AFGHANISTAN: ETHNIC DIVERSITY AND DISSIDENCE (U)

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP81B00401R000600110004-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 11
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 6, 2006
• Sequence Number: 4
• Publication Date: June 1, 1979
• Content Type: RP

Approved For Release 2006/06/06: CIA-RDP81 B00401 R000600110004-3
National Secret
Foreign
Assessment
Center
Afghanistan:
Ethnic Diversity
And Dissidence
Secret
GC 79-10075
June 1979
Copy 16 0
Annrn\vPd Fnr RPIPasP 2006/nA/06 - (IA-RnP81 R004O1 Rnnn6nn11 nnn4-3
 Approved For Release 2006/06/06: CIA-RDP81 B00401 R000600110004-3
Approved For Release 2006/06/06: CIA-RDP81 B00401 R000600110004-3
 Approved For Release 2006/06/06: CIA-RDP81 B00401 R000600110004-3
National
Foreign
Assessment
Center
Afghanistan:
Ethnic Diversity
And Dissident
Research for this report was completed
on 1 May 1979.
The author of this paper i
Geography Division, Office
This paper was coordinated with the Office of
Political Analysis.=
Secret
GC 79-10075
June 1979
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Secret
Afghanistan:
Ethnic Diversity
And Dissidence
Summary The creation of a sense of national unity among the diverse peoples of
Afghanistan has always been one of the most challenging problems to this
country's rulers. Afghanistan is a tribal society, composed of some 20 ethnic
groups of various backgrounds and cultures. About the only cohesive
element among them is their observance of Islamic law. Unlike the present
government, many past rulers took tribal opinion seriously and guided
rather than ruled.
Opposition to the regime of President Nur Mohammed Taraki is increasing
among Afghanistan's devoutly Muslim and fiercely independent tribal
population. The most significant cause for resistance is the widespread belief
among the ethnic groups that Taraki's government is Communist, atheist,
and pro-Soviet. Equally objectionable are the government's reform meas-
ures, which are viewed by the ethnic groups as attempts to displace the
traditional social structure based on Islam and allegiance to family, clan,
and tribe.
Despite the common antipathy to the Taraki regime and its policies, the
diverse Afghan ethnic groups are not united in their resistance to the
government. The deep-seated animosities that persist among the groups and
the division between the followers of the Sunni and Shia Islamic sects that
cuts across tribal groups thwart creation of a strong antigovernment front.
The greatest threat to the regime is insurgency among the tribes of Taraki's
own Pashtun group. Historically it has been the Pashtun-its members have
ruled Afghanistan since the 18th century-who have instigated revolts and
overthrown the rulers of Afghanistan.
The above information is Unclassified.
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International boundary
Province boundary
8 National capital
0 Province capital
Railroad
Road
- - - - Track or trail
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Secret
Afghanistan:
Ethnic Diversit
And Dissidence
Reports on the opposition to the year-old regime of
Nur Mohammed Taraki generally refer only to the
activities and political relationships of the Afghan
peoples involved in the increased insurgency in the
country. For a better understanding of the situation,
knowledge is needed of the position, beliefs, and social
structures of the diverse ethnic groups. This paper
briefly discusses the ethnic background and culture of
the peoples of Afghanistan and their attitudes toward
each other and toward the regime.
