Shughni people

Shughni
Shughnan
xuǧnůni, хуг̌ну̊нӣ, خُږنۈنے
Regions with significant populations
 Tajikistan (Shughnon District)50,000 (1990)[1]
 Afghanistan (Shighnan District)40,000 (2009)[1]
 Pakistan (Chitral District)855[2]
 China (Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County)171[3]
Languages
Shughni, Tajik, Dari, Khowar
Religion
Nizari Isma'ili Shia Islam[4]
Related ethnic groups
Other Pamiris, especially Wakhis, Oroshoris, Bartangis, Khufis, Rushanis, Sarikolis, and Wanjis

The Shughni (also known as the Shughnan) (Shughni: xuǧnůni, хуг̌ну̊нӣ, خُږنۈنے) are an Iranian sub-ethnic group of Pamiris, who reside in the Pamir Mountains of the Badakhshan region of Central Asia. They mostly live in the country of Tajikistan, while a minority lives in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and China.[5] They speak the Shughni language, an Eastern Iranian language of the Pamiri subgroup.

History

The region of Shughnan was mentioned in Chinese books during the 6th and 7th centuries. The ancient Shughnis kept the Shughnan region under their control.[6] Proof had been found about the Shughni people's oral traditions in Ghoron.[7] The Shughni tribes had also collaborated with the Mongols during the conquest of Afghanistan.[8] During Soviet times, especially during the Stalin era, Soviet and Tajik authrorities tried their best to assimilate the Shughni with the Tajik population.[9] Even after Soviet times, the Shughni, Ishkashim, Rushani, and Wakhi tribes still fought over territory near the borders of Afghanistan and Tajikistan.[10]

Lifestyle

Due to political reasons the Shughni and Rushani go by the name "Tajik" unlike other Pamiri groups.[11] The Shughani are engaged in mountain agriculture and have succeeded in a greater agriculture basis from the Rabbani government.[12] The Shughni were formerly raiders, but are now seen as servants and pedlars in big cities in Central Asia such as Kabul and Farghana.[13] They have also supplemented to 'scanty' resources in Shughnan.[14] The Shughani have also gone to Chitral in Pakistan to find jobs recently.

Language

Main article: Shughni language

The Shughni language is an Eastern Iranian language of the Pamiri subgroup spoken in Tajikistan and Afghanistan, primarily in Gorno-Badakhshan and Sheghnan. Shughani is the largest of the Pamiri languages and contains many dialects including Rushani, Bartangri, and Oroshori.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b Shughni at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) Closed access icon
  2. ^ Windfuhr, Gernot (2013). Iranian Languages. Routledge. p. 868. ISBN 978-1135797041.
  3. ^ Windfuhr, Gernot (2013). Iranian Languages. Routledge. p. 558. ISBN 978-1135797041.
  4. ^ Steinburg, Jonah (2011). Isma'ili Modern: Globalization and Identity in a Muslim Community. Univ of North Carolina Press. p. 234. ISBN 9780807834077.
  5. ^ "The Red Book of the Peoples of the Russian Empire".
  6. ^ "The Red Book of the Peoples of the Russian Empire".
  7. ^ Elnazarov, Hakim; Ostler, Nicholas (2009). Endangered Languages and History: Proceedings of the Conference (XIII ed.). Khorog, Tajikistan: Institute of Humanities. p. 57. ISBN 9780956021014.
  8. ^ Prokhorov, Aleksandr Mikhaĭlovich (1973). Great Soviet Encyclopedia (24 ed.). p. 154.
  9. ^ Zarubin, Ivan Ivanovich (1960). Shughnan Text & Dictionary (in Russian). House of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR. p. 385.
  10. ^ Levi-Sanchez, Suzanne (2016). The Afghan-Central Asia Borderland: The State and Local Leaders. Routledge. ISBN 9781317430957.
  11. ^ Schoeberlein-Engel, John Samuel (1994). Identity in Central Asia: Construction and Contention in the Conceptions of "Özbek," "Tâjik, " "Muslim, " "Samarqandi" and Other Groups. Central Asia: Harvard University. p. 113.
  12. ^ Kreutzmann, Hermann (2012). Pastoral practices in High Asia: Agency of 'development' effected by modernisation, resettlement and transformation. Afghanistan. ISBN 9789400738454.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  13. ^ Gore, Kensington (1916). The Geographical Journal (38 ed.). London: Authority of the Council.
  14. ^ Stein, Sir Aurel (1981). Innermost Asia: Text (2 ed.). Central Asia: Cosmo. p. 881.
  15. ^ SSSR, Akademi︠i︡a nauk (1980). Social Sciences (2 ed.). USSR Academy of Sciences. p. 80.