| Total population | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,620,000[1] | |||||||||
| Regions with significant populations | |||||||||
|
|||||||||
| Languages | |||||||||
| Religion | |||||||||
| Related ethnic groups | |||||||||
Aymāq (Persian: ایماق), also transliterated as Aimak or Aimaq, are a collection of Persian-speaking nomadic or semi-nomadic tribes of mixed Mongolian and Iranian stock. They are found throughout the north and northwest highlands of Afghanistan, immediately to the north of Herat, and in the Khorasan Province of Iran.[2] They speak a number of subdialects of the Aimaq dialect of Persian.
Aimaks are closely related to Hazara and Tajiks in varying degrees. In the Afghan census, some Aimaks are classified as Tajiks.[3] Aimaks live in western Hazarajat, making up the majority in Ghor, and also live in large numbers in the western areas of Herat and Badghis, and to a lesser extent in Farah, Faryab, Jowzjan, and Sar-e Pol. "Aymāq" is Mongolian for tribe (see Aimag).
They were originally known as chahar, or the four Eimaks, the Taimani are the main element in the population of Ghor), the Ferozkohi, the Temuri, and the Jamshidi. They resemble Hazara in most aspects. However, successive Pushtun/Afghan governments have classified the Aimaq people as a separate ethnic group, so as to indicate a smaller population of Hazara. This classification had the side effect of increasing tensions with the Hazara for sectarian reasons. The Iranian Islamic Revolution and the Taliban regime further separated the group from the Hazara. There have been no notable efforts by either group to bridge the animosity between them.
Estimates of the Aimaq population vary between 250,000 and 2 million. They are Sunni Muslims, in contrast to the Hazara, who are Shiahs. The Chahar Aimaqs are of Mongolian origin, apparent in their physical appearance and their housing (Mongolian-style yurts).[4]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d "Aimaq". JoshuaProject. 11 August 2009. http://www.joshuaproject.net/people-clusters.php?rop2=C0007. Retrieved 14 August 2009.
- ^ Janata, A.. "AYMĀQ". in Ehsan Yarshater. Encyclopædia Iranica (Online Edition ed.). United States: Columbia University. http://www.iranica.com/newsite/index.isc?Article=http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/unicode/v3f2/v3f2a038.html.
- ^ Aimak, Ghor province on NPS
- ^ "Afghanistan". Encyclopædia Britannica. Ultimate Reference Suite. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, 2008.
Further reading
- Macgregor, Central Asia, (Calcutta, 1871)
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
