HazarajatHazaristan (Hazāristān), or Hazarajat (Hazārajāt) is a mostly mountainous region in the central highlands of Afghanistan, among the Kuh-e Baba mountains in the western extremities of the Hindu Kush. It is the homeland of the Hazara people who make up the majority of its population. Hazarajat denotes an ethnic and religious zone. Hazarajat is primarily made up of the provinces of Bamyan, Daykundi and large parts of Ghor, Ghazni, Uruzgan, Parwan, Maidan Wardak and more.
BamyanBamyan (بامیان) also spelled Bamiyan or Bamian is the capital of Bamyan Province in central Afghanistan. Its population of approximately 70,000 people makes it the largest city in Hazarajat. Bamyan is at an altitude of about above sea level. The Bamyan Airport is located in the middle of the city. The driving distance between Bamyan and Kabul in the southeast is approximately . The Band-e-Amir National Park is to the west, about a half-hour drive from the city of Bamyan. Bamyan is referred to by some as the "Shining Light" and "Valley of Gods".
Samangan ProvinceSamangan (Dari: ; Pashto: ) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, located north of the Hindu Kush mountains in the central part of the country. The province covers and is surrounded by Sar-e Pol Province in the west, Balkh in the north, Baghlan in the east, and Bamyan in the south. Samangan province is divided into 7 districts and contains 674 villages. It has a population of about 325,000 which is multi-ethnic and mostly a rural society. The city of Aybak serves as the provincial capital.
Baghlan ProvinceBaghlan (Dari: Baġlān) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is in the north of the country. As of 2020, the province has a population of about 1,014,634. Its capital is Puli Khumri, but its name comes from the other major town in the province, Baghlan. The ruins of a Zoroastrian fire temple, the Surkh Kotal, are located in Baghlan. The lead nation of the local Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) was Hungary, which operated from 2006 to 2015.
Ghazni ProvinceGhazni (غزنی) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in southeastern Afghanistan. The province contains 19 districts, encompassing over a thousand villages and roughly 1.3 million people, making it the 5th most populous province. The city of Ghazni serves as the capital. It lies on the important Kabul–Kandahar Highway, and has historically functioned as an important trade center. The Ghazni Airport is located next to the city of Ghazni and provides limited domestic flights to Afghanistan's capital, Kabul.
History of AfghanistanThe history of Afghanistan, preceding the establishment of the Emirate of Afghanistan in 1823 is shared with that of neighbouring Iran, central Asia and Indian subcontinent. The Sadozai monarchy ruled the Afghan Durrani Empire, considered the founding state of modern Afghanistan. Human habitation in Afghanistan dates back to the Middle Paleolithic era, and the country's strategic location along the historic Silk Road has led it to being described, picturesquely, as the ‘roundabout of the ancient world’.
KafiristanKāfiristān, or Kāfirstān (کاپیرستان; کافرستان; Land of Infidels), is a historical region that covered present-day Nuristan Province in Afghanistan and its surroundings. This historic region lies on, and mainly comprises, the basins of the rivers Alingar, Pech (Kamah), Landai Sin river and Kunar, and the intervening mountain ranges. It is bounded by the main range of the Hindu Kush on the north, Pakistan's Chitral District to the east, the Kunar Valley in the south and the Alishang River in the west.
Buddhism in AfghanistanBuddhism, an Indian religion founded by Gautama Buddha, first arrived in modern-day Afghanistan through the conquests of Ashoka (268-232), the third emperor of the Maurya Empire. Among the earliest notable sites of Buddhist influence in the country is a bilingual mountainside inscription in Greek and Aramaic that dates back to 260 BCE and was found on the rocky outcrop of Chil Zena near Kandahar.
QarlughidsThe Qarlughids were a tribe of Turkic origin that controlled Ghazni, lands of the Bamyan, the Kurram Valley (Ghazna, Banban, and Kurraman), and established a short-lived Muslim principality and dynasty that lasted between 1236 and 1266. The Qarlughids (or Karluk Turks) arrived from the north to settle in the regions of Hazarajat together with the armies of Muhammad II of Khwarezm, the Shah of Khwarezm. Throughout most of its existence, the Qarlugh Kingdom functioned as a buffer state between its two powerful neighbors, the Delhi Sultanate to the east and south and the Mongol Empire to the north and west.
Ghor ProvinceGhōr (Pashto/Dari: ), also spelled Ghowr or Ghur, is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is located in the western Hindu Kush in central Afghanistan, towards the northwest. The province contains eleven districts, encompassing hundreds of villages, and approximately 764,472 settled people. Firuzkoh (known as “Chaghcharan” until 2014) is the capital of the province. The ancient Indo-European, Sogdian gor-/gur- ("mountain"-) is well preserved in all Slavic gor-/gór- (goor-/gur-), e.g.
