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Amu Darya

Amu Darya

The Amu Darya (also Amudarya, Amudar'ya, in Persian آمودریا; Darya means "Sea" in Persian) is a river in Central Asia. It is navigable for over 1450 km (800 miles). Its total length is 2400 km (1500 miles). In Classical Antiquity, the river was known as the Oxus in Greek. It rises in the Pamir Mountains as the Pamir River, emerging from Zorkul, flowing east until Ishtragh, where it turns north and then east north-west through the Hindu Kush as the Panj, forming the border of Afghanistan and Tajikistan, and subsequently the border of Afghanistan and Uzbekistan for about 200 km, passing Termez and the Afghanistan-Uzbekistan Friendship Bridge. It follows the border of Afghanistan and Turkmenistan for another 100 km before it flows into Turkmenistan at Kerki. As Amudarya, it flows across Turkmenistan south to north, passing Turkmenabat, and forms the border of Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan from Khalkabad. It is then split into many waterways that used to form the river delta joining the Aral Sea, passing Urgench, Dashoguz and other cities, but it does not reach what is left of the sea anymore and is lost in the desert. Use of water from the Amu Darya for irrigation has been a major contributing factor in the shrinking of the Aral Sea since the late 1950s. Historical records state that in different periods the river flowed into the Aral Sea (from the south), the Caspian Sea (from the east) or both, similar to the Syr Darya (Jaxartes, in Ancient Greek).

Sea

]] A sea is a large expanse of saline water connected with an ocean, or a large, usually saline, lake that lacks a natural outlet such as the Caspian Sea and the Dead Sea. The Sea of Galilee is a small freshwater lake without a natural outlet, but the term was applied to it anyway. The term is used colloquially as synonymous with ocean, as in the tropical sea or down to the sea shore, or even sea water referring to water of the ocean. Large lakes are sometimes referred to as inland seas, such as the Great Lakes. Many of these seas can be very beautiful. Many seas are marginal seas.

List of seas, divided by ocean

Extraterrestrial seas

Lunar maria are vast basaltic plains on the Moon that were thought to be bodies of water by early astronomers, who referred to them as "seas". Liquid water is known to have existed on the surface of Mars in the distant past, and several basins on Mars have been proposed as dry sea beds. The largest is Vastitas Borealis; others include Hellas Planitia and Argyre Planitia. Liquid water is thought to be present under the surface of several moons, most notably Europa. Liquid hydrocarbons are thought to be present on the surface of Titan, though it may be more accurate to describe them as "lakes" rather than "seas". The distribution of these liquid regions will hopefully be better known after the arrival of the Cassini probe.

Science

The term "sea" has also been used in quantum physics. Dirac sea is an interpretation of the negative energy states that comprises the vacuum.

Central Asia

Central Asia (Russian: Среднaя Азия/"Srednaya Azia" for "Middle Asia" or Центральная Азия/"Tsentrallnaya Azia" for "Central Asia"; Mandarin Chinese: 中亚/ pinyin: "Zhŏngyà"; Arabic: ﺔﻄﻮﺳﻠﺍ ﺎﺴﻴﺁ/"Asya al Wsta") is a vast landlocked region of Asia. Though various definitions of its exact composition exist, no one definition is universally accepted. Despite this uncertainty in defining borders, it does have some important overall characteristics. For one, Central Asia has historically been closely tied to its nomadic peoples and the Silk Road. As a result, it has acted as a crossroads for the movement of people, goods, and ideas between Europe, the Middle East, South Asia, and East Asia. It is also sometimes known as Middle Asia or Inner Asia, and is within the scope of the wider Eurasian continent. It is also sometimes known as Turkestan.

Definitions

The idea of Central Asia as a distinct region of the world was introduced in 1843 by the geographer Alexander von Humboldt. The borders of Central Asia are subject to multiple definitions. Many text books still refer to this area as Turkestan, which was the name used prior to Stalin's rule. The most limited definition was the official one of the Soviet Union that defined the "Middle Asia" as consisting solely of Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan, but did not include Kazakhstan. This definition was also often used outside the USSR in this period. However, the Russian language has two distinct terms: Средняя Азия (Srednyaya Azia or "Middle Asia", the narrower definition which includes only those traditionally non-Slavic, "Central Asian" lands that were incorporated within those borders of historical Russia) and Центральная Азия (Tsentral'naya Azia or "Central Asia", the wider definition which includes "Central Asian" lands that have never been part of historical Russia). However, there lacks a meaningful distinction between the two in the English language; and so "Central Asia" is used for both Russian usages, thus creating some confusion. The new post-USSR Russian Federation has now included Kazakhstan in its new definition of "Middle Asia". Soon after independence, the leaders of the five former Soviet Central Asian Republics met in Tashkent and declared that the definition of Central Asia should include Kazakhstan as well as the original four included by the Soviets. Since then, this has become the most common definition of Central Asia. The UNESCO general history of Central Asia, written just before the collapse of the USSR, defines the region based on climate and uses far larger borders. According to it, Central Asia includes Mongolia, Western China (including Tibet), northeast Iran, Afghanistan and western Pakistan, central-east Russia south of the Taiga, the former Central Asian Soviet Republics (the five "Stans" of the former Soviet Union), but also even the Punjab, northern India and Pakistan. An alternative method is to define the region based on ethnicity, and in particular, areas populated by Eastern Turkic, Eastern Iranian, or Mongolian peoples. These areas include Xinjiang, the Turkic/Muslim regions of southern Siberia, the five republics, and Afghan Turkestan. The Tibetans are also included. Insofar, the mentioned peoples are considered the "indigenous" peoples of the vast region. Colonization and settlement by Chinese, Iranians, and Russians was to come later.

Geography

Russians Central Asia is an extremely large region of varied geography, including high plateaus and mountains (Tian Shan), vast deserts (Kara Kum, Kyzyl Kum, Taklamakan), and especially treeless, grassy steppes. Much of the land is too dry or too rugged for farming. The Gobi desert extends from the foot of the Pamirs, 77° east, to the Great Khingan (Da Hinggan) Mountains, 116°-118° east. Central Asia has the following geographic extremes:
- The world's northernmost desert (sand dunes), at Buurug Deliin Els, Mongolia, 50°18' north.
- The Northern Hemisphere's southernmost permafrost, at Erdenetsogt sum, Mongolia, 46°17' north.
- The world's shortest distance between desert and permafrost: 770 km (440 mi). A majority of the people earn a living by herding livestock. Industrial activity centers in the region's cities. Major rivers of the region include the Amu Darya, the Syr Darya and the Hari Rud. Major bodies of water include the Aral Sea and Lake Balkhash, both of which are part of the huge west/central Asian endorheic basin that also includes the Caspian Sea. Both of these bodies of water have shrunk significantly in recent decades due to diversion of water from rivers that feed them for irrigation and industrial purposes. Water is an extremely valuable resource in arid Central Asia, and can lead to rather significant international disputes. Caspian Sea in the northeast. The arid climates of the Ferghana Valley, Takla Makan and Gobi deserts are also prominently visible.]]

Climate

Since Central Asia is not buffered by a large body of water, temperature fluctuations are more severe. According to the Köppen climate classification system, Central Asia is part of the Palearctic ecozone. The largest biome in Central Asia is the Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome. Central Asia also contains the Montane grasslands and shrublands, Deserts and xeric shrublands and Temperate coniferous forests biomes.

