Baloch people

The Baloch or Baluch (Balòc) are a Western Iranic ethnic group native to the Balochistan region of South and Western Asia encompassing the countries of Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan. There are also Baloch diaspora communities in neighbouring regions, including in Central Asia, and the Arabian Peninsula. Assimilation of non-Baloch tribes into Baloch tribal system has been a major phenomenon throughout the history of Baloch people, and today a significant Baloch population has diverse origins. The majority of Baloch reside within Pakistan. About 50% of the total Baloch population live in the Pakistani province of Balochistan, while 40% are settled in Sindh and a significant albeit smaller number reside in the Pakistani Punjab. They make up nearly 3.6% of Pakistan's total population, and around 2% of the populations of both Iran and Afghanistan. The exact origin of the word 'Baloch' is unclear. According to the Baloch historian Naseer Dashti (2012), the name of the ethnic group derives from 'Balaschik' living in Balasagan, between the Caspian Sea and Lake Van in present-day Turkey and Azerbaijan, who are believed to have migrated to Balochistan during the Sasanian times. The remnants of the original name such as 'Balochuk' and 'Balochiki' are said to be still used as ethnic names in Balochistan. Some other writers suggest a derivation from Sanskrit words bal, meaning strength, and och meaning high or magnificent. An earliest Sanskrit reference to the Baloch might be the Gwalior inscription of the Gurjara-Pratihara ruler Mihira Bhoja (r. 836–885), which says that the dynasty's founder Nagabhata I repelled a powerful army of Valacha Mlecchas, translated as "Baluch foreigners" by D. R. Bhandarkar. The army in question is that of the Umayyad Caliphate after the conquest of Sindh. According to Baloch lore, their ancestors hail from Aleppo in what is now Syria. They claim to be descendants of Ameer Hamza, uncle of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, who settled in Halab (present-day Aleppo).