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Maimana میمنه | |
|---|---|
 A military base in 2011 | |
  Maimana Location in Afghanistan | |
| Coordinates:35°56′N64°45′E / 35.933°N 64.750°E /35.933; 64.750 | |
| Country |  Afghanistan |
| Province | Faryab |
| District | Maymana |
| Government | |
| • Type | Municipality |
| • Mayor | Damla Mohibullah |
| Area | |
| • Land | 35 km2 (14 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 827 m (2,713 ft) |
| Population (2025)[2] | |
| 108,049 | |
| • Density | 3,100/km2 (8,000/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 108,049 |
| Time zone | UTC+04:30 (Afghanistan Time) |
| ISO 3166 code | AF-MMZ |
Maimana[a], also spelled asMaymana, is acity in northernAfghanistan, serving as the capital ofFaryab Province.[3] It is within the jurisdiction ofMaymana District and has an estimated population of 108,049 people.[2] The city is approximately 400 km (250 mi) northwest of the country's capitalKabul, and is located on the Maymana River, which is a tributary of theMurghab River. Themayor of the city isDamla Mohibullah.
Maimana has adomesticairport, a number ofbazaars,mosques,universities, public parks,hospitals, and over 16,560dwelling units.[4] TheAfghanistan Ring Road passes through the city. The closest major cities to Maimana areAndkhoy in Faryab,Sheberghan inJowzjan Province, andSar-e-Pol inSar-e-Pol Province. The city is to be connected byrailroad withHerat to the southwest andMazar-i-Sharif to the northeast.[5]
Maimana is located at the northern foot of theTorkestan Range at anelevation of 877 m (2,877 ft) on the old terrace of theQeysar or Maimana River, which is a right tributary of theMurghab River. The Maimana River branches off of the Band-e Turkistan River 50 km (31 mi) south of the city. The highlands of the Maimana region generally possess a very rich topsoil which supports the seasonal agricultural activities.
Maimana is a trading and transit hub in northern Afghanistan. Just over half of the land in Maimana is non built-up (57%) consisting largely of agriculture.[4] The central districts (2-5) have higher dwelling density and clear road grids.[4] The outer districts (1, 7-10) are characterized by more agricultural land.[4]
Maymana has ahot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification:Csa) with hot, dry summers and cold, moist winters.
| Climate data for Maymana | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 25.3 (77.5) | 27.5 (81.5) | 32.6 (90.7) | 35.3 (95.5) | 39.8 (103.6) | 42.5 (108.5) | 44.5 (112.1) | 40.5 (104.9) | 38.3 (100.9) | 35.1 (95.2) | 30.6 (87.1) | 27.6 (81.7) | 44.5 (112.1) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 7.4 (45.3) | 9.2 (48.6) | 14.0 (57.2) | 20.8 (69.4) | 27.1 (80.8) | 33.7 (92.7) | 35.9 (96.6) | 33.9 (93.0) | 28.9 (84.0) | 22.2 (72.0) | 15.5 (59.9) | 10.6 (51.1) | 21.6 (70.9) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 2.0 (35.6) | 4.0 (39.2) | 8.4 (47.1) | 15.4 (59.7) | 20.1 (68.2) | 25.5 (77.9) | 27.6 (81.7) | 25.2 (77.4) | 20.5 (68.9) | 14.5 (58.1) | 8.6 (47.5) | 4.7 (40.5) | 14.7 (58.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −2.2 (28.0) | −0.2 (31.6) | 3.8 (38.8) | 9.6 (49.3) | 12.7 (54.9) | 16.3 (61.3) | 18.5 (65.3) | 16.6 (61.9) | 12.3 (54.1) | 7.6 (45.7) | 3.5 (38.3) | 0.3 (32.5) | 8.2 (46.8) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −22.5 (−8.5) | −23.6 (−10.5) | −12.7 (9.1) | −3.1 (26.4) | 2.4 (36.3) | 6.1 (43.0) | 10.6 (51.1) | 9.0 (48.2) | 0.2 (32.4) | −5.8 (21.6) | −12 (10) | −18 (0) | −23.6 (−10.5) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 49.9 (1.96) | 60.5 (2.38) | 82.2 (3.24) | 60.5 (2.38) | 25.6 (1.01) | 1.0 (0.04) | 0.5 (0.02) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.2 (0.01) | 9.6 (0.38) | 20.9 (0.82) | 44.7 (1.76) | 355.6 (14) |
| Average rainy days | 5 | 7 | 11 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 48 |
| Average snowy days | 6 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 18 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 75 | 73 | 74 | 68 | 53 | 38 | 34 | 34 | 39 | 49 | 61 | 71 | 56 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 136.6 | 117.7 | 169.3 | 195.9 | 306.0 | 370.0 | 381.2 | 352.5 | 303.5 | 237.2 | 159.1 | 137.9 | 2,866.9 |
| Source: NOAA (1964-1983)[6] | |||||||||||||
The city is of ancient origin. It seems clear that Maymana citadel dates back to the earlyIron Age. Ceramic materials in a nearby cave at Bilchiragh are from thePaleolithic and lateNeolithic-Bronze Age.[citation needed] Between 800 B.C and 700 A.D it was part ofMedian andPersian Empire, as well ofKushanian andHephtalite, before being subjugated by Arabs during theIslamic Conquest who used local Iranian vassals to rule the region. In the 7th and 8th century it was the residence of the Malik ofGuzganan, last Kushanian remnants, which was then under the control of theFarighunid, a nativedynasty. From the 9th to 11th century the region was ruled by several rulers and dynasties (Saffarid,Mihrabanid,Nasrid...) from Sistan and then being subjugated by the IranianSamanid and the Irano-TurkicGhaznavid andKhwarizm rulers.
