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A jirga (جرګه, jərga) is an assembly of leaders that makes decisions by consensus according to Pashtunwali, the Pashtun social code. It is conducted in order to settle disputes among the Pashtuns, but also by members of other ethnic groups who are influenced by them in present-day Afghanistan and Pakistan. Historically, a loya jirga or a "great council" has been convened in order to elect a new head of state, approve a new constitution or resolve critical issues. Loya jirgas have reportedly been organized since the rise to power of the Hotak dynasty in the early 18th century. In July 1747, Afghan chiefs assembled in Kandahar to elect a new king, choosing the 25-year-old Ahmad Shah Durrani, who is credited with founding the modern state of Afghanistan. From 11 to 14 March 2022, the inaugural meeting of the Pashtun National Jirga was held in Bannu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to discuss the critical issues faced by the Pashtuns in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The word jirga might be cognate to Mongolian цирк (tsərk), referring to a large assembly of men forming a very broad circle, initially intended for laying siege around games or animals to be hunted for food or sport. Pashtun elders also typically sit in a circle when debating and hearing a given dispute during a tribal jirga. In Pashto, a grand jirga is known as loya jirga (لویه جرګه, lōya jərga). A mini-jirga is called jirgagai (جرګګۍ, jərgagəy). The institution, which is centuries old, is a similar idea to the Islamic shura ("consultative assembly"). It is thought that the ancient Indo-Iranian tribes, also known as Arya or Aryans, practiced a sort of jirga system with two types of councils – and . The (summit) comprised elders and tribal chiefs. The king also joined sessions of the . was a sort of rural council. In present-day India, they are still referred to as Samiti and Sabha. In Afghan society, the jirga is still maintained and favored, mostly by tribal leaders to solve internal or external disputes with other tribes. In some cases it functions like a town hall meeting.

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Related concepts (24)

Pashtunistan

Pashtunistan (پښتونستان) is a historical region located on the Iranian Plateau, inhabited by the indigenous Pashtun people of southern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan in South-Central Asia, wherein Pashtun culture, the Pashto language, and Pashtun identity have been based. Alternative names historically used for the region include Pashtūnkhwā (پښتونخوا), Pakhtūnistān, Pathānistān, or simply the Pashtun Belt. Pashtunistan borders the geographical regions of Turkestan to the north, Kashmir to the northeast, Punjab to the east, Balochistan to the south and Iran to the west.

Pashtunwali

Pashtunwali or Pakhtunwali (پښتونوالی), also known as Afghaniyat, is the traditional lifestyle and is best described as a code of honor of the Pashtun people, by which they live. Many scholars widely have interpreted it as being "the way of the Pashtuns" or "the code of life". Pashtunwali is widely practised by Pashtuns in the Pashtun-dominated regions. Pashtunwali dates back to ancient pre-Islamic times. The native Pashtun tribes, often described as fiercely independent people, have inhabited the Pashtunistan region (eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan) since at least the 1st millennium BC.

Jirga