Zoroastrian and Muslim) over the course of more than 200 years, the Tajiks have ethnic Persian ancestry in addition to their original East-Iranian ancestry. Cultural dissemination through Persian literature also helped to establish the new language, as well as intermittent military dominance. According to Iranologist Richard Nelson Frye, the Persian migration to Central Asia may be considered the beginning of the "modern" Tajik nation, and ethnic Persians along with East-Iranian Bactrians and Sogdians, as the main ancestors of "modern" Tajiks.^[12]. The Eastern Iranian languages are a subgroup of the Iranian languages emerging in Middle Iranian times (from ca. ... Bactria, about 320 BC Bactria (Bactriana, Bākhtar in Persian, also Bhalika in Arabic and Indian languages, and Ta-Hia in Chinese) was the ancient Greek name of the country between the range of the Hindu Kush and the Amu Darya (Oxus); its capital, Bactra or Balhika or Bokhdi (now... Sogdiana, ca. ... Reproduction of a Parthian warrior as depicted on Trajans Column The Parthian Empire was the dominating force on the Iranian plateau beginning in the late 3rd century BCE, and intermittently controlled Mesopotamia between ca 190 BCE and 224 CE. Origins Bust of Parthian soldier, Esgh-abad Museum, Turkmenia. ... Farsi redirects here. ... The Southwestern Iranian languages include some 16 (SIL estimate) languages and dialects spoken by about many people in Asia; this language family is a part of the Western Iranian language family. ... Age of the Caliphs The initial Islamic conquests (632-732) began with the death of Muhammad, were followed by a century of rapid Arab and Islamic expansion, and ended with the Battle of Tours—resulting in a vast Islamic empire and area of influence that stretched from India, across the... Map of Central Asia showing three sets of possible boundaries for the region Central Asia located as a region of the world Central Asia is a vast landlocked region of Asia. ... Map of South Asia (see note on Kashmir). ... Iranology is an interdisciplinary field dealing with the study of Iranian cultural continent. ... Richard Nelson Frye (c. ... Bactria (Bactriana) was the ancient Greek name of the country between the range of the Hindu Kush (Caucasus Indicus) and the Amu Darya (Oxus), with the capital Bactra (now Balkh). ... The Sogdians were an ancient people of Central Asia, who inhabited the region known to the West as Sogdiana. ...