Afghanistan, slightly larger than the state of Texas, is
the meeting place of diverse physical and cultural
worlds. Physically, Afghanistan is an extension of the
high land mass known as the Iranian Plateau; nearly
two-thirds of the country consists of mountains. In
central and eastern Afghanistan the mountains-
dominated by the Hindu Kush-present a formidable
physical barrier and provide a favorable milieu for
tribal separatism. To the north, west, and southwest,
however, Afghanistan merges with the high plains and
plateaus of central and south Asia. Across this region
of transit has come a succession of peoples-Aryans,
Medes, Persians, Greeks, Turks, and Mongols-bent
on trade and conquest; others have climbed the passes
and crossed the plateaus bearing the message of
Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Hinduism, and Islam. It is
from this mixture of peoples and cultures that the
modern state of Afghanistan has been emerging since
the 18th century. 25X1
Each of the approximately 20 ethnic groups in
Afghanistan has certain distinctive physical character-
istics, differing social institutions, and varying sets of
values.' The origins and kinships among the many
groups are a matter of scholarly controversy because of
the lack of.indigenous written records, fragmentary
historic sources, and scanty archaeological, anthropo-
metric, and serological evidence. By size, the major
groups include the Pashtun, Tajik, Uzbek, and
Hazara; other important groups include the Chahar
Aimak, Turkmen, Nur, Baluchi, and Brahui.Z Of the
total estimated population of 15 million, about 50
percent are Pashtun and nearly 30 percent are Tajik,
Uzbek, and Hazara. Total population estimates, how-
ever, are confused by the kuchis, or Afghan nomads,
who number from 2 to 4 million and are members of
several ethnic groups. Many of the tribal people have
ethnic ties with peoples inhabit' cent areas of
the USSR, Iran, and Pakistan 25X1
Despite considerable diversity, there are common ties
of language and religion that provide some element of
cohesiveness among the groups. The common language
is Dari, the Afghan form of Farsi (Persian), which is
used by all groups but is not the first language of an
individual group. Nearly all of the ethnic groups are
Muslim and about 80 percent are of the Sunni sect,
while the remainder are adherents of the Shia sect.
Although the two sects are contentious, the division
has not resulted in the bloody confrontations that have
occurred in other Muslim lands.= 25X1
' For detailed discussion of selected ethnic groups, see pp. 4 to 6.
2 There is no standard or agreed spelling of the names of the ethnic
groups in Afghanistan. In the absence of an official census list, the
names used here are those that appear most consistently in
authoritative sources. For example, alternate names for Pashtun
include Pushtun (name used in Pakistan) and Pathan (the Indian
corruption of Pashtun); Uzbeg or Uzbak for Turkoman for
Turkmen; and Chahar Aimak simply Aimal
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Tribes and tribalism remain important in Afghanistan,
particularly among the Pashtun, whose Durrani tribal
families have ruled the country since its unification by
one of them in the 18th century. The Pashtun are
strong in number; some of their tribes, such as the
Durrani, Ghilzai, and Yuzufazai, individually have at
least a million members. The degree of tribal loyalty,
however, varies considerably among the Pashtun, and
tribal feuds and rivalries at times have been divisive
forces in the country. The Durrani, though divided into
numerous subtribes or clans and widely scattered,
usually have rallied to a common cause when the need
arose. 25X1
It is the opinion of most of the major ethnic groups that
Afghanistan is run by Pashtuns for Pashtuns, and that
what prevails is internal colonialism. Pashtun govern
most provinces, even those in which another ethnic
group is in the majority, and hold most administrative
posts. The favored Pashtun position is reflected in the
way Kabul thrives, apparently at the expense of the
provinces. Its growing modernity is viewed with envy
by provincial Uzbeks and Hazaras. Although improve-
ments in health facilities, roads, airfields, and agricul-
ture have been made in other provinces, government
efforts have been concentrated in Pashtun provinces or
in Pashtun-settled areas.I I 25X1
Antigovernment, anti-Pashtun alienation is particu-
larly strong among the Uzbeks, a sophisticated and
capable people who provide the bulk of the country's
professional men and entrepreneurs. The Uzbek often
feels no confidence in the economy, feels he has no
stake in the country, and prefers to keep his wealth in
the local equivalent of a sock under the mattress. On
the other hand, the Uzbeks have a reputation among
the Pashtun for indolence and procrastination, though
there has been little if any active discrimination or
hostility between them= 25X1
The Hazaras generally have preferred to keep to their
central mountain homeland where they are almost
literally inaccessible to all forms of government
authority, from tax collection to police. In recent years,
however, a few thousand have left their mountains as
Army recruits, or to settle in cities where most of them
are employed as manual laborers and servants. Tradi-
tional hostility toward them because of their adherence
to the Shia sect of Islam combined with their
Mongoloid features and their indifference to Kabul
has contributed to their inferior social and economic
status. II 25X1