History

:Main article:History of Central Asia The history of Central Asia is defined by the area's climate and geography. The aridness of the region made agriculture difficult and its distance from the sea cut it off from much trade. Thus few major cities developed in the region, instead the area was for millennia dominated by the nomadic horse peoples of the steppe. Relations between the steppe nomads and the settled people in and around Central Asia were long marked by conflict. The nomadic lifestyle was well suited to warfare and the steppe horse riders became some of the most militarily potent peoples in the world, only limited by their lack of internal unity. Periodically great leaders or changing conditions would organize several tribes into to one force, and create an almost unstoppable power. These included the Hun invasion of Europe, the Wu Hu attacks on China and most notably the Mongol conquest of much of Eurasia. The dominance of the nomads ended in the sixteenth century, as firearms allowed settled peoples to gain control of the region. Russia, China, and other powers expanded into the region and had captured the bulk of Central Asia by the end of the nineteenth century. After the Russian Revolution the Central Asian regions were incorporated into the Soviet Union. Mongolia remained independent but became a Soviet satellite state. The Soviet areas of Central Asia saw much industrialization and construction of infrastructure, but also the suppression of local cultures, hundreds of thousands of deaths from failed collectivization programs, and a lasting legacy of ethnic tensions and environmental problems. With the collapse of the Soviet Union five countries gained independence. In all the new states former Communist Party officials retained power as local strongmen. In no state is repression as great as it was in Soviet times, but none of the new republics could be considered functional democracies. Other parts of Central Asia remain part of China or Russia.

Geostrategy

:Main article: Geostrategy in Central Asia Central Asia has long been a strategic location merely because of its proximity to several great powers on the Eurasian landmass. The region itself never held a dominant stationary population, nor was able to make use of natural resources. Thus it has rarely throughout history become the seat of power for an empire or influential state. Much like Poland throughout European history, Central Asia has been divided, redivided, conquered out of existence, and fragmented time and time again. Central Asia has served more as the battleground for outside powers, than as a power in its own right. Central Asia had both the advantage and disadvantage of a central location between four historical seats of power. From its central location, it has access to trade routes, or lines of attack, to all the regional powers. On the other hand, it has been continuously vulnerable to attack from all sides throughout its history, resulting in political fragmentation or outright power vacuum, as it is successively dominated.
- To the North, the steppe allowed for rapid mobility, first for nomadic horseback warriors like the Huns and Mongols, and later for Russian traders, eventually supported by railroads. As the Russian empire expanded to the East, it would also push down into Central Asia towards the sea, in a search for warm water ports. The Soviet bloc would reinforce dominance from the North, and attempt to project power as far south as Afghanistan.
- To the East, the demographic and cultural weight of Chinese empires continually pushed outward into Central Asia. The Mongol Yuan dynasty would conquer parts of East Turkestan and Tibet, and the later Manchu dynasty would reconquer those areas several centuries later. As part of the Sino-Soviet bloc, China would swallow Tibet. However, with the Sino-Soviet split, China would project power into Central Asia, most notably in the case of Afghanistan, to counter Russian dominance of the region.
- To the Southeast, the demographic and cultural influence of India was felt in Central Asia, notably in Tibet, the Hindu Kush, and slightly beyond. Several historical Indian dynasties, especially those seated along the indus river would expand into Central Asia. India's ability to project power into Central Asia has been limited due to the mountain ranges in Pakistan, and the cultural differences between Hindu India, and what would become a mostly Muslim Central Asia.
- To the Southwest, Middle Eastern powers have expanded into the Southern areas of Central Asia (usually, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan). Several Persian empires would conquer and reconquer parts of Central Asia; Alexander the Great's hellenic empire would extend into Central Asia; two Arab Islamic empires would exert substantial influence throughout the region; and the modern state of Iran has projected influence throughout the region as well. In the post-Cold War era, Central Asia is an ethnic cauldron, prone to instability and conflicts, without a sense of national identity, but rather a mess of historical cultural influences, tribal and clan loyalties, and religious fervor. Projecting influence into the area is no longer just Russia, but also Turkey, Iran, China, Pakistan, India and the United States:
- Russia continues to dominate political decision-making throughout the Caucasus, and former SSRs, although as these countries shed their post-Soviet authoritarian systems, Russia's influence is slowly waning.
- Turkey has some influence because of the ethnic and linguistic ties with the Turkic peoples of Central Asia, as well as serving as an oil pipeline route to the Mediterranean.
- Iran, the seat of historical empires which controlled parts of Central Asia, has historical and cultural links to the region, as is vying to construct an oil pipeline from the Caspian Sea to the Persian Gulf.
- China, already controlling Xinjiang and Tibet, projects significant power in the region, especially in energy/oil politics.
- Pakistan, a large but unstable nuclear-armed state, helped to sustain Taliban rule in Afghanistan, and is capable of exercising some influence. For some Central Asian nations, the shortest route to the ocean lies through Pakistan. Pakistan seeks Natural Gas from Central Asia, and supports the development of pipelines from its countries.
- India, as a nuclear-armed rising power, exercises some influence in the region, especially in Tibet with which it has cultural affinities. India is also perceived as a potential counterweight to China's regional power.
- And the United States with its military involvement in the region, and oil diplomacy, is also significantly involved in the region's politics.

Oil politics

See: Oil geostrategy, Pipelines, Caspian Sea, Petroleum politics

War on Terror

In the context of the United States' War on Terror, Central Asia has once again become the center of geostrategic calculations. Pakistan's status has been upgraded by the U.S.-government to a "major non-NATO ally" because of its central role in serving as a staging point for the invasion of Afghanistan, providing intelligence on Al-Qaeda operations in the region, and leading the hunt on Osama bin Laden, believed to still be in the region. Afghanistan, which had served as a haven and source of support for Al-Qaeda, under the protection of Mullah Omar and the Taliban, was the target of a U.S. invasion in 2001, and ongoing reconstruction and drug-eradication efforts. U.S. military bases have also been established in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, causing both Russia and the People's Republic of China to voice their concern over a permanent U.S. military presence in the region. It is argued that the PRC and Russia, as well as several of the former SSRs, have taken advantage of the War on Terror to increase oppression of separatist ethnic minorities. China has taken a harder line against the Uighur separatists of Xinjiang, while Russia has pursued the second war in Chechnya with greater intensity. Washington, which considers Russia and China as strategic partners in the War on Terror, has largely turned a blind eye to these actions. The ethnically diverse former SSRs, especially Uzbekistan have reclassified ethnic separatist attacks as terrorist attacks and pursued more oppressive policies.

Culture

Religions

Islam is the religion most common in the former Soviet Central Asian Republics, Afghanistan, Xinjiang and the peripheral western regions. Most Central Asian Muslims are Sunni, although Shia comprise the great majority in Azerbaijan, and in Afghanistan and Pakistan there are sizable Shia minorities. Tibetan Buddhism is most common in Tibet, Mongolia, and the southern Russian regions of Siberia, where Shamanism is also popular. Increasing Han Chinese migration westward since the establishment of the PRC has brought Confucianism and other beliefs into the region. Nestorianism was the form of Christianity most practiced in the region in previous centuries, but now the largest denomination is the Russian Orthodox Church, with many members in Kazakhstan. The Bukharan Jews were once a sizable community in Uzbekistan, but nearly all have emigrated in recent years.