Sir George Abraham Grierson holds that the Tajiks of Badakshan belong to the same Aryan race as do the other Ghalcha speakers of the Tajikstan “ ^[13]. George Grierson also records that the speech of Badakshan was a Ghalcha till about three centuries ago when it was supplanted by a form of Persian ^[14]. It has been shown that the modern Ghalcha dialects, Valkhi, Shigali, Sriqoli, Jebaka (also called Sanglichi or Ishkashim), Munjani and Yidga , mainly spoken in Pamirs and countries on the headwaters of the Oxus, still use terms derived from ancient Kamboja verb Śavati in the sense "to go" ^[15]. Furthermore, the Yagnobi dialect spoken in Yagnobi province around the headwaters of Zeravshan valley in Sogdiana, also still contains a relic "Śu" from the ancient Kamboja Śavati in the sense "to go" ^[16]. The ancient Kambojas, were originally located in the Badakshan, Pamirs and northern territories including Yagnobi province in the doab of the Oxus and Jaxartes ^[17]. On the east they were bounded roughly by Yarkand and/or Kashgar, on the west by Bahlika (Uttaramadra), on the northwest by Sogdiana, on the north by Uttarakuru, on the southeast by Darada, and on the south by Gandhara. Numerous Indologists have located Kamboja in Pamirs and Badakshan and the Parama Kamboja, in the Trans-Pamirian territories, comprising Zeravshan valley and north up the parts of Sogdiana/Fargana--in the Sakadvipa or Scythia of the classical writers ^[18]. The Ghalcha speaking Tajik population occupy, more or less, the same territories, which in ancient time, were held by east Iranian Kambojas and the Parama Kambojas ^[19]. This people are stated to have held their own in spite of centuries of Hunic, Turkish and Mongol invasions ^[20]. Based on George Grierson's Sociolinguistics researches in India, eminent scholars like Dr J. C. Vidyalankara, Dr Moti Chandra, Dr S. K. Chatterjee, Dr J. L. Kamboj etc write that the Tajiks are the modern representatives of the ancient Kambojas/Parama Kambojas ^[21]. Some scholars hold that the Ghalcha Tajiks are descendants both of the Kambojas as well as the Tukharas ^[22] Sir George Abraham Grierson (7 January 1851, Glenageary, County Dublin, Ireland - 9 March 1941, Camberley, County Dublin, Ireland, United Kingdom) was a famous British civil servant who spent much of his life in British India. ... Afghanistan and of Tajikistan. ... Aryan (/eÉ™rjÉ™n/ or /ɑːrjÉ™n/, Sanskrit: ) is a Sanskrit and Avestan word meaning noble/spiritual one. ... For other uses, see Race. ... Afghanistan and of Tajikistan. ... Farsi redirects here. ... Komedes is the classical name applied to the people, who, as the scholars believe, had followed Scythian culture. ... For dialects of programming languages, see Programming language dialect. ... The Pamir languages are a subgroup of the Iranian languages, spoken in the Pamir Mountains, primarily along the Panj River and its tributaries in the southern Gorno-Badakhshan region of Tajikistan around the administrative center Khorog ( ), and the neighboring Badakhshan province and is in Pamir Area Afghanistan. ... The Amu Darya (in Persian آمودریا; Darya means river in Persian) rises in the Pamirs and flows mainly north-west through the Hindu Kush, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan to join the Aral Sea in a large river delta. ... Kamboja (Sanskrit: कम्बोज) was the ancient name of a Hindu country, and the Indo-Iranian Kshatriya tribe, the Kambojas, settled therein. ... Yagnobi is a language spoken by abour two and a half thousand people in Tadjikistan. ... The Zeravshan or Zarafshan river, whilst smaller and less well-known than the two great rivers of Central Asia, the Oxus or Amu-Darya and the Jaxartes or Syr-Darya, is if anything more valuable as a source of irrigation in the region. ... Sogdiana, ca. ... The Kambojas are a very ancient Kshatriya tribe of the north-western parts of the Indian subcontinent and what is now Afghanistan, frequently mentioned in ancient texts, although not in the Rig Veda. ... Afghanistan and of Tajikistan. ... Located in Central Asia, the Pamir Mountains are formed by the junction of the worlds greatest mountain ranges, a geologic structural knot from which the great Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, and Hindu Kush mountain systems radiate. ... A Doab, meaning two waters in Persian, is a term used in India and Pakistan for a tract of land between two confluent rivers. ... The Amu Darya (in Persian آمودریا; Darya means river in Persian) rises in the Pamirs and flows mainly north-west through the Hindu Kush, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan to join the Aral Sea in a large river delta. ... Syr Darya (also known as Syrdarya or Sirdaryo) is a river in Central Asia. ... Cascar redirects here. ... Bactria (Bactriana, also Bhalika in Indian languages) was the ancient Greek name of the country between the range of the Hindu Kush (Caucasus Indicus) and the Amu Darya (Oxus); its capital, Bactra (now Balkh), was located in what is now northern Afghanistan, southern Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan. ... The Uttaramadra was the northern branch of the Madra people who are numerously referenced in ancient Sanskrit and Pali literature. ... Sogdiana, ca. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Daradas were a people who lived north and north-east to the Kashmir valley. ... Gandhāra (Sanskrit: गन्धार, Persian; Gandara, Waihind) (Urdu: گندھارا) is the name of an ancient Indian Mahajanapada, currently in northern Pakistan (the North-West Frontier Province and parts of northern Punjab and Kashmir) and eastern Afghanistan. ... Indologist is a derivative of the word indology, which refers to study of India, particulary ancient India. ... Kamboja (Sanskrit: कम्बोज) was the ancient name of a Hindu country, and the Indo-Iranian Kshatriya tribe, the Kambojas, settled therein. ... Located in Central Asia, the Pamir Mountains are formed by the junction of the worlds greatest mountain ranges, a geologic structural knot from which the great Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, and Hindu Kush mountain systems radiate. ... Afghanistan and of Tajikistan. ... Ancient Sanskrit literature reveals that like the Madras/Uttara Madras and the Kurus/Uttara Kurus, the ancient Kambojas also had, at least two settlements. ... The Zeravshan or Zarafshan river, whilst smaller and less well-known than the two great rivers of Central Asia, the Oxus or Amu-Darya and the Jaxartes or Syr-Darya, is if anything more valuable as a source of irrigation in the region. ... Approximate extent of Scythia and Sarmatia in the 1st century BC (the orange background shows the spread of Eastern Iranian languages, among them Scytho-Sarmatian). ... The Kambojas are a very ancient Kshatriya tribe of the north-western parts of the Indian subcontinent and what is now Afghanistan, frequently mentioned in ancient texts, although not in the Rig Veda. ... Ancient Sanskrit literature reveals that like the Madras/Uttara Madras and the Kurus/Uttara Kurus, the ancient Kambojas also had, at least two settlements. ... Billon drachm of the Hephthalite King Napki Malka (Afghanistan/ Gandhara, c. ... Honorary guard of Mongolia. ... The Tocharians were the easternmost speakers of an Indo-European language in antiquity, inhabiting the Tarim basin in what is now Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, northwestern Peoples Republic of China. ...

