افغان توٚرکمنلری | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Total population | |
| c. 3 million | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Afghan Turkestan | |
| Languages | |
| Religion | |
| Predominantly:Sunni Islam |
Afghan Turkmens orTurkmens of Afghanistan (Persian:ترکمنهای افغانستان;Turkmen:افغان توٚرکمنلری afghan türkmenleri,[oʊˈɢɑntʏɾkmønˈløɾʏ]) areTurkmen people who live in the north-west ofAfghanistan along the border withUzbekistan andTurkmenistan, surrounded by a larger group of AfghanUzbeks. The number of Turkmens in Afghanistan is estimated at 3 million people or roughly 3-5% of thepopulation of Afghanistan.[1][2]
Turkmens were one of the divided peoples inCentral Asia nearing the end of the 19th century as a result ofBritish,Iranian, andAfghan counteraction, as well as the halt of theRussian expansion intoTurkistan andTransoxiana.[citation needed]
The original Turkmen groups arrived from the east of theCaspian Sea into northwestern Afghanistan at various periods, particularly after the end of the 19th century when theRussians moved into their territory. They established settlements fromBalkh Province toHerat Province, where they are now concentrated; smaller groups settled inKunduz Province. Others came in considerable numbers as a result of the failure of theBasmachi revolts against theBolsheviks in the 1920s.[3]
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.[4]
Turkmen tribes, 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 majorTurkmen tribes live in Afghanistan:Ersari,Teke, Alili,Saryks, andSalyrs. More than half of the Afghan Turkmens are descendants of the refugees who escapedcollectivization inSoviet Turkmenistan in the late 1920s and early 1930s.[5]
Formerly anomadic and fierce warriors feared for their lightning raids on caravans, Turkmens in Afghanistan today are farmer-herdsmen and important contributors to the economy. They introducedkarakul sheep to Afghanistan and are also renownedmakers of carpets, which, with karakul pelts, are majorhard currency export commodities.Turkmen jewelry is also highly prized.[3]
Mostly, Afghan Turkmens are economically well established in the country largely due to significant importance to the Afghan economy of the carpets.[4]
Afghan Turkmens mostly speak theErsari dialect of theTurkmen language, which itself is aTurkic language of theOghuz group.[6] It has an estimated five million native speakers in Turkmenistan, and a further 719,000 speakers in NortheasternIran.[7]
The Turkmen language is closely related toAzerbaijani andTurkish languages, sharing common linguistic features and enjoying a high degree of mutual intelligibility with each of these languages.[8][9]
The Turkmens ofAfghanistan just as their kin inTurkmenistan,Uzbekistan, andIran are predominantlySunniMuslims.
Turkmens adoptedIslam between the 12th and 14th centuries.Sufi orders like theYasawiya andKubrawiya greatly contributed to the conversion of the Turkmens to Islam.[10]
The great majority ofTurkmens readily identify themselves asMuslims and acknowledgeIslam as an integral part of their cultural heritage.[11]
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