Arts

Bukharan Jews, Field Museum, Chicago, Illinois.]] At the crossroads of Asia, shamanist practices live alongside Buddhism. Thus Yama, Lord of Death, was revered in Tibet as a spiritual guardian and judge. Mongolian Buddhism in particular influenced Tibetan Buddhism. The Qianlong Emperor of China in the 18th century was Tibetan Buddhist, and would sometimes travel from Beijing to other cities for personal religious worship. Note the human skulls and severed heads that festoon Yama's crown and necklace, which give some concept of the size that Yama was expected to be when one faced him at one's death. This particular Dharmapala is painted wood, four feet high in total. Central Asia also has an indigenous and ancient form of rap which is over 1000 years old. It is principally practiced in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan by akyns, lyrical improvisationists. They will engage in lyrical battles, the aitysh or the alym sabak. The tradition arose out of early bardic oral historians. They are usually accompanied by a stringed instrument—in Kyrgyzstan, a three-stringed komuz and in Kazakstan a similar two-stringed instrument. Some also learn to sing the Manas, Kyrgyzstan's epic poem (those who learn the Manas exclusively, without engaging in rap, are called manaschis). During Soviet rule, akyn rap was co-opted by the authorities and subsequently declined in popularity. With the fall of the Soviet Union it has enjoyed a resurgence, although aykns still do use their art to campaign for political candidates. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A10646-2005Mar5.html]

Demographics

By the most inclusive definition, more than 80 million people live in Central Asia, about 2% of Asia's total population. Of the regions of Asia, only North Asia has fewer people. It has a population density of 9 people per km², vastly less than the 80.5 people per km² of the continent as a whole.

Languages

The languages of the majority of the inhabitants of the former Soviet Central Asian Republics come from the Turkic language group. Turkmen, closely related to Turkish (they are both members of the Oghuz group of Turkic), is mainly spoken in Turkmenistan and into Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey. Kazakh, Kyrgyz and Tatar are related languages of the Kypchak group of Turkic languages, and are spoken throughout Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, and into Afghanistan, Xinjiang and Qinghai. Uzbek and Uighur are spoken in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Xinjiang. Russian, as well as being spoken by the ethnic Russians of Central Asia, is a lingua franca throughout the former Soviet Central Asian Republics. Chinese has an equally dominant presence in Inner Mongolia, Qinghai and Xinjiang. The Turkic languages belong to the much larger Altaic language family, which includes Mongolian. Mongolian is spoken throughout the region of Mongolia and into Qinghai and Xinjiang. Iranian languages were once spoken throughout Central Asia, but the once prominent Sogdian, Bactrian and Scythian languages are now extinct. However, the Persian language is still spoken in the region, locally known as Dari or Tajik. Pashto is spoken in Afghanistan and western Pakistan. The Tibetan language is spoken by around six million people across the Tibetan Plateau and into Qinghai.

References

- Dani, A.H. and V.M. Masson eds. UNESCO History of Civilizations of Central Asia. Paris: UNESCO, 1992-
- Mandelbaum, Michael. ed. Central Asia and the World: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkmenistan New York: Council on Foreign Relations Press, 1994.
- Olcott, Martha Brill. Central Asia's New States: Independence, Foreign policy, and Regional security. Washington, D.C.: United States Institute of Peace Press, 1996.
- Soucek, Svatopluk. A History of Inner Asia. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.

External links

- [http://www.jamestown.org/edm/ Eurasia Daily Monitor] — political, strategic, and economic news from Central Asia.
- [http://eurasianet.org/ EurasiaNet] — information and analysis about political, economic, environmental and social developments in Central Asia.
- [http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~casww/index.html/ Central Eurasian Studies World Wide]
- [http://www.getcited.org/mbrx/PT/2/MBR/10819625 Publications on the history of Central Asia Prior to 1917]
- [http://www.ucentralasia.org/ University of Central Asia]

Classical antiquity

:This article describes the ancient classical period. For the classical period in music (second half of the 18th century), see classical music era. Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, which begins roughly with the earliest recorded Greek poetry of Homer (7th century BC), and continues through the rise of Christianity and the fall of the Western Roman Empire (5th century AD), to end in the dissolution of Classical culture with the close of Late Antiquity. Such a wide sampling of history and territory covers many rather disparate cultures and periods. "Classical antiquity" typically refers to an idealized vision of later people, of what was, in Edgar Allan Poe's words, "the glory that was Greece, the grandeur that was Rome!" In the 18th and 19th centuries reverence for classical antiquity was much greater in Western Europe and the United States than it is today. Respect for the "ancients" of Greece and Rome affected politics, philosophy, sculpture, literature, theatre, education, and even architecture and sexuality. In politics, the presence of a Roman Emperor was felt to be desirable long after the empire fell. This tendency reached its peak when Charlemagne was crowned "Roman Emperor" in the year 800, an act which led to the formation of the Holy Roman Empire. The notion that an emperor is a monarch who outranks a mere king dates from this period. In this political ideal, there would always be a Roman Empire, a state whose jurisdiction extended to the entire civilised world. Epic poetry in Latin continued to be written and circulated well into the nineteenth century. John Milton and even Arthur Rimbaud got their first poetic educations in Latin. Genres like epic poetry, pastoral verse, and the endless use of characters and themes from Greek mythology left a deep mark on Western literature. In architecture, there have been several Greek Revivals, which seem more inspired in retrospect by Roman architecture than Greek. Still, one needs only to look at Washington, DC to see a city filled with large marble buildings with façades made out to look like Roman temples, with columns constructed in the classical orders of architecture. In philosophy, the efforts of St Thomas Aquinas were derived largely from the thought of Aristotle, despite the intervening change in religion from paganism to Christianity. Greek and Roman authorities such as Hippocrates and Galen formed the foundation of the practice of medicine even longer than Greek thought prevailed in philosophy. In the French theatre, tragedians such as Molière and Racine wrote plays on mythological or classical historical subjects and subjected them to the strict rules of the classical unities derived from Aristotle's Poetics. The desire to dance like a latter-day vision of how the ancient Greeks did it moved Isadora Duncan to create her brand of ballet. The Renaissance discovery of Classical Antiquity is a book by Roberto Weiss on how the renaissance was partly caused by the rediscovery of classic antiquity. "Classical antiquity," then, is the contemporary vision of Greek and Roman culture by their admirers from the more recent past. It remains a vision that many people in the twenty-first century continue to find compelling.

Subtopics

Geographical:
- Ancient Greece
- Hellenistic Greece
- Ancient Rome
- Roman Britain
- Roman Iberia
- Ancient Macedonia
- Ancient Troy
- Gaul
- Germania
- Ancient history of Cyprus
- Carthage
- Roman Iron Age, for the Roman period in Scandinavia and Northern Germany
- The Balkans in classical antiquity
- Late Antiquity Topical:
- Classical architecture
- Classical orders
- Classical education

Pamir Mountains

Located in Central Asia, the Pamir Mountains are formed by the junction of the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, and Hindu Kush ranges. They are among the world’s highest mountains. They are also known by the Chinese name of Congling. The Pamir region is centered in the Tajikistani region of Gorno-Badakhshan. Parts of the Pamir also lie in the countries of Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. South of Gorno-Badakhshan, the Wakhan Corridor runs through the Pamir region, which also includes the northern extremes of the North-West Frontier Province and the northern extremes of the Northern Areas of Pakistan.

Geography

Its two highest mountains are Ismail Samani Peak (known from 1932–1962 as Stalin Peak, and from 1962–1998 as Communism Peak), 24,590 ft (7,495 m); and Lenin Peak, 23,508 ft (7,165 m). There are many glaciers in the Pamir Mountains, including the 144-mile-long (231 km) Fortambek glacier, the longest in the former USSR.