The geographical division between the eastern and western Iranians is often considered historically and currently to be the desert Dasht-e Kavir, situated in the center of the Iranian plateau. Dasht-e Kavir desert: satellite photograph Dasht-e Kavir (دشت كوير in Persian), also known as Kavir-e Namak or Great Salt Desert is a large desert lying in the middle of the Iranian Plateau. ...

Other groups

The Mountain Tajiks or Pamiris of the Badakhshan region in Tajikistan, Afghanistan, as well as the smaller group usually known as "Tajik" in China's western Xinjiang region are descendants of the original East-Iranian tribes. Badakhshan is a region comprising parts of northeastern Afghanistan and of Tajikistan. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Tajiks. ... For the county in Shanxi province, see Xinjiang County. ...

Origin of the term

"Tājik" is a word of Turko-Mongol origin and means (literally) Non-Turk. It has the same root as the word Tat which is used by Turkic-speakers for the Persian-speaking population of the Caucasus. In a historical context, it is synonymous with Iranian^[23] and particularly with Persian. Since the Turko-Mongol conquest of Central Asia, Persian-speakers in Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Iran and all the way to Pakistan and Kashmir have been identified as Tājiks. The term is mainly used as opposed to "Turk" and "Mongol". Altaic is a proposed language family that includes 66 languages [1] spoken by about 348 million people, mostly in and around Central Asia and northeast Asia. ... Look up tat in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Caucasus Mountains. ... Kashmir (or Cashmere) may refer to: Kashmir region, the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent India, Kashmir conflict, the territorial dispute between India, Pakistan, and the China over the Kashmir region. ...

History of the name

First mentioned by the Uyghur historian Mahmoud Al-Kāshgharī, Tājik is an old Turkic expression referring to all Persian-speaking peoples of Central Asia. From the 11th century on, it came to be applied principally to all East-Iranians, and later specifically to Persian-speakers.^[23] It is hard to establish the use of the word before the Turkic- and Mongol conquest of Central Asia, and since at least the 15th century it has been used by the region's Iranian population to distinguish themselves from the Turks. Persians in modern Iran who live in the Turkic-speaking areas of the country, also call themselves Tājik, something remarked upon in the 15th century by the poet Mīr Alī Šer Navā'ī.^[24] In addition, Tibetans call all Persian-speakers (including those in Iran) Tājik. The Uyghur (Uyghur: ئۇيغۇر; Uighur Simplified Chinese: 维吾尔; Traditional Chinese: 維吾爾; Pinyin: Wéiwúěr; Turkish: Uygur) are a Turkic people, forming one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the Peoples Republic of China. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Turkic languages constitute a language family of some thirty languages, spoken across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean to Siberia and Western China, and are traditionally considered to be part of the proposed Altaic language family. ... This article is about the various peoples speaking one of the Turkic languages. ... Expansion of the Mongol Empire Historical map of the Mongol Empire (1300~1405), the gray area is Timurid dynasty. ... Map of Central Asia showing three sets of possible boundaries for the region Central Asia located as a region of the world Central Asia is a vast landlocked region of Asia. ... Nizamiddin Mir Alisher Navoi (1441-1501) Alisher Navoi (full name : Nizamiddin Mir Alisher Navoi, also known as Navoiy, Alishir Navai, Nawoi, Ali Sher Nawai; Persian: علیشیر نوایی 1441-1501) was a Central Asian poet of Uyghur heritage who lived in Herat (then Persia) during the 15th century. ... The Tibetan people are a people indigenous to Tibet and surrounding areas stretching from Central Asia in the West to Myanmar and China in the East. ...

The word "Tājik" in medieval literature

A postage stamp honoring Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Balkhi (known to the West as Rumi) who made the first usage of the term Tajik in literature in reference to himself.

