Bangash

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The Bangash (Pashto: )are one of the largest and perhaps the most powerful and influential
Karlanri Pashtun tribe of the border area of eastern Afghanistan and northern Pakistan. Most
likely of Arab descent, they became thoroughly merged with the Ghurghust Pashtuns and settled
into the Kurram valley in the fifteenth century and with their current locations established in the
eighteenth century They inhabit the Kurram Valley as well as FATA and Thall Doaba Hangu,
Kohat and Orakzai Agency and Khyber Agency in northwestern Pakistan.[1] On the other side of
the Durand Line border in neighboring Afghanistan, a larger number of Bangash are scattered in
the northeastern section of the Paktia and Paktika Province.[2] "The Bangash tribe derived its
name from the hilly area, north of the Sulaiman mountains, from Bannu to the Safed Koh, in
between the Indus, and the Kurram river.".[3] A limited number of descendants of the Bangash
tribe are also present in Farrukhabad, Jammu & kashmir in northern India, Faridabad,India
Sialkot, and Muzaffrabad Pakistan.[citation needed]

Contents

1 History

2 Bangash in Afghanistan

3 Baizai

4 Miranzai

5 Language

6 Religion

7 Notable people

8 See also

9 References

History
The Bangash are said to have originally lived in the Gardez region of modern day Afghanistan,
where they were still living as of the Ghaznavids period (975 to 1187).[1] Later on, they came into
conflict with the Ghilzais, and were ousted from their homeland eastwards across the Paywar
Pass to the upper Kurram Basin, located on the eastern slopes of the Spin Ghar range. The
Bangash allied with the Khattaks who were also moving to the same area and pushed the Orakzai
of the area southeastwards. In the 16th century, the whole habitat of the Bangash was called
Bangash District and was ruled by the khan of hangu who were the chiefs of bangash tribe.
However, in the 18th century, the Bangash ceded most of the upper Kurram Basin to the Turi
tribe, though the Bangash sill occupy some villages there, in particular in the Shalozan area near
the PakistanAfghanistan border.[1] This incorporation, which is never clearly formulated in
terms of filiation or even of adoption, may have originated in a military alliance between the
Banga and at ak(q.v.) in the 9th/15th century."[1]

Nawab Ali Mohammed Khan Bangash, first Nawab of Rampur, ca 1730, Bibliothque nationale
de France, Paris
Bangash, a population of approximately 5,600 Bangash located in Kurram, which was formerly
divided into Bangash-i-Bala and Bangash Payan, "Upper and Lower Bangash", and lists
Bangash as one of the fourteen provinces then dependent on Kabul. Babur wished to conquer
these provinces, but was unable to conquer the territory bounded on the north by the Spin Ghar
down as far as Bannu, where Bangash, Turis, and Wazirs live, as is clear from his comments:
"Bangash is another tuman [of Kabul]. The area round about is full of highway robbers such as
the Khogyani, Khirilchi, Turi and Landar. Since it is isolated they do not pay the desired revenue.
As greater tasks such as the conquest of Kandahar, Balkh, Badakhshan and Hindustan occupied
me, there has been no opportunity to subjugate the Bangash".[4] However, in 1505 Babur raided
and plundered the district of the Bangash.[3]

They inhabited the Miranzai valley (Hangu), the Kohat defile in the North-West Frontier
Province (19011955), and the valley of Kurram river in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Kohat
Gazetteer of 1883-84 records
"The Orakzai tribes are said to have been converted by the Tirah Syeds about the beginning of
the present century. The Bangash of Samizai were probably converted a little earlier."[5]
The three main divisions of the Bangash clan are the Miranzai, Baizais and Samilzai. The
Miranzai and the Baizai inhabit the main Kohat valley and the Samilzai inhabit the wild Kohat
jungle district.

Bangash in Afghanistan
The Bangash Tribe are Found in Primarily In Paktia, Paktika, Ghazni and Khost Provinces in
Afghanistan. and From The Majority Of The Population in Gardez and Zurmat The Main Cities
Of Paktia Province.