Climate

Covered in snow throughout the year, the Pamirs have long and bitterly cold winters, and short, cool summers. Annual precipitation is about 5 inches (130 mm), which supports grasslands but few trees.

Economy

Coal is mined in the west, though sheep herding in upper meadowlands are the primary source of income for the area.

Discoveries

In the early 1980s, a deposit of gemstone-quality clinohumite was discovered in the Pamir Mountains. It was the only such deposit known until the discovery of gem-quality material in the Taymyr region of Siberia in 2000.

Transportation

At the southeastern edge of the Pamir region, in China, the highest international highway in the world, the Karakoram Highway, connects Pakistan to China. The Pamir Highway, the world’s second highest, runs from Afghanistan to Kyrgyzstan through Tajikistan’s Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region and is the isolated region’s main supply route.

External links

- [http://www.pamirs.org/ Information and photos] Category:Mountain ranges of Asia Category:Geography of Central Asia Category:Mountains of Tajikistan Category:Mountains of Kyrgyzstan Category:Mountains of Afghanistan Category:Mountains of Pakistan ---- There was also a sailing ship named Pamir. ja:パミール高原

Hindu Kush

The Hindu Kush, Hindū Kūsh, Hindoo Koosh or Hindukush (هندوکش in Persian) is a mountain range in Afghanistan as well as in Balawaristan (Northern Areas of Pakistan). It is the westernmost extension of the Pamir Mountains, the Karakoram Range, and the Himalaya.

Nomenclature

The name Hindu Kush is usually applied to the whole of the range separating the basins of the Kabul and Helmand Rivers from that of the Amu Darya (or ancient Oxus), or, more specifically, to that part of the range to the northwest of Kabul which was called the (Indian) Caucasus by the historians with Alexander. It was also referred to by the Greeks as the "Paropamisos". The origin of the term "Hindu Kush" (and whether it translates as "Indian Killer") is a point of contention. The earliest known use of this name was by the famous Arab traveller, Ibn Battūta c. 1334, who wrote: "Another reason for our halt was fear of the snow, for on the road there is a mountain called Hindūkūsh, which means "Slayer of Indians," because the slave boys and girls who are brought from India die there in large numbers as a result of the extreme cold and the quantity of snow." However, this interpretation is usually considered to be only a "folk etymology." Numerous possibilities for its origin have been put forward, including:
- that the name is a corruption of "Caucasus Indicus."
- In modern Persian, the word "Kush" is derived from the verb Kushtan - to defeat, kill, or subdue. This could be interpreted as a memorial to the Indian captives who perished in the mountains while being transported to Central Asian slave markets.
- that the name refers to the last great 'killer' mountains to cross when moving between the Afghan plateau and the Indian subcontinent, named after the toll it took on anyone crossing them;
- that the name is a corruption of Hindu Koh, from the (modern) Persian word Kuh, meaning mountain. Rennell, writing in 1793, refers to the range as the "Hindoo-Kho or Hindoo-Kush";
- that the name means Mountains of India or Mountains of the Indus in some of the Iranian languages that are still spoken in the region; that furthermore, many peaks, mountains, and related places in the region have "Kosh" or "Kush" in their names.
- that the name is a posited Avestan appellation meaning "water mountains." It should be noted that the word Hindu originally referred to any inhabitant of the Indian subcontinent, or Hind, not followers of the religion as it does now. The mountain peaks in the eastern part of Afghanistan reach more than 7,000 metres. The highest, in Pakistan, is Tirich Mir at 7,705 m (cf. Mount Everest in Nepal which stands 8,850 m high). The Pamir mountains, which Afghans refer to as the "Roof of the World", extend into Tajikistan, China and Kashmir.

Mountains

The mountains of the Hindu Kush system diminish in height as they stretch westward: toward the middle, near Kabul, they extend from 4,500 to 6,000 meters; in the west, they attain heights of 3,500 to 4,000 meters. The average altitude of the Hindu Kush is 4,500 meters. The Hindu Kush system stretches about 966 kilometers laterally, and its median north-south measurement is about 240 kilometers. Only about 600 kilometers of the Hindu Kush system is called the Hindu Kush mountains. The rest of the system consists of numerous smaller mountain ranges including the Koh-e Baba, Salang, Koh-e Paghman, Spin Ghar (also called the eastern Safid Koh), Suleiman Range, Siah Koh, Koh-e Khwaja Mohammad and Selseleh-e Band-e Turkestan. The western Safid Koh, the Siah Band and Doshakh are commonly referred to as the Paropamisus by western scholars. Rivers that flow from the mountain system include the Helmand River, the Hari Rud and the Kabul River. Numerous high passes ("kotal") transect the mountains, forming a strategically important network for the transit of caravans. The most important mountain pass is the Kotal-e Salang (3,878 m); it links Kabul and points south to northern Afghanistan. The completion of a tunnel within this pass in 1964 reduced travel time between Kabul and the north to a few hours. Previously access to the north through the Kotal-e Shibar (3,260 m) took three days. The Salang tunnel at 3,363 m and the extensive network of galleries on the approach roads were constructed with Soviet financial and technological assistance and involved drilling 1.7 miles through the heart of the Hindu Kush. Before the Salang road was constructed, the most famous passes in the Western historical perceptions of Afghanistan were those leading to the Indian subcontinent. They include the Khyber Pass (1,027 m), in Pakistan, and the Kotal-e Lataband (2,499 m) east of Kabul, which was superseded in 1960 by a road constructed within the Kabul River's most spectacular gorge, the Tang-e Gharu. This remarkable engineering feat reduced travel time between Kabul and the Pakistan border from two days to a few hours. The roads through the Salang and Tang-e Gharu passes played critical strategic roles during the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan and were used extensively by heavy military vehicles. Consequently, these roads are in very bad repair. Many bombed out bridges have been repaired, but numbers of the larger structures remain broken. Periodic closures due to conflicts in the area seriously affect the economy and well-being of many regions, for these are major routes carrying commercial trade, emergency relief and reconstruction assistance supplies destined for all parts of the country. There are a number of other important passes in Afghanistan. The Wakhjir (4,923 m), proceeds from the Wakhan Corridor into Xinjiang, China, and into Kashmir. Passes which join Afghanistan to Chitral, Pakistan, include the Baroghil (3,798 m) and the Kachin (5,639 m), which also cross from the Wakhan. Important passes located farther west are the Shotorgardan (3,720 m), linking Logar and Paktiya provinces; the Bazarak (2,713 m), leading into Mazar-e Sharif; the Khawak (3,550 m) in the Panjsher Valley, and the Anjuman (3,858 m) at the head of the Panjsher Valley giving entrance to the north. The Hajigak (2,713 m) and Unai (3,350 m) lead into the eastern Hazarajat and Bamiyan Valley. The passes of the Paropamisus in the west are relatively low, averaging around 600 meters; the most well-known of these is the Sabzak between the Herat and Badghis provinces, which links the western and northwestern parts of Afghanistan. These mountainous areas are mostly barren, or at the most sparsely sprinkled with trees and stunted bushes. Very ancient mines producing lapis lazuli are found in Kowkcheh Valley, while gem-grade emeralds are found north of Kabul in the valley of the Panjsher River and some of its tributaries. The famous 'balas rubies' or spinels, were mined until the 19th century in the valley of the Ab-e Panj or Upper Amu Darya River, considered to be the meeting place between the Hindu Kush and the Pamir ranges. Unfortunately, these mines appear to be now exhausted. The Al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden is suspected to be hiding at present (2005) in the Hindu Kush area.

