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Makran (Persian:مكران), also mentioned in some sources asMecran andMokrān, is the southern coastal region ofBalochistan. It is a semi-desertcoastal strip in theBalochistan province inPakistan and inIran, along the coast of theGulf of Oman. It extends westwards, from theSonmiani Bay to the northwest ofKarachi in the east, to the fringes of the region of Bashkardia/Bāšgerd in the southern part of theSistan and Baluchestanprovince of modern Iran. Makrān is thus bisected by the modern politicalboundary between Pakistan and Iran. In January 2025, a government spokesperson informed that Iran is investigating the possibility of moving its capital to the Makran region.[1][2]
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In 2025 the government planned to move the capital fromTehran to near Makran and Chabahar.[3]
The southern part of Balochistan is calledKech Makran on the Pakistani side and Makran on the Iranian side which is also the name of a former Iranian province.[4] The location corresponds to that of theMaka satrapy inAchaemenid times. The Sumerian trading partners ofMagan are identified with Makran.[5] InVarahamihira'sBrihat Samhita, there is a mention of a tribe calledMakara inhabiting the lands west ofIndia.Arrian used the termIchthyophagi (Ancient Greek for "fish eaters") for inhabitants of coastal areas, which has led to a suggestion to deriveMakran from the modern Persian termmāhī khorān, meaning "fish eaters".[6]
The Kech-Makran region in southwestern Pakistan, alongKech River, was inhabited as early as the 5th millennium BCE. The site ofMiri Qalat was investigated by French and Pakistani archaeologists from 1987 to 2007. Later, the site of Shahi-Tump, nearTurbat, was also studied.[7]
Large and massive quadrangular stone building were constructed already before 4000 BCE. Flints, workedstones, and bone tools used by the inhabitants were found by archaeologists, but no ceramics were yet used.
In this Period I the inhabitants of the Kech River Valley already cultivated wheat and barley, as well as lentils. They had domesticated cattle, goats, and sheep. They also caught fish from the Oman Sea.
During Period II, the building of massive architectural structures continued, and a quadrangular stone complex was built. Later, mud brick constructions also appear on top of some of these stone buildings.[8]
At Miri Qalat, some links withUruk culture ceramics were also found.[9]
The related site ofBalakot, Makran, going back to 4000 BCE, was also studied by archaeologists.
After the victory of theMauryan Empire against the Greeks in theSeleucid–Mauryan war, Baluchistan came under the rule ofChandragupta Maurya of ancient India. Chandragupta and Seleucus made a peace settlement in 304 BCE. Seleucus I Nicator ceded the satrapies, including those in Baluchistan to the expanding Mauryan Empire.[10] The alliance was solidified with a marriage between Chandragupta Maurya and a princess of the Seleucid Empire. An outcome of the arrangement proved to be mutually beneficial.[10] The border between the Seleucid and Mauryan Empires remained stable in subsequent generations, and friendly diplomatic relations are reflected by the ambassadorMegasthenes, and by the envoys sent westward by Chandragupta's grandsonAshoka.[10]
Shapur I's trilingual inscription at the Ka'ba-ye Zartosht inNaqsh-i-Rustam, dated to 262 CE, had noted "Makuran"/"Makran" to be one of the many provinces of theSasanian Empire:
And I (Shapur I) possess the lands: Fars [Persis], Pahlav [Parthia] ... and all of Abarshahr (all the upper (eastern, Parthian) provinces),Kerman,Sakastan,Turgistan,Makuran, Pardan [Paradene], Hind [Sind] andKushanshahr all the way to Pashkibur [Peshawar?] and to the borders ofKashgaria,Sogdia and Chach [Tashkent] and of that sea-coast Mazonshahr [Oman].
