Badakhshān   بدخشان   Province of Afghanistan
38°0′N, 71°0′E
Administration		Provincial government
-	Provincial seat	Fayzabad
-	Governor	Munshi Abdul Majid
Population
-	2006 (estimate)	823,000 (13th of 32)
-	1979 census	497,000
-	2008 population density	19. The Provinces of Afghanistan (locally recognized as wilayats - ولايت are the primary Administrative divisions of Afghanistan. Afghanistan /æfˈgænɪstæn/ officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan ( Pashto: د افغانستان اسلامي جمهوریت, See also Fayzabad District Jowzjan Fayzabad (also spelled Feyzabad, Fazelabad or Faizabad) is the provincial capital and 8 per km²
-	Ethnic groups	Tajik Uzbek Kyrgyz
-	Languages	Persian (Dari)
Geography
-	Total area	44,059 km² (5th of 31)
-	Water area	0 km²
-	Time zone	UTC+4:30
Subdivisions
-	Districts	29
Divisions prior to 2005 realignment
Infrastructure
-	Airports	6
Identifiers
-	ISO 3166-2 code	AF-BDS

Badakhshan (Persian: بدخشان - Badakhshān) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, consisting of 29 districts. Tajik ( - Tādjīk; UniPers: Tâjik; Cyrillic: Тоҷик is a term generally applied to Persian-speaking people of The Uzbeks (Self designation sg O‘zbek, pl O‘zbeklar) are a Turkic people of Central Asia. The Kyrgyz (also spelled Kirgiz, Kirghiz) are a Turkic Ethnic group found primarily in Kyrgyzstan. UTC+430 is used in Afghanistan and in the summer as Time in Iran. The provinces of Afghanistan are divided into districts ( Walaswalai) ISO 3166-2 is the second part of the ISO 3166 standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO The Provinces of Afghanistan (locally recognized as wilayats - ولايت are the primary Administrative divisions of Afghanistan. The provinces of Afghanistan are divided into districts ( Walaswalai) It is located in the north-east of the country, between the Hindu Kush and the Amu Darya. The Hindu Kush is a Mountain range located between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Amu Darya (formerly Oxus River the Greeks (Ptolemeus called it Oxiana palus) is the longest river in Central Asia. It is part of the Badakhshan region. Badakhshan ( Tajik: Бадахшон is a region comprising parts of northeastern Afghanistan and southeastern Tajikistan.

Contents 1 Geography 2 History 3 Economics 4 Capital City 5 Demographics 6 Districts of Badakhshan 7 Notable people from Badakhshan 8 References 9 External links

Geography

Badakshan is primarily bordered by Tajikistan to the north and east. Tajikistan (təˈdʒɪkɨstæn or /təˈdʒiːkɨstæn/ Тоҷикистон tɔʤikɪsˈtɔn or, Persian تاجیکستان‎ taajikestaan officially the Republic of A slim sliver of the province, called the Wakhan Corridor, also extends above northern Pakistan's Chitral and the disputed Northern Areas of Jammu and Kashmir to a border with China. The Wakhan Corridor or Wakhan Salient is a narrow (in some places less than 10 miles wide Corridor in the Wakhan in the Badakhshan province Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and Chitral or Chatrāl (چترال is basically translated into "field" in the native language Khowar. The Northern Areas ( Urdu:,) is officially referred to by the government of Pakistan as the Federally Administered Northern Areas (FANA ( Dogri: जम्मू और कश्मीर Urdu: جموں و کشمیر is the northernmost state of India. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National The province has a total area of 44,059 km², most of which is occupied by the Hindu Kush and Pamir mountain ranges. The Hindu Kush is a Mountain range located between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Pamir Mountains are located in Central Asia and are formed by the junction or Knot of the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, and

Badakhshan was a stopover on the ancient Silk Road trading path, and China has shown great interest in the province after the fall of the Taliban, helping to reconstruct roads and infrastructure in the province, probably with an interest in the province's mineral wealth. The Silk Road, or Silk Routes, are an extensive interconnected network of Trade routes across the Asian continent connecting East South and Western Asia with the The Taliban ( طالبان, also anglicised as Taleban; translation "students" is a Sunni Islamist, predominately

History

Badakhshan's name was given by the Sassanids and derives from the word badaxš (an official Sassanian title). The Sassanid Empire or Sassanian Dynasty or Sassanian Dynasty (ساسانیان) is the name used for the third Iranian dynasty and the second Persian empire The suffix of the name, -ān, means the region belonged to someone with the title badaxš (analogous to Azerbaijan, Isfahan, Tehran, etc). ^[1]

Badakhshan was the only province not occupied by the Taliban during their drive to control the country. The Taliban ( طالبان, also anglicised as Taleban; translation "students" is a Sunni Islamist, predominately Burhanuddin Rabbani, a Badakhshan native, and Ahmad Shah Massoud were the last remnants of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance during the peak of Taliban control in 2000 and 2001, and they used the province as their base of operations. Burhanuddin Rabbani ( - Burhânuddîn Rabbânî) (born 1940 an ethnic Tajik, is a former President of Afghanistan. Ahmad Shah Massoud ( (2 September 1953 &ndash 9 September 2001 was a Tajik Kabul University engineering student turned military leader who played a leading The United Islamic Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan ( UIF, Jabha-yi Muttahid-i Islami-yi Milli bara-yi Nijat-i Afghanistan) also known as the Northern The province was about to fall to the Taliban when the American invasion allowed the Northern Alliance to reclaim control of the country with the aid of American military air power and assistance.

The current Governor of the province is Munshi Abdul Majid. Previously, it was Sayed Amin Tareq.