References

- Frederic Drew. 1877. “The Northern Barrier of India: a popular account of the Jammoo and Kashmir Territories with Illustrations.” Frederic Drew. 1st edition: Edward Stanford, London. Reprint: Light & Life Publishers, Jammu. 1971.
- Gibb, H.A.R., 1929. Ibn Battūta: Travels in Asia and Africa, 1325-1354. Translated and selected by H.A.R. Gibb. Reprint: Asian Educational Services, New Delhi and Madras, 1992.
- T. E. Gordon, 1876. The Roof of the World: Being the Narrative of a Journey over the high plateau of Tibet to the Russian Frontier and the Oxus sources on Pamir. Edinburgh. Edmonston and Douglas. Reprint: Ch’eng Wen Publishing Company. Tapei. 1971.
- Gottlieb Wilhelm Leitner, 1890. Dardistan in 1866, 1886 and 1893: Being An Account of the History, Religions, Customs, Legends, Fables and Songs of Gilgit, Chilas, Kandia (Gabrial) Yasin, Chitral, Hunza, Nagyr and other parts of the Hindukush, as also a supplement to the second edition of The Hunza and Nagyr Handbook. And An Epitome of Part III of the author's “The Languages and Races of Dardistan. First Reprint 1978. Manjusri Publishing House, New Delhi.
- Yule, Henry and Burnell, A. C. 1886. Hobson-Jobson: The Anglo-Indian Dictionary. 1996 reprint by Wordsworth Editions Ltd. ISBN 1-8536-363-X
- - [http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/aftoc.html Afghanistan]

External links

- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/1491179.stm Pakistan's Northern Areas dilemma]
- [http://www.northernareas.org.pk Northern Areas Development Gateway] Category:Mountain ranges of Asia Category:Mountains of Afghanistan ja:ヒンドゥークシュ山脈

Afghanistan

Afghanistan(Pashtu/Dari-Persian: افغانستان, Afğānistān) is a country in Asia. It is in Central Asia, fringing upon South Asia and is sometimes allocated to one of these regions. It is also often considered part of the Middle East, due to its location on the Iranian plateau. It is bordered by Iran in the west, Pakistan in the south and east, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan in the north, and China in the easternmost part of the country. A part of the disputed Kashmir area claimed by India and Pakistan borders a small portion of the country. It has a population of 29 million people, and is one of the poorest countries in the world. Between the fall of the Taliban after the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan and the 2003 Loya jirga, Afghanistan was referred to by the Government of the United States as the Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan. Under its new constitution the country is now officially named the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.

Origin and history of the name

The region currently called Afghanistan has gone through a few name changes in its long history of 5000 years or so. One of the first ancient names, according to historians and scholars, was Ariana - the Greek pronunciation of the ancient Aryanam Vaeja or the Sanskrit "Aryavarta", Land of the Aryans. Today this Old-Persian, and Avestan expression is preserved in the name Iran and it is noted in the name of the Afghan national airline, Ariana Airlines, numerous Afghan owned companies throughout the world, Afghan sports teams, and a popular name for Afghan children, Aryan or Aryana. Many centuries later, Afghanistan evolved into part of Greater Khorasan, and hence was recognized with the name Khorasan (along with regions centered around Merv and Neishabur), which in Pahlavi means "The Eastern Land" (خاور زمین in Persian). (Dehkhoda, p8457) The current name of Afghanistan derives from the alternative name for the Pashtuns: Afghan [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_country_name_etymologies], being the founders of modern Afghanistan. There are a number of scholars who derive the tribal name Afghan from a people known in antiquity as Ashvakan (q.v.), in turn derived from ashva, "horse" (in reference to their equestrian nature). There are, however, some scholars that link the name "Afghan" to the Uzbeki version of the Turkish language (spoken in Northern Afghanistan and Uzbekistan), meaning "original". At any rate, given the fact that the Central Asians introduced the horse to the surrounding regions, including Afghanistan, there may be some validity to the claim. The remainder of the name originates from the Persian word stān (country or land). The English word Afghanland that appeared in various treaties between Pashtuns and the United Kingdom was adopted by the Afghans and became Afghanistan.

History

Main article: History of Afghanistan Afghanistan, often called the crossroads of Central Asia, has had a very turbulent history. Through the ages, the region today known as Afghanistan has been on the edge of a number of major empires, including the Persian Empire, the Mauryan Empire, the Kushan Empire, the Hindu Shahi kingdom, the British Empire and the Soviet Union, as well as the empires of Genghis Khan and Alexander the Great. The Afghanistan nation-state as it is known today came into existence in 1746 under the Durrani Empire, but control was ceded to Britain until King Amanullah acceded to the throne in 1919 (see "The Great Game"). During the period of British intervention in Afghanistan, ethnic Pashtun territories were divided by the Durand Line, and would lead to strained relations between Afghanistan and British India, and later the new state of Pakistan, over what came to be known as the Pashtunistan debate. The historical rulers of Afghanistan belonged to the Abdali tribe of the ethnic Afghans, whose name was changed to Durrani upon the accession of Ahmad Shah. They belonged to the Saddozay segment of the Popalzay clan, or to the Mohammadzay segment of the Barakzay clan, of the ethnic Afghans. The Mohammadzay furnished the Saddozay kings frequently with top counsellors, who served occasionally as regents, identified with the epithet Mohammadzay. Since 1900, eleven rulers have been unseated through undemocratic means: in 1919 (assassination), 1929 (abdication), 1929 (execution), 1933 (assassination), 1973 (deposition), 1978 (execution), 1979 (execution), 1979 (execution), 1987 (removal), 1992 (overthrow), 1996 (overthrow) and 2001 (overthrow). The longest period of stability in Afghanistan was between 1933 and 1973, when the country was under the rule of King Zahir Shah. However, in 1973, Zahir's brother-in-law, Sardar Mohammed Daoud launched a bloodless coup. Daoud and his entire family were murdered in 1978 when the communist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan launched a coup and took over the government. Opposition against, and conflict within, the series of leftist governments that followed, was considerable. In August 1978 the American government commenced funding anti-government mujahideen forces; the Soviet Union invaded on December 24, 1979. Faced with mounting international pressure and losses of approximately 15,000 Soviet soldiers as a result of mujahideen opposition trained by the United States, Pakistan, and other foreign governments, the Soviets withdrew ten years later, in 1989. For more details, see Soviet war in Afghanistan. The Soviet withdrawal was seen as a clear Russian defeat in the West, which many claim to have been the sole objective behind their backing of the mujahideen - especially the United States wanting to "revenge" Russian damages caused during and after the Vietnam war. Having concluded a 'victory' over the USSR, the West stopped paying attention to the issue of Afghanistan. As the vast majority of the elite and intellectuals had either been systematically eliminated by the communists or escaped to take refuge abroad, a dangerous leadership vacuum came to existence. Fighting continued among the various mujahidin factions, eventually giving rise to a state of warlordism. The chaos and corruption involved in warlordism in turn spawned the rise of the Taliban in reaction. The most serious of this fighting occurred in 1994, when 10,000 people were killed from factions fighting in the Kabul area. Using this leadership vacuum, a few regional bedfellows like the Pakistani secret intelligence service (ISI), the regional mafia and a few Arab extremist groups that were looking for a safe operational hub joined forces and created the Taliban movement (Ahmad Rashid, 2000)[http://www.ahmedrashid.com/]. Backed by Pakistan and her strategic allies, the Taliban developed as a politico-religious force, and eventually seized power in 1996. The Taliban were able to capture 90% of the country, aside from Afghan Northern Alliance strongholds primarily in the northeast. The Taliban sought to impose a strict interpretation of Islamic Sharia law. The Taliban gave safe haven and assistance to individuals and organizations that engaged in terrorism, most notably Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda. The United States and allied military action in support of the opposition following the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks forced the group's downfall. In late 2001, major leaders from the Afghan opposition groups and diaspora met in Bonn, and agreed on a plan for the formulation of a new government structure that resulted in the inauguration of Hamid Karzai as Chairman of the Afghan Interim Authority (AIA) on December 2001. After a nationwide Loya Jirga in 2002, Karzai was elected President. On March 3 and March 25 2002, a series of earthquakes struck Afghanistan, with a loss of thousands of homes and over 1800 lives. Over 4000 more people were injured. The earthquakes occurred at Samangan Province (March 3) and Baghlan Province (March 25). The latter was the worse of the two, and caused most of the casualties. International authorities assisted the Afghan government in dealing with the situation. As the country continues to get its feet back on the ground, as of late 2005, it was struggling against extreme poverty, severe warlordism, a battered infrastructure, a huge number of land mines and other unexploded ordinance, as well as a sizeable illegal poppy and heroin trade. It was also subject to occasionally violent political jockeying as the nation's first elections were successfully held, and occasional acts of violence from a few remaining al-Qaeda and Taliban elements and the on-going military operations to root them out. See also: Afghanistan timeline, Invasions of Afghanistan