The word Tājik is extensively used in Persian literature and poetry, always as a synonym for Persian. The Persian poet Sa'adi, for example, writes: Rumi redirects here. ... Rumi (born November 29, 1982) is a Persian-Canadian Singer-songwriter and a Photographer who is currently based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. ... Kelileh va Demneh Persian manuscript copy dated 1429, from Herat, depicts the Jackal trying to lead the Lion astray. ... Persian literature is literature written in Persian, or by Persians in other languages. ... Sheikh Sa‘di (in Persian: , full name in English: Muslih-ud-Din Mushrif-ibn-Abdullah) (1184 - 1283/1291?) is one of the major Persian poets of the medieval period. ...

It is clear that he, too, uses the word as opposed to Turk. The oldest known reference of the word Tajik in Persian literature, however, can be found in the writings of Djalāl al-Dīn Rūmī, himself being an Persian-speaker - and thus a "Tājik" - from Central Asia.^[25] Rumi (born November 29, 1982) is a Persian-Canadian Singer-songwriter and a Photographer who is currently based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. ...

Other meanings of the word

At certain periods of history, the word Tājik also referred to Persian-speaking scholars and clerks of early Islamic time who were schooled in Arabic. In the Safavid Empire, Tājik referred to the Iranian administrators and nobles of the kingdom, linked to the so-called Qezelbâš movement. Arabic redirects here. ... Safavid Empire at its Greatest Extent After Islamic Conquest  Modern SSR = Soviet Socialist Republic Afghanistan  Azerbaijan  Bahrain  Iran  Iraq  Tajikistan  Pakistan  This box:      The Safavids (Persian: ; Azerbaijani: ) were an Iranian[1] Shia dynasty of mixed Azeri[2] and Kurdish[3] origins, which ruled Persia from 1501/1502 to 1722. ... Kizilbash (Turkish: KızılbaÅŸ, Azerbaijani: QızılbaÅŸ, Persian: قزلباش Qezelbāsh) - Red Heads - name given to a wide variety of extremist Shiite militant groups (ghulāt) who helped found the Safavid Dynasty of Iran. ...

According to some old Tājik folktales, as well as old Persian books, the word "Tājik" literally refers to the "people having the crown" ("Tāj" means crown in Persian). It is believed that it initially refers to the East-Iranian people who ruled over the Bactrian, Soghdian and Badakhshan highlands and later over other areas of Central Asia and beyond - a region traditionally known as the "crown of the world". Bactria, about 320 BC Bactria (Bactriana, Bākhtar in Persian, also Bhalika in Arabic and Indian languages, and Ta-Hia in Chinese) was the ancient Greek name of the country between the range of the Hindu Kush and the Amu Darya (Oxus); its capital, Bactra or Balhika or Bokhdi (now... Sogdiana, ca. ... Badakhshan is a region comprising parts of northeastern Afghanistan and of Tajikistan. ...

Alternative names

Main article: Sart

As an alternative, the term Sart was also used as a synonym for Tājik and Persian in the medieval - post Genghis Khan - period. Turkic people named by this word the local East-Iranian population. However, the term was abolished by the Soviet government of the Central Asian states. Sart is a name for the settled inhabitants of Central Asia which has had shifting meanings over the centuries. ... This article is about the person. ... For most of the history of the Soviet Union, its political system was characterized by divergence between the formal system as expressed in the Constitution of the Soviet Union and actual practice. ...

Location

A Tajik guitar player wearing a traditional hat

Tājik are the principal ethnic group in most of Tajikistan, as well as in northern and western Afghanistan. Tajiks are a substantial minority in Uzbekistan, are found in Pakistan and a few in Xinjiang, China, as well as in overseas communities. Historically, the ancestors of the Tajiks lived in a larger territory in Central Asia than now.^{[citation needed]} For the county in Shanxi province, see Xinjiang County. ...

