Farkhar District | |
|---|---|
 Location of Farkhar in Takhar Province | |
| Coordinates:36°34′12″N69°51′25″E / 36.57°N 69.857°E /36.57; 69.857 | |
| Country |  Afghanistan |
| Province | Takhar |
| Government | |
| • Governor | Abdul Rashad Asfeia |
| Area | |
• District | 1,214 km2 (469 sq mi) |
| Population (2019)[3] | |
• District | 52,117 |
| • Density | 42.93/km2 (111.2/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 3,023 |
| • Rural | 49,094 |
| Ethnicity | |
| Time zone | UTC+4:30 (AFT) |
| Post code | 3752[4] |
Farkhar District is a district inTakhar Province ofAfghanistan. It is located southeast ofTaloqan. TheKhanabad River flows inside this valley. Around 99% of the people in Farkhar speakDari. Farkhar has about 50,000 people and 75 villages.
The name Farkhār is generally believed to beSogdian (and possibly alsoKhwarazmian)βṛγʾr, the equivalent of theSanskrit wordvihāra (a Buddhist monastery), which it renders in translations of Buddhist texts.[5][6] Another view is that it is not etymologically connected withvihāra but is a Persian word, originally*paru-khuvāthra "full of happiness".[7]
AlthoughBuddhism was eventually replaced by Islam in northern Afghanistan around the 8th century,[8] as late as the 11th century theKhwarazmian scholaral-Biruni wrote of Buddhists: "their monuments, thebahārs of their idols and theirfarkhārs, are visible on the borders of Khorasan adjacent to India".[9]
Farkhar has an area of 1,214 km2 (469 sq mi), comparatively equivalent to the area ofSouth Andaman Island.[10] The district has no major roadways. TheFarkhar River is the main river of Farkhar, with other tributaries flowing into it.
Farkhar is surrounded byKalafgan District to the north,Kishim District to the northeast,Tagab District to the east,Warsaj District to the south,Namak Ab District to the west, andTaluqan District to the northeast. Kishim is located inBadakhshan Province, with all other districts in Takhar Province.[11]
Fakhar has ahumid continental climate (KöppenDsb).
| Climate data for Farkhar | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −0.2 (31.6) | 1.4 (34.5) | 7.8 (46.0) | 14.2 (57.6) | 19.2 (66.6) | 23.5 (74.3) | 26.2 (79.2) | 25.5 (77.9) | 21.7 (71.1) | 15.6 (60.1) | 8.2 (46.8) | 2.3 (36.1) | 13.8 (56.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −9.6 (14.7) | −8.0 (17.6) | −3.2 (26.2) | 1.8 (35.2) | 6.6 (43.9) | 11.0 (51.8) | 14.4 (57.9) | 14.1 (57.4) | 10.1 (50.2) | 3.7 (38.7) | −3.3 (26.1) | −8.5 (16.7) | 2.4 (36.4) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 63 (2.5) | 78 (3.1) | 111 (4.4) | 160 (6.3) | 147 (5.8) | 45 (1.8) | 10 (0.4) | 3 (0.1) | 7 (0.3) | 39 (1.5) | 58 (2.3) | 49 (1.9) | 770 (30.4) |
| Source: Climate-Data.org[12] | |||||||||||||
Farkhar has a population of 52,117, with a sex ratio of 26 males for every 25 females. EthnicTajiks are the majority.[13] The median age is 15.8 and about 42% of the population is working. About 18% of the unemployed are seeking work. There are about 8,000 households in the district, with an average size of 6.5 people.[14]
The villages of this district include and are not limited to: Shaktan, Shingan, Nahr Ab, Dasht e Robat, Abi Dara, Kurani, Pire Farkhar, Shori, Dehak, Jangle Gaza, Dasht e Konj, Chashma e Garmuk, Shahre Farkhar, Kundal, Mazre Shikh, Khanaqa, Khurmab, Ardishan, Kashan, Sare Kham, Singan, Pyani, Dahne Zure, Khafdara, Sang e Atash, Khawaki, Farhangurd, Khusdeh, Darbaho, Huti, Warook, Ghashob, Yookh, Lujdeh and Mashtan.[11]
In Persian poetry, the phraseبت فرخارbot-e Farxār "buddha of a temple" or "idol from Farkhar" became proverbial for a beautiful person. One of the earliest poets to use it wasManuchehri, an 11th-century poet at the court ofMas'ud I of Ghazni, who wrote:[15]
In another example the poetKhwaju (or Khaju) (d. 1352), praising a handsome Turk, writes:[16]
1210.7 sq.km. South Andaman
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