Politics

Main article: Politics of Afghanistan Afghanistan is currently led by president Hamid Karzai, who was elected in October of 2004. Before the election, Karzai led the country after having been hand-picked by the administration of United States' President Bush to head an interim government, after the fall of the Taliban. His current cabinet includes members of the Afghan Northern Alliance, and a mix from other regional and ethnic groups formed from the transitional government by the Loya jirga (grand council). Former monarch Mohammed Zahir Shah returned to the country, but was not reinstated as king, and only exercises limited ceremonial powers. Under the Bonn Agreement the Afghan Constitution Commission was established to consult with the public and formulate a draft constitution. The meeting of a constitutional loya jirga was held in December 2003, when a new constitution was adopted creating a presidential form of government with a bicameral legislature. Troops and intelligence agencies from the United States and a number of other countries are present, some to keep the peace, others assigned to hunt for remnants of the Taliban and al Qaeda. A United Nations peacekeeping force called the International Security Assistance Force has been operating in Kabul since December 2001. NATO took control of this Force on August 11, 2003. Some of the country remains under the control of warlords. [http://www.newstatesman.com/200502070006] On March 27, 2003, Afghan deputy defense minister and powerful warlord General Abdul Rashid Dostum created an office for the North Zone of Afghanistan and appointed officials to it, defying then-interim president Hamid Karzai's orders that there be no zones in Afghanistan. Eurocorps took over the responsibility for the NATO-led ISAF in Kabul August 9, 2004. National elections were held on October 9, 2004. Over 10 million Afghans were registered to vote. Most of the 17 candidates opposing Karzai boycotted the election, charging fraud; [http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1354517,00.html] an independent commission found evidence of fraud, but ruled that it did not affect the outcome of the poll. Karzai won 55.4% of the vote. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3977677.stm] He was inaugurated as president on December 7. It was the country's first national election since 1969, when parliamentary elections were last held. On September 18, 2005, parliamentary elections were held. see also: List of leaders of Afghanistan, List of Afghanistan Governors

Subdivisions

Afghanistan is divided into 34 provinces (velayat) which are further divided into districts. Main article: Provinces of Afghanistan Main article: Districts of Afghanistan The 34 provinces are:

Geography

Districts of Afghanistan Main article: Geography of Afghanistan Afghanistan is a mountainous country, with plains in the north and southwest. The highest point, at 7485 m (24,557 ft) above sea level, is Nowshak. Large parts of the country are dry, and fresh water supplies are limited. Afghanistan has a continental climate, with hot summers and cold winters. The country is frequently subject to earthquakes. The major cities of Afghanistan are its capital Kabul, Herat, Jalalabad, Mazar-e Sharif and Kandahar. See also List of cities in Afghanistan, Places in Afghanistan.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Afghanistan Afghanistan is an extremely poor country, highly dependent on farming and livestock raising, but most people only farm enough food to feed themselves. The economy has suffered greatly from the recent political and military unrest, while severe drought added to the nation's difficulties in 1998-2001. The majority of the population continues to suffer from insufficient food, clothing, housing, medical care, and other problems exacerbated by military operations and political uncertainties. Inflation remains a serious problem. Following the US-led coalition war that led to the defeat of the Taliban in November 2001, many of the country's farmers have resorted to growing cash crops for export, instead of food for the sustenance of their people. A notable example of such a crop is the opium poppy (1,300 km² in 2004 according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime), the cultivation of which has largely increased during the last decade: Afghanistan has become the first illicit opium producer in the world, before Burma (Myanmar), part of the so-called "Golden Triangle). International efforts to rebuild Afghanistan led to the formation of the Afghan Interim Authority (AIA) as a result of the December 2001 Bonn Agreement, and later addressed at the Tokyo Donors Conference for Afghan Reconstruction in January 2002, where $4.5 billion was collected for a trust fund to be administered by the World Bank Group. Priority areas for reconstruction include the construction of education, health, and sanitation facilities, enhancement of administrative capacity, the development of the agricultural sector, and the rebuilding of road, energy, and telecommunication links. Two-thirds of the population live on less than US$2 a day. The infant mortality rate is 166 per 1000 births.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Afghanistan The population of Afghanistan is divided into a large number of ethnic groups. Because a systematic census has not been held in the country recently, exact figures about the size and composition of the various ethnic groups are not available.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/3717092.stm] Therefore most figures are approximations only. According to the CIA World FactBook (updated on 17 May 2005), the ethnic group distribution is as follows: Pashtun 42%, Tajik 27%, Hazara 9%, Uzbek 9%, Aimak 4%, Turkmen 3%, Baloch 2%, other 4%. According to the CIA factbook, the official languages of Afghanistan are Persian (local name: Dari) 50% and Pashtu 35%. Other languages include Turkic languages (primarily Uzbek and Turkmen) 11%, 30 minor languages (primarily Balochi and Pashai) 4%. Also a small number of ethnic minorities, primarily Sikhs and Hindus, speak Punjabi. Bilingualism is common. According to the CIA World Factbook (updated on 17 May 2005), religiously, Afghans are overwhelmingly Muslim (approximately 80% Sunni and 19% Shi'a). There are also Hindu and Sikh minorities. Afghanistan was once home to a many-centuries-old Jewish minority, numbering approximately 5,000 in 1948. Most Jewish families fled the country after the 1979 Soviet invasion, and only one individual remains today, Zablon Simintov. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A39702-2005Jan26.html] With the fall of the Taliban a number of Sikhs have returned to the Ghazni, Nangarhar, Kandahar and Kabul Provinces of Afghanistan.