— Shapur I's inscription at the Ka'ba-ye Zartosht (262 CE), translation byJosef Wiesehöfer (1996).[11][12][13]
Abū Rayḥān Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad Al-Bīrūnī states in his bookAlberuni's India that the coast ofIndia begins withTiz, the capital of Makran.[14]
According to historian Andre Wink:
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Further evidence in theChachnama makes perfectly clear that many areas of Makran as ofSindh had a largelyBuddhist population. WhenChach marched to Armabil, this town is described as having been in the hands of a Buddhist Samani (Samani Budda), a descendant of the agents ofRai Sahiras who had been elevated for their loyalty and devotion, but who later made themselves independent. The Buddhist chief offered his allegiance to Chach when the latter was on his way to Kirman in 631. The same chiefdom of Armadil is referred to byHiuen Tsang O-tien-p-o-chi-lo, located at the high road running through Makran, and he also describes it as predominantly Buddhist, thinly populated though it was, it had no less than 80 Buddhist convents with about 5000 monks. In effect at eighteen km northwest of Las Bela at Gandakahar, near the ruins of an ancient town are thecaves of Gondrani, and as their constructions show these caves were undoubtedly Buddhist. Traveling through the Kij valley further west (then under the government of Persia) Hiuen Tsang saw some 100 Buddhist monasteries and 6000 priests. He also saw several hundredDeva temples in this part of Makran, and in the town of Su-nu li-chi-shi-fa-lo – which is probably Qasrqand – he saw a temple ofMaheshvara Deva, richly adorned and sculptured. There is thus very wide extension of Indian cultural forms in Makran in the seventh century, even in the period when it fell under Persian sovereignty. By comparison in more recent times the last place ofHindu pilgrimage in Makran wasHinglaj, 256 km west of present-day Karachi inLas Bela.[16]
Wink has recordedHiuen Tsang's notes on the language and script in use in easternmost Makran (eastern parts of Pakistani Balochistan and Sindh):
Hiuen Tsang considered the script which was in use in Makran to be "much the same as India", but the spoken language "differed a little from that of India".[17]
The Hindu Sewa dynasty ruled much of Baluchistan up until the 7th century CE. The Sibi division carved out of Quetta division still derives its name from Rani Sewi, the queen of the Hindu Sewa dynasty.[18]
In 635 or 636 CE, the HinduBrahman dynasty of Sindh controlled parts of Balochistan.[19]
The first Islamic conquest of Makran took place during theRashidun Caliphate in the year 643 CE . CaliphUmar's governor ofBahrain, Usman ibn Abu al-Aas, who was on a campaign to conquer the southern coastal areas beyond Sassanid, sent his brother Hakam ibn Abu al-Aas to raid andreconnoitre the Makran region.[20][full citation needed]
In late 644 CE CaliphUmar dispatched an army under the command of Hakam ibn Amr for the wholesale invasion of Makkuran. He was joined by reinforcements fromKufa under the command of Shahab ibn Makharaq, and by Abdullah ibn Utban, the commander of a campaign inKerman. They encountered no strong resistance in Makran until the army of the King ofRai, along with contingents from Makran and Sind, stopped them near theIndus River. In mid-644 theBattle of Rasil was fought between the forces of the Rashidun Caliphate and the Rai Kingdom; the Raja's forces were defeated and forced to retreat to the eastern bank of the Indus. The Raja's army had includedwar elephants, but these had posed little problem for the Muslim invaders, who had dealt with them during theconquest of Persia. In accordance with the orders of CaliphUmar, the captured war elephants were sold in Islamic Persia, with the proceeds distributed among the soldiers as share in booty.[21] In response to CaliphUmar's questions about the Makran region, the messenger from Makkuran who brought the news of the victory told him:
O Commander of the faithful!
It's a land where the plains are stony;
Where water is scanty;
Where the fruits are unsavory;
Where men are known for treachery;
Where plenty is unknown;
Where virtue is held of little account;
And where evil is dominant.
A large army is less for there;
And a less army is use less there;
The land beyond it, is even worse [referring to Sind]
Umar looked at the messenger and said:"Are you a messenger or a poet?" He replied, "Messenger". Thereupon CaliphUmar instructed Hakim bin Amr al Taghlabi that for the time being Makkuran should be the easternmost frontier of the Islamic empire, and that no further attempt should be made to extend the conquests.