In the 12th and 13th century the region was devastated by nomadic Turks and invading Mongols. It took long for the region, nearly 200 years, to recover from the damage the nomadic and invading Turko-Mongol foreigners from northernCentral Asia had caused. The area's population remained thin and the commercial trade was very weak but enough for the survivors to develop new agricultural and rebuild old structures. While the city was garrisoned and hosted Iranians and some Arabs, the villages as well owned by Iranians and settled remnants of Arabs, the deserts and steppe were home of wandering nomads of Turko-Mongolian and Iranian stocks (Aymaq).
In the 16th century, the TurkicUzbek influence came to Maymana with the invasions ofTurkistan andHerat byMuhammad Shaibani. For the region it was again a complicated time. However, Shaibani was defeated by the IranianSaffavids but the Uzbek elements remained dominant from then up to day in the region until in the 18th and 19th centuries.
During that time the city became the center of theMaimana Khanate[7] and an important centre for commerce, as well as being the gateway toTurkistan fromHerat andIran. It served as an important cultural and trade centre for the whole region and served to connect various different states and peoples. Under the Uzbek rule, the city experienced a sudden renaissance, starting from the conquest of the area by Muhammad Shaibani and lasting all the way down to the Pashtun subjugation of the region. In 1876, underSher Ali Khan, the city fell to the kingdom of Kabul and was viciosly put in ruins. As result, only ten percent of the population remained alive while a large part either died or left the city for other regions after the horrific slaughter.[citation needed]
In the 20th century, the city was once strongly walled with thick walls and towers and surrounded by a moat, but in the same century all this has been reduced to an anonymous mound. In 1934, the rebuilding of the city started, and in 1949 the northern parts of the old city were renewed, the old city citadel changed to a park. Maimana was the administrative center ofMeymaneh Province until the disintegration of the province.
As part of theInternational Security Assistance Force operation in Afghanistan, aProvincial Reconstruction Team led byNorway formerly operated in the province. The team also includedLatvian troops. On 18 March 2014, a suicide bomber detonated his explosives near the entrance to a busy market in Maimana, killing 15 people including women and children and injuring 27 others. The attack came ahead of thepresidential elections on 5 April.[8]
On 14 August 2021, Maimana was seized byTaliban fighters, becoming the twenty-second provincial capital to be captured in the wider2021 Taliban offensive. In January 2022, some clashes were reported in the city.[9]
Maimana has an estimated population of 108,049 people.[2] The city is divided into 10 districts covering a land area of 35 km2 (14 sq mi) or 3,461 ha (8,550 acres).[4][1] In 2015 there were 16,560dwelling units in the city.[4]
During the 19th century, the population was estimated at 15,000–18,000 families (or roughly 75,000-95,000 individuals)[10] and was assumed to be a dominantly Uzbek city due to the market language which was mostlyChagatai language. However, documents show it was a diverse city (as it is today). In 1958, the population was estimated to be 30,000. By 1979 this had risen to 38,250, and by 1982 to 56,973.
Maimana is an important livestock centre in Afghanistan. The city serves an agricultural area irrigated from the Qeysar River and also handles the trade inKarakul sheep with nomads. In the 1970s, the wool and cotton processing industry was booming in the city. Maimana is a market for leather goods, silk, carpets, wheat, barley, melons and grapes.[11] Some residents are now in thesaffron business.[12] Regardingdrought in the area, the government recently built theQosh Tepa Canal. This canal is expected to significantly increase agricultural lands in the area, and boost the economy of the northern Afghan cities such as Maimana.[13]
TheMaymana Airport is located 2 miles (3.2 km (2.0 mi)) west of Maimana in a valley surrounded by hills and a range of mountains with some peaks reaching 12,000 ft (3,700 m). It is about (39 km (24 mi)) southeast of theAfghanistan–Turkmenistan border and 103 km (64 mi) south ofAndkhoy. It had direct flights toHerat as of May 2014.[14] There is arail way project planned, which is to connect byrail Maimana withHerat in the southwest andMazar-i-Sharif in the northeast.[5][15]
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