Afghanistan

Main article: Demography of Afghanistan

Tajiks have migrated from former Russian Turkestan^[26], they comprise between 27-34% of the population of Afghanistan.^[1][27] They predominate three of the largest cities in Afghanistan (Kabul, Mazar-e Sharif, and Ghazni) and the northern and western provinces of Balkh, Parwan, Kapisa, Panjshir, Baghlan, Takhar, Badakhshan, and Ghor, large parts of Konduz Province, and they predominate in the city of Herat and large parts of Farah Province. In addition, Tajiks live in all other cities and provinces in Afghanistan. Languages in Afghanistan (percentages are from CIA World Factbook[1])  50% Persian (Dari)  35% Pashto  8% Uzbek  3% Turkmen  4% Balochi        Ethnic groups in Afghanistan (percentages are from Encyclopædia Iranica[2] and CIA World Factbook[1])  30% to 30% Pashtun  25% Tajik  25% Hazara  10. ... Russian Turkestan (Russian: Ру́сский Туркеста́н), also known as Turkestansky Krai (Туркеста́нский край), was a subdivision (Krai or Governor-Generalship) of Imperial Russia, comprising the oasis region to the South of the Kazakh steppes, but not the Protectorates of Bukhara and Khiva. ... For other places with the same name, see Kabul (disambiguation). ... The historic Blue Mosque in Mazar-e Sharif Mazār-e SharÄ«f (36. ... Ghazni (Persian: غزنی , ÄžaznÄ«) is a city in eastern Afghanistan, with an estimated population of 149,998 people. ... Balkh is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. ... Parwān (Persian: پروان, also spelt Parvān) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. ... KapiÅ›a (=Kapisha) (Persian: کاپيسا) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. ... Panjshir (literally Five Lions in Persian) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. ... Categories: Afghanistan geography stubs | Provinces of Afghanistan ... “Takhar” redirects here. ... Badakhshan (Persian: بدخشان Badakhshān) is one of the provinces of Afghanistan, consisting of 29 districts. ... Ghowr province (sometimes spelled Ghor) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. ... Categories: Stub | Provinces of Afghanistan ... Herāt (Persian: ‎ ) is a city in western Afghanistan, in the province also known as Herāt. ... Farah (Persian: ) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. ...

In Afghanistan, the Tajiks do not organize themselves by tribes and refer to themselves by they region, province, city, town, or village they are from; such as Badakhshani, Baghlani, Mazari, Panjsheri, Kabuli, Herati, etc.^[28]

Tajikistan

Main article: Demographics of Tajikistan

Today, Tajiks comprise around 79.9% of the population of Tajikistan.^[2] Contemporary Tajiks are the descendants of ancient Aryan also known as Iranian inhabitants of Central Asia, in particular the Soghdians and the Bactrians, and with a very small degree of possibly mixture of non-Aryan peoples. ...

Uzbekistan

Main article: Demographics of Uzbekistan

A view of the Registan architectural monuments in Samarkand. Although the second largest city of Uzbekistan, it is predominantly a Tajik populated city, along with Bukhara

In Uzbekistan the Tājik are the largest part of the population of the ancient cities of Bukhara and Samarqand, and are found in large numbers in the Surxondaryo Province in the south and along Uzbekistan's eastern border with Tajikistan. Uzbekistan is Central Asias most populous country. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 533 pixel Image in higher resolution (1080 × 720 pixel, file size: 150 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Samarkand Metadata This... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 533 pixel Image in higher resolution (1080 × 720 pixel, file size: 150 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Samarkand Metadata This... Samarkand (Tajik: Самарқанд, Persian: ‎ , Uzbek: , Russian: ), population 412,300 in 2005, is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan and the capital of Samarqand Province. ... Bukhara (Tajik: Бухоро; Persian: , Buxârâ; Uzbek: ; Russian: ), from the Soghdian βuxārak (lucky place), is the fifth-largest city in Uzbekistan, and capital of the Bukhara Province (viloyat). ... Bukhara (Tajik: Бухоро; Persian: , Buxârâ; Uzbek: ; Russian: ), from the Soghdian βuxārak (lucky place), is the fifth-largest city in Uzbekistan, and capital of the Bukhara Province (viloyat). ... Samarkand (Samarqand or Самарқанд in Uzbek) (population 400,000) is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan, capital of the Samarkand region (Samarqand Wiloyati). ... Surkhandarya Province is in the southern part of Uzbekistan. ...

Official statistics in Uzbekistan state that the Tajik community comprises 5% of the nation's total population.^[3] However, these numbers do not include ethnic Tajiks, who for a variety of reasons, declare themselves to be ethnic Uzbeks.^[29] During the Soviet 'Uzbekization' supervised by Sharof Rashidov, the head of the Uzbek Communist Party, Tajiks had to choose either stay in Uzbekistan and get registered as Uzbek in their passports or leave the republic for a less developed agricultural mountainous Tajikistan. Tajiks may make up closer to 15 to 45 percent of Uzbekistan's population.^[4][5]