It was reconquered by the usurperChach of Alor in 631. Ten years later, it was described to be "under the government of Persia" byXuanzang who visited the region. Three years later however, when the Arabs invaded, it was regarded as the "frontier ofAl-Hind".[22] TheBrahmin King of Sindh, Maharaja Chacha met the invaders outside Broach and defeated them with heavy slaughter also killing their very Commander-in-Chief Abdul Aziz in the process.[23][24]
Baloch raiders plunderedMahmud of Ghazni's ambassador between Tabbas and Khabis. In revenge, his son Masud defeated them at the latter place, which lies at the foot of the Karman Mountains on the edge of the desert.[25]
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From the 15th century onward, the area was ruled by theRind,Buledai,Hammal Jiand, and Gichki.
Hammal Baloch lived during the 15th century and his father, Jiand was the ruler of Makran. He is best known for his resistance againstPortuguese incursions,[26] particularly during the attacks on coastal towns likePasni andGawadar.
The sultanate held onto the Makran coast throughout the period of British colonial rule, but eventually, only Gwadar was left in the hands of the sultan.
On the independence ofPakistan, Makran became a district within the province of Balochistan, with the exception of an area of 800 km2 (310 sq mi) around Gwadar.Makran (Urdu:ریاست مکران) was an autonomousprincely state in asubsidiary alliance withBritish India until 1947, before acceding to Pakistan as an autonomousprincely state of Pakistan.[27] It ceased to exist in 1955. It was located in the extreme southwest of present-dayPakistan, an area now parts of the districts ofGwadar,Kech andPanjgur. The state did not include theenclave ofOmani Gwadar, which was underOmani rule until 1958.
Makran state was ruled byGichki Nawabs,[28] who were ofRajputs origins.[29][30] Their ancestor, Jagat Singh had migrated from Rajputana in the 17th century and became Muslim. In 1958 the Gwadar enclave was transferred to Pakistani control as part of the district of Makran. The entire region has been subdivided into new smaller districts over the years.
The narrow coastal plain rises rapidly into several mountain ranges. Of the 1,000 km (620 mi) coastline, around 750 km (470 mi) are inPakistan. The climate is dry with little rainfall. Makran is very sparsely inhabited, with much of the population concentrated in a string of small ports includingChabahar,Gwatar,Jiwani,Jask,Sirik,Gwadar (not to be confused with Gwatar),Pasni,Ormara and many smaller fishing villages.
There is only one island off the coast of Makran,Astola Island, near Pasni although there are several small islets. The coastline has a number of lagoons and bays. The main lagoons areMiani Hor,Khor Kalmat, and theJiwani Coastal Wetland. The main bays are from east to west: Ormara East Bay, Ormara West Bay, Pasni Bay,Surbandar Bay, Gwadar East Bay, Gwadar West Bay andGwatar Bay (which includes Jiwani Bay). This latter bay shelters a largemangrove forest and the nesting grounds of endangered turtle species. TheMirani Dam provides irrigation, flood prevention and water supply to Gwadar city.
| Religious group | 1911[31] | 1921[32] | 1931[33] | 1941[34] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | |
Islam | 71,758 | 99.74% | 71,625 | 99.67% | 68,213 | 99.64% | 86,406 | 99.72% |
Hinduism | 137 | 0.19% | 216 | 0.3% | 233 | 0.34% | 206 | 0.24% |
Christianity | 40 | 0.06% | 11 | 0.02% | 11 | 0.02% | 20 | 0.02% |
Sikhism | 2 | 0% | 8 | 0.01% | 3 | 0% | 17 | 0.02% |
| Others | 5[a] | 0.01% | 0 | 0% | 2[b] | 0% | 2[c] | 0% |
| Total population | 71,942 | 100% | 71,860 | 100% | 68,462 | 100% | 86,651 | 100% |
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)The former rulers of Makran and Lasbela, Gichki and Jamots respectively, are Rajputs.
The Gichki are the descendants of a Rajput family which settled in 17th century.
25°18′19″N60°38′28″E / 25.30541°N 60.64108°E /25.30541; 60.64108