Of the four major ethnic groups, the Tajiks are the
least likely to oppose acts of Pashtun colonialism. They
are a peaceful people-traditionally poets, dreamers,
and intellectuals-who are unassertive in their pride of
being Tajik. The Tajiks have lived in harmony with the
Pashtuns, and a number of them have held high
government posts. Neither intermarriage nor social
intercourse between the two peoples is common,
however. 25X1
The kuchis include members from nearly every ethnic
group in the country and possibly represent one-fourth
of the total population. The kuchi regards his way of
life as the most dignified, and he distrusts variation
and change. For many years the. kuchi have taken their
caravans to Pakistan and India to trade wool and
animal products for goods they could in turn trade to
the farming communities in Afghanistan. The poorer
nomads go to Pakistan during the winter months to sell
their labor. The periodic closing of the Afghan-
Pakistan border causes them great hardship. Govern-
ment attempts to settle the kuchis permanently have
met with little success because they are highly
suspicious of any attempt to restrict their movements
or record their numbers, and feel little if any loyalty to
the abstract of the state or the Kabul-centered
government.concert 25X1
Resistance to the Policies
Of the Present Regime
The most important cause of opposition to the present
regime is the belief among the peoples of Afghanistan
that the Taraki government is Communist, atheist, and
pro-Soviet. During the past year, the heavyhanded
suppression of the mullahs and other government
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Secret
Ethnic Groups in Afghanistan
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actions that impinge on the Islamic way of life have
rapidly stirred hostility in the villages and rural areas
where 85 percent of the population lives. Resentment
has also grown among the less conservative urban-
ites-even among some of those loyal to the govern-
ment-because they feel the regime challenges basic
Islamic institutions that they at least respect. The pro-
Soviet stance of the regime and the presence of Soviet
advisers in the country arouse historical feelings of
mistrust of the "Russians" and fears that the "Rus-
sians" are running the country. To an Afghan, the
regime's policies are tantamount to treason and a
threat to his fiercely held independence.
The regime's programs for social and land reform are
another cause of opposition. Most of the resistance is in
response to the forcefulness of the government's action.
But, more importantly, the programs are regarded as
attempts to displace tribal structure and family ties
and are viewed as violations of Islamic precepts of
authority and purdah' (the position of women)
In implementing land reform, government officials
have found recipients reluctant to accept land because
of loyalty to tribal leaders or fear of reprisals if the
regime is overthrown. The program has also created
hostility between the new landlords and the nomads
who have lost grazing rights recognized by the former
landowners with whom they had ethnic and sometimes
family ties. Pressure from their mullahs and fellow
tribesmen, together with the inability to profit from
newly acquired land in the short time since the
program was initiated, has dissuaded potential nc
landowners from cooperating with the government
Because only about 10 percent of the people are
literate, the government initiated an illiteracy eradica-
tion program aimed at everyone from the ages of 14 to
40. Reaction to this program has been particularly
hostile, mainly because it forces women out of purdah
into public life 25X1
' The institution of purdah is particularly strict in Afghanistan.
Women must be covered from head to foot in public, and they are
generally confined to the home. Even their contact with male
relatives is limited. Only when they work in the fields, or if they are
nomads or servants, are women freed from some of the constraints of
purdah
Resistance to these programs has resulted in the
assassination of government officials, teachers, and
police sent into the provinces to implement the
programs. Violent elimination of the uninvited has
always been the expedient wa of solving local
problems in Afghanistan. 25X1
The greatest threat to the regime is from the tribes of
Taraki's own ethnic group, the Pashtun. In addition to
their hatred of his anti-Islamic, pro-Soviet regime,
they, as the principal landowners, deeply resent the
land reform program. The Pashtuns are responsible for
most of the insurgency that is escalating throughout
the country, but because of old rivalries there is little
cooperation among the various tribes. The spread of
their guerrilla forces and an increase in desertions from
the Afghan Army are, however causing a serious drain
on the regime's resources" 25X1
On the surface there is little evidence that old frictions
among the various ethnic groups have developed. Thus
far the Tajiks, Hazaras, and Uzbeks have not openly
retaliated against Pashtun discrimination, domination,
and exploitation. It is probable that they believe that
no matter what happens with the present regime the
Pashtuns will retain their dominant position in Af-
ghanistan. This belief partly explains why some non-
Pashtun personnel have deserted the Afghan Army
and joined Pashtun guerrilla forces. Another reason for
their desertion may be the growing antipathy, regard-
less of group or tribal ties, to the idea of Afghans
killing Afghans at the instigation of Soviet advisers.