Baizai
Main article: Baizai
The Baizai are a sub-tribe of the Bangash. . The name "Baizai" originated from that of a tribal
chieftain of the Bangashes, Behzad Khan-son of Amirzai chief Daulat Khan-a tribal chieftain and
feudal lord. Behzad Khan is said to have been married to a daughter of Ahmad Shah Durrani, the
Amir of Afghanistan. The Baizai Bangashes inhabit most of rural Kohat and parts of the city
limits where most government installations, institutions and commercial centers have been built
on their lands. Originally the Bazai Bangash (also known as Behzadi being the direct
descendedants of Behzad Khan) established their village in Kohat at the location of the present
fort constructed by the British to secure the area. All Baizais are Sunni Muslims. They are further
divided into clans or khels. Izzat Khel also known as Dolat Khel is one of khels.

Miranzai
Main article: Miranzai
The Miranzai occupy a vast territory in Hangu known as the Miranzai Valley, Hangu valley was
controlled mostly by orakzai and to some extent by khattaks before the Bangash tribe, Bangash
pushed the orakzai's towards mountains and khattaks towards other side and took the control of
the valley, in much the same fashion the Baizais of Kohat did so. Miranzai Bangashes include
both Shias and Sunnis. The Miranzai are the descendants of Miran, one of the grandchildren of
Ismail, the progenitor of the Bangash tribe.[citation needed]Shia Bangash of Miranzai are known to
their bravery when Darveza(Niazi) attacked Hangu and pushed the Khan of Hangu towards
"Kasha" a place in Samana mountain it was the shia Bangash who strike back and took the
control of Hangu. Darveza was killed in the battle and the influence of khan was restored. In the
recent period of Talibanization shia Bangash of Miranzai valley especially of hangu city give

very hard time to Taliban fighters (In 2009 Taliban launched a huge attack on hangu city bringing
their fighters from Waziristan, Orakzai, Kurram and Khyber agency and the fight continued for
four days, Shia Bangash succeed to protect every inch of their land). Bangash are still fighting
for their rights whether they are Sunni or Shia.

Language
The Bangash tribe speaks a harder variant of Pashto similar to that of the Qandahari but slightly
differing in some lexicographical and phonetic features.[citation needed].
Some Bangash in Badakhshan area speak the Persian language as their mother tongue.[citation needed]

Religion
The Bangash are all Muslims. They are sub-divided by sects as Sunni and Shia Muslims. The
Shias are concentrated around upper Kurram and Hangu, while the Sunnis are mostly
concentrated around Lower Kurram and Tall area of Hangu.The Sunni Bangash are mostly
Deobandi, the same as the Taliban.[6] Bangash's from both sects lived in relative harmony with
each other before the Gen. Zia Ul Haq era in the 1980s when he, then president of Pakistan,
promoted sectarianism and armed the Sunni mujahideens. Though sect does play a significant
role in their lives, a Bangash, whether Shia or Sunni would fight to his last for the sanctity of his
clan and tribe.

Notable people

Rahmat Shah Zurmatai - Afghan cricketer

Jahandad Khan - Governor Sindh 1984-87 & Lt. General PAK ARMY.

Muhammad Khan Bangash - Founder of Farrukhabad state

Arif Bangash - Governor KPK & Lt. General PAK ARMY

See also

Parachinar

Guldara

Zurmat

Kohat

Paktia

Beliamen

Pashtun tribes

Lodhi Khel

Thall'

darsamand

Hangu

Ibrahimzai

References
1.

Balland, Daniel. Encyclopaedia Iranica. BANGA. Originally Published:

December 15, 1988. "BANGA - one of the least-known Pashtun tribes in the Solaymn
range, Pakistan, and one of the few that are not named after eponymous ancestors."

2.

A record of the expeditions undertaken against the north-west frontier tribes:

Compiled from the military and political despatches, Lieut.-Colonel McGregor's
gazetteer, and other official sources. By William Henry Paget.

3.

Gommans, Jos J. L. (1995). The Rise of the Indo-Afghan Empire. BRILL. p. 171.
ISBN 9-0041-0109-8. Retrieved 2012-07-04.

4.
5.

"The Garden of the Eight Paradises", Stephen Frederic Dale, pg. 304
Gazetteer of the Kohat District 1883-84 published by Sang e meel publications
Pakistan page 69

6.

Dawn. "Army ends operation in Central Kurram".

Categories:

Karlan Pashtun tribes

Social groups of Pakistan

Pashtun tribes

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