Economics

Despite massive mineral reserves, Badakhshan is one of the most destitute areas in the world. Opium poppy growing is the only real source of income in the province and Badakhshan has one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the world, due to the complete lack of health infrastructure, inaccessible locations, and bitter winters of the province. The opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, is the type of Poppy from which Opium and many refined opiates such as Morphine, Thebaine

Since ancient times, Badakhshan was the world's only source of lapis lazuli. "Ancient" redirects here For other uses see Ancient_(disambiguation. ^[2] Most recent mining activity has focused on lapis lazuli, with the proceeds from the lapis mines being used to fund Northern Alliance troops, and before that, anti-Soviet Mujahideen fighters. A Mujahid (Arabic ar مجاهد, literally "struggler" is a Muslim involved in a Jihad, id est fighting in a war or Recent geological surveys have indicated the location of other gemstone deposits, in particular rubies and emeralds. A gemstone or gem, also called a precious or semi-precious stone, is a piece of attractive Mineral, which &mdash when cut and polished &mdash A Ruby is a pink to blood-red Gemstone, a variety of the Mineral Corundum ( Aluminium oxide) Emeralds are a variety of the Mineral Beryl (Be3Al2(SiO36 colored Green by trace amounts [1] Exploitation of this mineral wealth could be key to the region's prosperity. [2]

Capital City

Fayzabad, the capital of Badakhshan sits on the Kokcha River and has an approximate population of 15,000. See also Fayzabad District Jowzjan Fayzabad (also spelled Feyzabad, Fazelabad or Faizabad) is the provincial capital and The chief commercial and administrative center of NE Afghanistan and the Pamir region, Fayzabad also has rice and flour mills. Rice is a Cereal foodstuff which forms an important part of the diet of many people worldwide and as such it is a staple food for many Flour is a powder made of Cereal grains It is the key ingredient of Bread, which is a staple food in many countries and therefore the availability In winter the city is sometimes isolated by deep snow. In 1979 it was a focus of Afghan guerrillas attempting to repel the Soviet invasion. The Demographics of Afghanistan are ethnically and linguistically mixed Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc A soviet (сове́т, "council" originally was a workers' local council in late Imperial Russia. Fayzabad was taken by Soviet forces in 1980 and became a major Soviet garrison town.

Demographics

The population of the province is estimated at 823,000 people^[3]. Majority of them are Tajiks. Tajik ( - Tādjīk; UniPers: Tâjik; Cyrillic: Тоҷик is a term generally applied to Persian-speaking people of There is also the Tajik sub-group, the Pamiri people, with small Uzbek and Kyrgyz minorities. Pamiri is the name of an ethnic group that live in Central Asia, primarily in Tajikistan (especially in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province) and in The Kyrgyz (also spelled Kirgiz, Kirghiz) are a Turkic Ethnic group found primarily in Kyrgyzstan. The residents of the province are largely Sunni but a small volume of Ismaili Muslims are also in the area. Sunni Islam is the largest denomination of Islam. Sunni Islam is also referred to as Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamā‘h (Arabic For the Egyptian city see Ismaïlia. The Ismāʿīlī ( Urdu: إسماعیلی Ismāʿīlī, Arabic: الإسماعيليون

Historical population estimates for Badakhshan Province are as follows^[4]:

• 2006: 823,000 (World Gazetteer)
• 2004: 725,700 (Central Statistics Office)
• 2000: 923,144 (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
• 1998: 924,747 (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
• 1997: 663,700 (Central Statistics Office)
• 1991: 615,156 (ProMIS UNIDATA)
• 1990: 554,374 (USAID)
• 1979: 497,798 (Central Statistics Office)

Districts of Badakhshan

District map of Badakhshan Province

Districts of Badakhshan Province

District	Map #	Capital	Population[5]	Area	Notes
Arghanj Khwa	6		12,000		Created in 2005 within Fayzabad District
Argo	6		45,000		Created in 2005 within Fayzabad District
Baharak	7	Baharak	14,000		Sub-divided in 2005
Darayim	6		65,000		Created in 2005 within Fayzabad District
Darwaz	1		21,000		Sub-divided in 2005
Darwazi Bala	1		11,000		Created in 2005 within Darwaz District
Fayzabad	6	Fayzabad	46,000		Sub-divided in 2005
Ishkashim	8	Ishkashim	11,000
Jurm	10		3,000		Sub-divided in 2005
Khash	10		48,000
Khwahan	2	Khwahan	14,000		Sub-divided in 2005
Kishim	9		63,000		Sub-divided in 2005
Kohistan	7		12,000		Created in 2005 within Baharak District
Kuf Ab	2		16,000		Created in 2005 within Khwahan District
Kuran wa Munjan	11	Kuran wa Munjan	8,000
Ragh	4	Ragh	37,000
Shahri Buzurg	5	Shahri Buzurg	42,000
Shighnan	3		24,000
Shiki	6		26,000
Shuhada	7		31,000
Tagab	6		22,000
Tishkan	9		23,000		Created in 2005 from Kishim District
Wakhan	13		13,000
Warduj	7		17,000
Yaftali Sufla	6		39,000
Yamgan	7		20,000
Yawan	4		27,000
Zebak	12	Zebak	7,000

Notable people from Badakhshan

• Burhanuddin Rabbani - leader of the Jamiat-e Islami political party and former president of Afghanistan
• Tahir Badakhshi - political activist
• Latif Pedram - political activist and candidate for Afghanistan's presidency

References

External links

• Recent activities and developments in Badakhshan
• Dupree, Nancy Hatch (1977): An Historical Guide to Afghanistan. 1st Edition: 1970. 2nd Edition. Revised and Enlarged. Afghan Tourist Organization. [3]

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