Pakistan

Main article: Ethnic groups in Pakistan

Prior to 1980, Tajiks made up less than .5% of the population of Pakistan. Today (2008) there are an estimated 700,000 to 1 million Tajiks found in western Pakistan (NWFP), most being refugees from the Soviet war in Afghanistan while others who are often included as Tajiks are native to various regions such as Chitral (see Wakhi language) and the Gilgit Agency. In the last decade, many Tajik economic and migrant workers from Tajikistan have settled in Pakistan's Northern Areas, particularly in the city of Ishkuman where they are active in business as well as trade; there is also a sizeable community further south in Islamabad and Lahore.^{[citation needed]} There are several principal ethnic groups in Pakistan: Punjabis, Pashtuns, Sindhis, Muhajirs, Seraikis, Balochis, Hindkos, Memon, Bohri, Ismaili, and so on. ... North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) is geographically the smallest of the four provinces of Pakistan. ... Belligerents DRA USSR Mujahideen of Afghanistan Commanders Soviet 40th Army: Sergei Sokolov Valentin Varennikov Boris Gromov DRA: Babrak Karmal Mohammad Najibullah Abdul Rashid Dostum Abdul Haq Jalaluddin Haqqani Gulbuddin Hekmatyar Ismail Khan Ahmad Shah Massoud Strength Soviet forces: 80,000-104,000 Afghan forces: 329,000 (in 1989)[1] 45... This article is about the town of Chitral. ... The Wakhi Tajiki language is an Iranian language in the subbranch of Southeastern Iranian languages (see Pamir languages). ... Gilgit Agency was the name of most of the area of northern Kashmir which formed a de facto dependency of Pakistan from 1947 to 1970, which was then merged into Northern Areas. ... Location within Pakistan Coordinates: , Country Pakistan Province Constructed 1960s Union Council 40 UC (District Govt. ...   (Urdu: لاہور, Punjabi: لہور, pronounced ) is the capital of the Punjab and is the second largest city in Pakistan after Karachi. ...

China

Main article: Tajiks in China

There is a population of approximately 41,000 (est. 2000) Iranian language speakers in China's western Xinjiang region with 60% of them living in Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County. This number includes the Iranian speaking Sarikolis and Wakhis who are often considered Tajiks.^[30] Tajiks in China (Chinese: 塔吉克族, Pinyin: ) are one of the 56 nationalities officially recognized by the Peoples Republic of China. ... For the county in Shanxi province, see Xinjiang County. ... Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County (Uyghur Yengi Yezik: Taxkuran; Simplified Chinese: ; Pinyin: ; Sariquli Tajik in IPA: ; sometimes spelled Tashkorgan, Tashkurghan etc. ... Sarikoli is member of the Pamir subgroup of the Southeastern Iranian languages spoken in the Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County in southern Xinjiang Province, China. ... Wakhi may be: The Wakhi language; the language of the majority of the people of Wakhan, also spoken by some Tajiks in China Wakhi (ethnic group), an ethnic group in Pakistan and Tajikistan An adjective; of or relating to Wakhan, the extreme northeastern region of Afghanistan that borders China, Tajikistan...

Russia

The population of Tajiks in Russia is around 500,000. Most Tajiks came to Russia during the Soviet Union.

Physical characteristics

Children in Tajikistan

Physically, most Tajiks resemble the Mediterranean-caucasian stock.^[28] The average Tajik has (easily) dark hair and eyes with medium to fair skin. Light hair and eyes are relatively common, particularly in northern regions such as Badakhshan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, western China and Kashmir. A small minority of Tajiks in Central Asia show an easy Turko-Mongol admixture that drived from the Uzbeks and Hazaras, while remote mountain Tajiks appear to more closely resemble the Indo-European Soghdian, Bactrian, Parthian, Persian and Scythian (Tocharian, Sacae...) populations that existed before the Turko-Mongol invasions and migrations. In addition, Tajiks are often distinguished by Pashtun nationalists and government from their Farsiwan (Persian) or the persian piece of the Chahar Aimak subgroup by religion as opposed to appearance, also the ethnic Persians of Chahar Aimaks belong to the Sunni sub-group of Islam. Nowadays, also the Tajiks of Panjsher, who are known for their bravery foughts against the nationalistic and wild Pashtun Taliban, are often count by the Pashtuns and the Pashtun government as an ethnos of own. The reason for such steps of the Pashtun government is to weak the Tajiks and settle their lands with Pashtun nomads. The Tajiks, as a whole, are a somewhat eclectic population genetically and display a wide range of phenotypes.^[28] Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 514 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (720 × 839 pixel, file size: 139 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 514 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (720 × 839 pixel, file size: 139 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Languages French Occitan Greek Italian Portuguese Spanish Catalan Religions Predominantly Roman Catholic Protestant Orthodox The Mediterranean race was one of the three sub-categories into which the people of Europe were divided by anthropologists in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, following the publication of William Z. Ripleys... Look up Caucasian in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Badakhshan is a region comprising parts of northeastern Afghanistan and of Tajikistan. ... Kashmir (or Cashmere) may refer to: Kashmir region, the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent India, Kashmir conflict, the territorial dispute between India, Pakistan, and the China over the Kashmir region. ... This article is about the various peoples speaking one of the Turkic languages. ... Honorary guard of Mongolia. ... The Hazaras. ... Sogdiana, ca. ... Bactria (Bactriana) was the ancient Greek name of the country between the range of the Hindu Kush (Caucasus Indicus) and the Amu Darya (Oxus), with the capital Bactra (now Balkh). ... Reproduction of a Parthian warrior as depicted on Trajans Column The Parthian Empire was the dominating force on the Iranian plateau beginning in the late 3rd century BCE, and intermittently controlled Mesopotamia between ca 190 BCE and 224 CE. Origins Bust of Parthian soldier, Esgh-abad Museum, Turkmenia. ... Look up Persian in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Scythia was an area in Eurasia inhabited in ancient times by an Indo-Aryans known as the Scythians. ... Fārsīwān or Pārsīwān (Persian-speakers), or simply Pārsī (Persians), is another term often used for urbanized Tajiks of Afghanistan and Pakistan. ...