Constitution

Main article: Constitution of Afghanistan According to the 2004 constitution, Afghanistan is run by a president, who is elected by direct popular vote to a five-year term. The president may only serve two terms. A candidate for president must be at least forty years of age, a Muslim, and a citizen of Afghanistan. The country has two vice-presidents. The president serves as head of state and government, and is commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The president makes appointments for his cabinet, as well as posts in the military, police force, and provincial governerships, with the approval of parliament. The legislative body of Afghanistan is a parliament consisting of two houses: the Wolesi Jirga (House of the People) and the Meshrano Jirga (House of Elders). The Wolesi Jirga consists of up to 250 members elected to five-year terms through direct elections in proportion to the population of each province. At least two women must be elected from each province. In the Meshrano Jirga, one-third of the members are elected by provincial councils for four years, one-third are elected by district councils of each province for three years, and one-third are appointed by the president for five years, of whom half must be women. The judicial system of Afghanistan consists of the Stera Mahkama (Supreme Court), appeals courts, and lower district courts designated by law. The Stera Mahkama is made up of nine judges appointed by the president, with the approval of parliament, to a ten-year term. Judges must be at least forty years of age, not belong to a political party, and have a degree in law or Islamic jurisprudence. The Stera Mahkama can judge the constitutionality of all laws in the country.

Culture

Main article: Culture of Afghanistan Many of the country's historic monuments have been damaged in recent wars. The two famous statues of Buddha in the Bamiyan Province were destroyed by the Taliban, who regarded them as idolatrous. Other famous sites include the cities of Herat, Ghazni and Balkh. The Minaret of Jam, in the Hari Rud valley, is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The people of Afghanistan being renowned horsemen, the sport known as Buzkashi is popular there. Afghan hounds (a type of running dogs), originated in Afghanistan. Although literacy levels are very low, classic Persian poetry plays a very important role in Afghan culture. The Persian language is regarded as one of the richest in the world. Poetry has always been one of the major educational pillars in both Iran and Afghanistan, to the level that it has integrated itself into culture. Private poetry competitions known as “musha’era” are quite common even among ordinary people. Almost every home owns one or more poetry collection of some sort, even if it is not read often. The Afghan dialect of the Persian language Dari derives from "Farsi-e Darbari", meaning 'Persian of the royal courts'. It is regarded by scholars as the more original version of the language. Iran, having a larger population, a stronger economy and closer ties to the rest of the world has developed its language further in the course of history. Afghanistan took a more conservative approach mainly due to lack of resources. As a result, Dari has not changed much over the last few centuries. Many of the famous Persian language poets of 10th to 15th centuries stem from what is now known as Afghanistan. They were mostly also scholars in many disciplines like languages, natural sciences, medicine, religion and astronomy. Examples are Mawlvi Balkhi (Rumi), born and educated in the Balkh province in the 13th century and moved to today’s Istanbul, which was then known as the Eastern Rome), Sanaayi Ghaznavi (12th century, native of Ghazni provice), Jami Heravi (15th century, native of Jam-e-Herat in western Afghanistan), Nizam ud-Din Ali Sher Heravi Nava'i, (15th century, Heart province). Also, some of the contemporary Persian language poets and writers, who are relatively well-know in both Iran and Afghanistan includes Ustad Behtab, Khalilullah Khalili [http://www.afghanmagazine.com/arts/khalili/khalili.html], Sufi Ghulam Nabi Ashqari ([http://www.afghanmagazine.com/jan2000/music/kharaabat/], Parwin Pazwak and others. In addition to poets, world-famous science personalities like Avicenna (Ibn Sina Balkhi) came from Afghanistan. Avicenna, who travelled to Isfahan later in life to establsh a medical school there, is known by some scholars as the "the father of modern medicine". George Sarton called Ibn Sina "the most famous scientist of Islam and one of the most famous of all races, places, and times." His most famous works are The Book of Healing and The Canon of Medicine, also known as the Qanun. Avicenna's story even found way to the contemporary English literature through Noah Gordon's The Physician ([ http://www.noahgordonbooks.com/index.html ]), now published in many languages. Before the Taliban gained power, the city of Kabul was home to many musicians who were masters of both traditional and modern Afghan music, especially during the Nauroz-celebration. Kabul in the middle part of the 20th century has been likened to Vienna during the 18th and 19th centuries. See also: Radio Kabul, music of Afghanistan, Islam in Afghanistan

Education

Main article: Education in Afghanistan In the spring of 2003, it was estimated that 30% of Afghanistan's 7,000 schools had been seriously damaged during more than two decades of Soviet occupation and civil war. Only half of the schools were reported to have clean water, while fewer than an estimated 40% had adequate sanitation. Education for boys was not a priority during the Taliban regime, and girls were banished from schools outright. In regards to the poverty and violence of their surroundings, a study in 2002 by the Save the Children aid group said Afghan children were resilient and courageous. The study credited the strong institutions of family and community. Up to four million Afghan children, possibly the largest number ever, are believed to have enrolled for class for the school year beginning in March of 2003. Education is available for both girls and boys. Literacy of the entire population is estimated at 36%.

References

- Griffiths, John C. 1981. Afghanistan: A History of Conflict. André Deutsch, London. Updated edition, 2001. Andre Deutsch Ltd, 2002, ISBN 0233050531.
- Levi, Peter. 1972. The Light Garden of the Angel King: Journeys in Afghanistan. Collins, 1972, ISBN 0002110423. Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1973, Indianapolis/New York, ISBN 0672512521.
- Moorcroft, William and Trebeck, George. 1841. Travels in the Himalayan Provinces of Hindustan and the Panjab; in Ladakh and Kashmir, in Peshawar, Kabul, Kunduz, and Bokhara... from 1819 to 1825, Vol. II. Reprint: New Delhi, Sagar Publications, 1971. Oxford University Press, 1979, ISBN 0195771990.
- Toynbee, Arnold J. 1961. Between Oxus and Jumna. Oxford University Press, London. ISBN B0006DBR44.
- Wood, John. 1872. A Journey to the Source of the River Oxus. New Edition, edited by his son, with an essay on the "Geography of the Valley of the Oxus" by Henry Yule. John Murray, London. Gregg Division McGraw-Hill, 1971, ISBN 0576033227.

External links

-
- [http://www.afgha.com Afgha.com - News, Discussions, and more about Afghanistan]
- [http://theafghanblog.blogspot.com/ The Afghan Blog]
- [http://www.afghanistan.sc/ Afghanistan Service Center with daily news]
- [http://www.aims.org.af/ Afghanistan Information Management Service] - provided by joint UN projects
- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/south_asia/country_profiles/1162668.stm BBC News Country Profile - Afghanistan]
- [http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/af.html CIA World Factbook - Afghanistan]
- [http://www.state.gov/p/sa/ci/af/ US State Department - Afghanistan] includes Background Notes, Country Study (1997), Rebuilding, USAID and NATO
- [http://dmoz.org/Regional/Asia/Afghanistan/ Open Directory Project - Afghanistan] directory category
- [http://dir.yahoo.com/regional/countries/afghanistan/ Yahoo! - Afghanistan] directory category
- [http://www.un.org/Depts/Cartographic/map/profile/afghanis.pdf 2002 UN map of Afghanistan] (PDF)
- [http://www.ArianaNet.com/ News Service latest News about Afghanistan, Discussion board]
- [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/world/asia/centralasia/afghanistan/returntoafghanistan/returntoafghanistan.htm Return to Afghanistan] - A series of short films by the Washington Post on the New Afghanistan
- [http://www.mod.uk/rcds/bashir.htm British Royal College for Defense Studies analyses and proposes a war in August 2001]
- [http://www.geopium.org Geopium: Geopolitics of Illicit Drugs in Asia (Afghanistan and Burma)]
- [http://topics.developmentgateway.org/afghanistan Development Gateway's Afghanistan Reconstruction Portal]
- [http://www.afghanan.net/index.php Afghanan Dot Net]
- [http://www.AfghanMania.com Afghanistan Portal]
- [http://www.sabawoon.com Sabawoon Online]
- [http://www.afghan-web.com/index.html Afghanistan Online]
- [http://www.whatisindia.com/issues/afghanis/index.html Afghanistan Portal on The Indian Analyst] Index of News, Analysis, and Opinion from many sources
- [http://www.bh.org.il/Communities/Archive/Afghanistan.asp/ The Jews of Afghanistan]

Video

- Category:Central Asian countries Category:Landlocked countries als:Afghanistan zh-min-nan:Afghanistan ko:아프가니스탄 ms:Afghanistan ja:アフガニスタン simple:Afghanistan th:ประเทศอัฟกานิสถาน

Tajikistan

The Republic of Tajikistan (Тоҗикистон), formerly known as the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic, is a country in Central Asia. It has borders with Afghanistan, China, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan. Tajikistan means the 'Land of the Tajiks'.