Major Ethnic Groups
The Pashtuns have been the dominant people in
Afghanistan since its beginning as a nation in the 18th
century. They are concentrated in the east and south,
but in the late 1900s many were forcibly resettled
north of the Hindu Kush. Loyalty to the clan or tribe
varies from group to group but is usually strong, and all
have extreme pride in their Pashtun identity. The
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majority of them are farmers, usually freeholders, and
a number are landlords employing non-Pashtun as
tenants or laborers. Except for a few tribes who are
Shiites, the Pashtun are adherents of the Sunni sect of
Islam. They are predominantly light-skinned bru-
nettes, long-headed, with prominent facial features,
and of slender build. Brown eyes predominate but
hazel or blue eyes are not unusual among them. They
speak Pashto, an Iranian variant of Indo-lan and
related to Persian, Baluchi, and Kurdish.
The Tajiks are the second largest ethnic group and are
scattered throughout the country, with major concen-
trations in the east and west. They are not considered
to be a distinct group, but consist of several peoples
who share no more than a name, language (Tajiki, a
Farsi dialect), and sedentary living habits. Those in the
west are sometimes called Fairswan and probably are
distantly related to the people of eastern Iran. Those
north of the Hindu Kush are believed to be descended
from ancient Iranians who have mixed with Turkic
peoples. The mountain Tajiks, who have Mongolian
admixture, appear to have been among the earliest or,
according to Soviet ethnologists the indigenous in-
habitants of the far northeast." 25X1
Tajiks are not tribal, but they do have a strong sense of
community loyalty. Most are tenant farmers and
laborers; some engage in trade or handicrafts. They are
not belligerent except for a few groups of mountain
Tajiks who some consider as aggressive as the Pashtun.
Similar to the Pashtun, the Tajiks are adherents of
both the Sunni and Shia sects of Islam, but the
majority are Sunni. Scanty anthropometric studies
describe the Tajiks as round-headed with oval faces
and usually of slender build. They are light-skinned
brunettes; occasionally there are-individuals with
reddish or yellowish colored hair. Even among the
mountain Tajiks, lightness of skin an or can be
found blended with Mongoloid traits
The Uzbek live north of the Hindu Kush on the plain of
the Amu Darya. Uzbek is a name applied to Turkic
tribesmen who came to Afghanistan in the mid-15th
century. The Uzbek are a mix of Turko-Mongol
peoples who intermingled with descendants of an
ancient Iranian plateau people. Modern Uzbek have
either Mongoloid or Caucasoid features, or a blend of
the two. They tend to. be round-headed, have yellow-
white skin color and broad cheekbones, and occasion-
ally the epicanthic fold. The Uzbek have relinquished
their tribal affiliations and nomadism and are mainly
farmers; however, many are successful merchants and
artisans. Unlike the Pashtun and Tajik, the Uzbek are
adherents of the Sunni sect of Islam and have no Shiite
minority. Their language, Uzbeki, is believed to be a
derivation of medieval Turkish
The Hazara homeland, which is called Hazarajat,
consists of the upper Helmand valley area west of
Kabul. Smaller groups are located farther north in
Bamian and in the far northeast in Badakhshan. The
Hazara are believed to be of Turko-Mongol origin.
They possibly are descendants of Mongol soldiers who 25X1
intermarried with a mountain Tajik population in the
13th and 14th centuries, although it is more likel that
their ancestors predate the Mongol conquest
Whatever their origin, the Hazara culturally resemble
the mountain Tajiks but speak a Persian dialect called
Hazaraghi. Physically, they have coarse black hair, 25X1
yellow to yellow-brown skin color, are round-headed
with broad faces and prominent cheek and have
a high incidence of the epicanthic fold"
Unlike the Tajiks, they are divided into tribes and,
although some are nomadic, the majority are pastoral
farmers. The Hazara are the only major Afghan ethnic
group that adheres to the Shia sect of Islam. Reput-
edly, they are physically strong, enduring, and indus-
trious in tasks that do not require much mental ability.