Culture

A modern example of Persian miniature: painting is an important element of Tājik culture

Image File history File links MahmoudFarshchian. ... Image File history File links MahmoudFarshchian. ...

Language

Main articles: Tajik language and Persian language

The language of the Tajiks, as of her Persian brothers in Iran, is Persian, also called Parsi-e Darbari (Persian of royal courts/Language of royal court). The cyrillic variety written in Tajikistan is called Tajiki. Persian is an Indo-European language, more specifically part of the Iranian language group. Tajiks speak an eastern dialect of Persian, historically called Parsi-e Palavi or also Parsi-e Khorasani (see also the persian population of eastern Iran´s dialect). Historically, it was considered the local dialect of Persian spoken by the Tajik/Persian ethnic group in Central Asia, from where it spread west-ward only tp drive the arabic language out as ethnic Persian´s mothertoung. In Afghanistan, unlike in Tajikistan, Tajiks continue to use the Perso-Arabic script. However, when the Soviet Union introduced the use of the Latin script in 1928, and later the Cyrillic script, Persian dialect of Tajikistan (soghdi dialect) came to be considered a separate (Persian) language. The language remains greatly influenced by Russian because of political borders. A transcribed Tajik text can, in general, be easily read and understood by Persians outside Tajikistan, and vice versa, and both group can converse with each other. The common origin of the the language Persians (Tajiks) of central Asia and Iran share with each other is underscored by the Tajiks' claim to such famous writers as Omar Khayyám, Firdausi, Anwari, Rumi and many other famous Persian poets (Most Persians of Iran do not know Tajiks as beeing Persians). Russian is widely used in government and business in Tajikistan as well but slowly Tajikistan´s government is trying to exchange it with fully Persian. Tajik or Tadjik (тоҷикӣ, تاجیکی, tojikí) is a descendant of the Persian language spoken in Central Asia. ... Farsi redirects here. ... Farsi redirects here. ... Tajik or Tadjik (тоҷикӣ, تاجیکی, tojikí) is a descendant of the Persian language spoken in Central Asia. ... For other people, places or with similar names of Khayam, see Khayyam (disambiguation). ... فردوسی Ferdowsi Ferdowsi Ferdowsi Tousi (فردوسی طوسی in Persian) (more commonly transliterated Firdausi) (935–1020) is considered to be one of the greatest Persian poets to have ever lived. ... Anwari (Auhad-uddin Ali Anwari), Persian poet, was born in Khorasan early in the 12th century. ... Rumi (born November 29, 1982) is a Persian-Canadian Singer-songwriter and a Photographer who is currently based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. ...

Religion

Mazar i Sharif's Blue Mosque in Afghanistan. Many such architectural monuments can be attributed to the efforts of the Tajik peoples who are predominantly followers of Islam today.