History

Main article: History of Tajikistan Humans have been living in the land that is now Tajikistan continuously since 4,000 BC. The land has been under the rule of various empires throughout history, mostly the Persian Empire. Before AD, it was part of the Bactrian Empire. Arabs brought Islam in the 7th century. The Samanid Empire supplanted the Arabs but was eventually superseded by Turkic invaders. The Mongols would later take control of the area, and Tajikistan would become a part of the emirate of Bukhara. In the 19th century, the Russian Empire began to spread into Central Asia during the Great Game, and it took control of Tajikistan. After the overthrow of the Tsar in 1917, Tajik guerillas waged a war against Bolshevik armies in a futile attempt to maintain independence. The Bolsheviks would prevail after a four year war, in which mosques and villages were burned down and the population heavily suppressed. As part of the Soviet Union, Tajikistan was initially grouped with what is now Uzbekistan in the Autonomous SSR of Tajikistan, but in 1929 was made a separate constituent republic. Moscow did not do much to develop the Tajik SSR, and it remained relatively behind other Soviet Republics in living conditions, education and industry. In the 1970s Islamic underground parties began to form, and served to rally Tajiks against the USSR, but real disturbances did not occur until 1990. The following year, the USSR collapsed, and Tajikistan declared its independence. The nation almost immediately fell into a civil war that involved various factions fighting one another, these factions were often distinguished by clan loyalties. Emomali Rahmonov was the first leader of the nation, and continues to rule to this day. However, he has been accused of ethnic cleansing against other ethnicities and groups during the Tajikistan Civil War. In 1997 a ceasefire was reached between Rahmonov and opposition parties (United Tajik Opposition). Peaceful elections were held in 1999, but they were reported by the opposition as unfair, and Rahmonov was re-elected by almost unanimous vote. Russian troops continue to be stationed in southern Tajikistan, in order to guard the border with Afghanistan. Since the September 11, 2001 attacks, American and French troops have also been stationed in the country.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Tajikistan Almost immediately after independence, Tajikistan was plunged into a civil war that saw various factions, allegedly backed by Russia and Iran, fighting one another. All but 25,000 of the more than 400,000 ethnic Russian middle-management middle class fled to Russia. By 1997 the war had cooled down, and a central government began to take form, with peaceful elections in 1999. Tajikistan is officially a republic, and holds elections for the President and Parliament. The latest elections occurred in 2005, and as all previous elections, international observers believe them to have been flawed, arousing many accusations from opposition parties that President Emomali Rahmonov manipulates the election process. In the Parliament, opposition groups have often clashed with the ruling party, but this has not led to great instability.
- [http://www.oneworld.org/ips2/may/tajik.html Account of events from independence leading to the Bishkek agreement of 1997]

Provinces

Main article: Provinces of Tajikistan Tajikistan is divided into regions, or provinces (singular: viloyat, plural: viloyatho) (capitals in parentheses)-
- Khatlon Viloyati Khatlon (Qurghonteppa)
- Sughd Viloyati Sughd (Khujand)
- Karotegin (Kofarnihon) and one autonomous province (viloyati mukhtor)-
- Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAR) Viloyati Mukhtori Kuhistoni Badakhshon (Khorugh). Additionally, the area containing the capital (RRS, Region of Republican Subordination), Dushanbe, has no viloyat-level administrative divisions. note: the administrative center name follows in parentheses

Geography

Dushanbe Main article: Geography of Tajikistan Tajikistan is landlocked, and is the smallest nation in Central Asia by area. It is covered by mountains of the Pamir range, and more than fifty percent of the country is 3,000 meters (approx. 10,000 feet) above sea level. The Amu Darya and Pyanj rivers mark the border with Afghanistan. About 1% of the country's area is covered by lakes:
- Kuli Sarez
- Obanbori Norak
- Qarokul
- Shorkul
- Yashilkul
- Zorkul The northern border is formed by the Trans-Alay Range (Lenin Peak 7174 m, Kyzylart Pass 4280 m). The highest peak is Qullai Ismoili Somoni (7495 m), between Qullai Revolutsiya (6974 m) to the north, Peak Korzhenievski (7105m) and Qatorkuhi Akademiyai Fanho (6785 m) further south, in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region. The southern border of the country is formed by the northern most ridges of the Karakoram Range, with Concord Peak (5469 m), Qullai Karl Marks (6726 m) and Qullai Mayakovskiy (6096 m) along the border to Afghanistan.

Exclaves

There are three Tajik exclaves [http://geosite.jankrogh.com/tajikistan.htm], all of them located in the Fergana valley region where Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan meet. The largest is Vorukh (exclave area between 95 and 130 km², population estimated between 23,000 and 29,000, 95% Tajiks and 5% Kyrgyz, distributed among 17 villages), located 45 km south of Isfara on the right bank of the Karafshin river, in Kyrgyz territory. Another exclave in Kyrgyzstan is a small settlement near the Kyrgyz railway station of Kairagach. The last is the village of Sarvan, which includes a narrow, long strip of land (about 15 km long by 1 km wide) alongside the road from Angren to Kokand; it is surrounded by Uzbek territory. There are no enclaves within Tajikistan.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Tajikistan Tajikistan is the poorest country of the ex-USSR and one of the poorest countries in the world. With foreign revenue precariously dependent upon exports of cotton and aluminium, the economy is highly vulnerable to external shocks. In FY 2000, international assistance remained an essential source of support for rehabilitation programs that reintegrated former civil war combatants into the civilian economy, thus helping keep the peace. International assistance also was necessary to address the second year of severe drought that resulted in a continued shortfall of food production. On August 21st, 2001, the Red Cross announced that a famine was striking Tajikistan, and called for international aid for Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Since 1999 the little Dutch foundation Tajikistan Support Project (TSP) is active in Tajikistan to support health care organisations.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Tajikistan Tajikistan has a population of 7,011,556 (July 2004). The major ethnic group is the Tajik, although there is a sizeable minority of Uzbeks, and a small population of Russians, whose numbers are declining due to emigration. Pamiris of Badakhshan are considered to belong to larger group of Tajiks. Likewise, the official language of Tajikistan is Tajik, while Russian is largely spoken in business and for government purposes. Although the Tajik and Uzbek are now classified as separate ethnic groups, on account of their languages, this is a relatively new phenomenon and originates from the conquest of Central Asia by the Russian Empire in the

Amu Darya

See also

Sea

List of seas, divided by ocean

Pacific Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

Indian Ocean

Arctic Ocean

Southern Ocean

Landlocked seas

Extraterrestrial seas

Science

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Pamir Mountains

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Hindu Kush

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Afghanistan

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