They make good soldiers and are regularly recruited
into the Afghan Army. F__1
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Other Ethnic Groups
To the north and west of the Hazara live the Chahar
Aimak ethnic group, which is divided into four main
subdivisions or tribes. The main group also includes
small cultural groups of mountain peoples, about
whom little is known. The Chahar Aimak are generally
believed to be of Turko-Mongol origin, but there is a
theory that peoples of Indo-European origin have been
included in this group. Mongoloid traits, however, are
dominant among the Chahar Aimak population. Many
of the Chahar Aimak are seminomadic and live in
yurts or yurtlike tents; the remainder are farmers.
They speak a dialect of Farsi that contains many
Turki words, and they follow the Sunni sect of
Islam
The Turkmen, who live mainly in the northwest, are
another Turkic group like the Uzbek. Most authorities
believe the Turkmen descended from the Oghuz Turks
who came to Afghanistan in the 11th century, al-
though they may have other strains in their ethnic
background. They speak a variant of a European
Turkish dialect and are adherents of the Sunni Islamic
sect. The Turkmen, unlike the Uzbek, are still pastoral
tribal nomads, and they maintain few contacts with
other Afghans. During the 1920s their numbers were
swelled by Turkmen entering Afghanistan from the
north as refugees from Soviet collectivism. They have a
distinct economic role as breeders of Karakul sheep
whose pelts-Karakul, astrakhan or Persian lamb-
are a main Afghan export. The Turkmen women are
the dyers and weavers ofI -theI Ideep-red "Bokharan" rug,
another leading export. I 25X1
The nomadic Baluchi speak an Iranian dialect and are
adherents of the Sunni sect of Islam. They are found
in the sparsely populated southern borderlands of
Afghanistan and are related to the Baluchi who settled
in villages south of Herat during the migration of the
Baluchi eastward from Iran in earlier times
25X1
The Brahui, also located in southern Afghanistan,
include both farmers and nomads who speak a
Dravidian language. They are believed to be descended
from an aboriginal people driven south by the Aryans
and possibly to share a common ancestor with other
dark-skinned, Dravidian-speaking peoples of south
Asia
The Nur live in the eastern mountains of Afghanistan.
Their origin and kinship are ethnic mysteries, for they
have a range of skin, eye, and hair coloration that
includes a blond strain. At one time they were
considered to be descendants of ancient Greeks, but it
is now thought they may be related to an earlier people
from central Asia. They are renowned mountaineers.
Subdued by an Afghan ruler in the 19th century, many
were converted to Islam (Sunni sect), and the name of
their country was changed from K n (land of
infidels) to Nuristan (land of light 25X1
The Nur consist of two main groups subdivided into a
number of tribes. They speak dialects of an Indic
variant of Indo-European that is closely related to
Dardic. Their traditional religious practices-now
largely unobserved-consist of a combination of
animism and polytheism, featuring ancestor worship,
animal sacrifices, wooden idols, and grave effigies. The
Nur carry on a mixed agricultural and pastoral
economy, farming the lower slopes but perching their
villages high above the valley floor. They prefer the
isolation of their mountains and deeply resent govern-
ment interference.I I
The Kizilbash, descendants of a Turkish garrison left
in Kabul by a Persian conqueror in the mid-18th
century, are an urban group, who adhere to the Shia
sect of Islam. They generally are well educated, and
some hold important government positions or are
traders. Other strictly urban groups include Hindus,
Sikhs, and Jews, who primarily are merchants, traders,
and moneylenders in the towns and cities throughout
Afghanistan. The Kirghiz are a pastoral Mongoloid
people who speak a dialect of Turkish and are members
of the Sunni sect of Islam. They inhabit the Wakhan
Corridor area in the far northeastern extension of
Afghanistan. Other minority groups are the Moghuls,
who live in the western and northern parts of the
country and claim descent from Ghengis Khan, and
the nomadic "Arabs" or "Sayyid," who live on the
northern plains