The great majority of Tajiks follow the Sunni Islam, although small Twelver and Ismaili Shia minorities also exist in scattered pockets. Some of Sunni's famous scholars were from East-Iranian regions and therefore can arguably viewed as Tajik. They include Abu Hanifa, Al-Ghazali, Tirmidhi, Abu Dawood, and Imam Bukhari amongst many others. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1080x720, 132 KB) The historic blue mosque in Mazar-e Sharif Afghanistan File links The following pages link to this file: Mazar-e Sharif Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used to create... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1080x720, 132 KB) The historic blue mosque in Mazar-e Sharif Afghanistan File links The following pages link to this file: Mazar-e Sharif Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used to create... Mazār-e Sharīf, also known as Mazar-e-Sharif, Mazar-i Sharif and Mazar-i-Sharif (in Persian مزار شریف), is a city in northern Afghanistan and the capital of Balkh province. ... The Blue Mosque in Mazar-e-Sharif Rawze Sharif, also known as the Blue Mosque is the most beautiful and proportional mosque in Afghanistan, and one of the most beautiful in the world. ... Iranian architecture - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Sunni Islam is the largest denomination of Islam. ... For people named Islam, see Islam (name). ... Twelvers or the Ithna Asharia are members of the group of Shias who believe in twelve Imams. ... The IsmāʿīlÄ« (Urdu: اسماعیلی IsmāʿīlÄ«, Arabic: الإسماعيليون al-IsmāʿīliyyÅ«n; Persian: اسماعیلیان Esmāʿīliyān) branch of Islam is the second largest part of the ShÄ«a community, after the Twelvers (Ithnāʿashariyya). ... Shia may refer to a denomination of Islam, or related items, such as: Shia Islam, the second largest denomination of Islam, after Sunni Islam. ... Imam Abu Hanifa (699 - 765) was an important Islamic scholar and jurist and is considered the founder of the Hanifi school of fiqh. ... Abu Hāmed Mohammad ibn Mohammad al-GhazzālÄ« (1058-1111) (Persian: ), known as Algazel to the western medieval world, born and died in Tus, in the Khorasan province of Persia (modern day Iran). ... Al-Tirmidhi, full name Abu Isa Muhammad ibn Isa ibn Musa ibn al-Dahhak al-Sulami al-Tirmidhi (824-892, ie 209 AH - 13 Rajab 279 AH) was a medieval collector of hadith (sayings of Muhammad), who wrote the Jami at-Tirmidhi, one of the six canonical hadith compilations used... Abu Daud or Abu Dawod, full name Abu Daud Sulayman ibn Ash`ath al-Azadi al-Sijistani, was a noted collector of hadith (sayings of Muhammad), and wrote the third of the six canonical hadith collections recognized by Sunni Muslims, Sunan Abi Daud. ... Muhammad Ibn Ismail Ibn Ibrahim Ibn al-Mughirah Ibn Bardizbah al-Bukhari محمد بن اسماعيل بن ابراهيم بن المغيرة بن بردزبه البخاري (born 810 - died 870), Arabic author of the most generally accepted collection of traditions (Hadith) from Muhammad, was born at Bokhara (Bukharä), of an Iranian family, in AH...

In Afghanistan, Tajiks who follow Twelver Shiism are called Farsiwan^{[citation needed]}. Additionally, small Tajik Jewish communities (known as Bukharian Jews) have existed since ancient times in the cities of Bukhara, Samarqand, Dushanbe, and other Tajik populated centers.^[31] Over the 20th century, the majority of these Tajik-speaking Jews emigrated to Israel and the United States. Most of these Jewish emigrants have negative views towards Tajikistan especially because of the destruction of the Dushanbe synagogue. Twelvers or the Ithna Asharia are members of the group of Shias who believe in twelve Imams. ... Shia may refer to a denomination of Islam, or related items, such as: Shia Islam, the second largest denomination of Islam, after Sunni Islam. ... FārsÄ«wān or PārsÄ«wān (Persian-speakers), or simply PārsÄ« (Persians), is another term often used for urbanized Tajiks of Afghanistan and Pakistan. ... The word Jew ( Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ... Languages Traditionally Bukhari, Russian and Hebrew spoken in addtion. ... Bukhara (Tajik: Бухоро; Persian: , Buxârâ; Uzbek: ; Russian: ), from the Soghdian βuxārak (lucky place), is the fifth-largest city in Uzbekistan, and capital of the Bukhara Province (viloyat). ... Samarkand (Samarqand or Самарқанд in Uzbek) (population 400,000) is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan, capital of the Samarkand region (Samarqand Wiloyati). ... Location of Dushanbe in Tajikistan Coordinates: , Country Government  - Mayor Mahmadsaid Ubaydulloyev Area  - Total 100 km² (38. ... The Dushanbe Synagogue of Tajikistan functioned between early in the 1900s and February 2006. ...

Recent developments

The collapse of the Soviet Union and the civil war in Afghanistan both gave rise to a resurgence in Tajik