Afghanistan Today
Afghan = "The People", stan = "The Land of"
Afghanistan = "The Land of Afghans"

Quick Facts:

• Population:
  32,738,376 (July 2008 est.)
• Official Languages:
  Pashtu, Dari
• Religion:
  Sunni Muslim 80%, Shi'a Muslim 19%, Other (Hindu, Christian) 1%
• Ethnic Groups:Pashtun 42%, Tajik 27%, Hazara 9%, Uzbek 9%, Aimak 4%, Turkmen 3%, Baloch 2%, other 4%
• Currency:Afghani (1 Afghani (AF) = 100 puls)
• Independence:19 August 1919 (from UK control over Afghan foreign affairs)
• Total Area:647,500 sq km (250,000 sq. miles)
• Environment - International Agreements:
  party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection
  signed, but not ratified: Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation
• GDP:$21.5 billion (2006 est.)
• GDP - Composition:
  Agriculture: 38%
  Industry: 24%
  Services: 38%
  Note: data exclude opium production (2005 est.)

Geography

Overview:Afghanistan does not have any links to any ocean or sea, it is a landlocked country. The northern and eastern part of the country has high terrain and the lower south and southwest is mostly semi-deserts and plain lands.

Total Area:647,500 sq km (250,000 sq. miles)

Climate:
Arid to semiarid; cold winters and hot summers.

Terrain:
Mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest.

Environment:
Earthquakes; soil degradation, desertification, overgrazing, deforestation, war pollution.

Extreme Elevations:
lowest point: Amu Darya 258 m
highest point: Nowshak 7,485 m

Natural Resources:
Natural Gas, Petroleum, Coal, Copper, Chromite, Talc, barites, Sulfur, Lead, Zinc, iron ore, salt, precious and semiprecious stones.

Environment Issues:
Limited natural fresh water resources; inadequate supplies of potable water; soil degradation; overgrazing; deforestation (much of the remaining forests are being cut down for fuel and building materials); desertification; air and water pollution

Boundary:China 76 km, Iran 936 km, Pakistan 2430 km, Tajikistan 1206 km, Turkmenistan 744 km, Uzbekistan 137 km

Administrative Regions (29 provinces/Wulayats):
Badakhshan, Badghis, Baghlan, Balkh, Bamiyan, Farah, Faryab, Ghazni, Ghor, Helmand, Herat, Juzjan, Kabul, Kandahar, Kapisa, Kunar, Kunduz, Laghman, Logar, Nangarhar, Nimruz, Oruzgan, Paktia, Paktika, Parwan, Samangan, Sar-e-Pul, Takhar, Wardak, Zabul

Nowruz in Afghanistan

Cooking samanu (or samanak) is a Nowruz tradition in Iran, Afghanistan and Tajikistan
In Afghanistan, Nowroz festival is traditionally celebrated for 2 weeks. Preparations for Nowroz start several days beforehand, at least after Chaharshanbe Suri, the last Wednesday before the New Year. Among various traditions and customs, the most important ones are:
Haft Mēwa: In Afghanistan, they prepare Haft Mēwa (Seven Fruits) instead of Haft Sin which is common in Iran. Haft Mewa is like a Fruit salad made from 7 different Dried fruits, served in their own syrup. The 7 dried fruits are: Raisin, Senjed (the dried fruit of the oleaster tree), Pistachio, Hazelnut, Prune (dry fruit of Apricot), Walnut and whether Almond or another species of Plum fruit.
Samanak: It is a special type of sweet dish made from Wheat germ. Women take a special party for it during the night, and cook it from late in the evening till the daylight, singing a special song: Samanak dar Josh o mā Kafcha zanem - Degarān dar Khwāb o mā Dafcha zanem
Mēla-e Gul-e Surkh (Persian: ميله‌ى گل سرخ): The Guli Surkh festival which literally means Red Flower Festival (referring to the red Tulip flowers) is an old festival celebrated only in Mazari Sharif during the first 40 days of the year when the Tulip flowers grow. People travel from different parts of the country to Mazar in order to attend the festival. It is celebrated along with the Jahenda Bālā ceremony which is a specific religious ceremony performed in the holy blue mosque of Mazar that is believed (mostly by Sunnite Afghans) to be the site of the tomb of Ali ibn Abi Talib, the fourth caliph of Islam. The ceremony is performed by raising a special banner (whose color configuration resembles Derafsh Kaviani) in the blue mosque in the first day of year (i.e. Nowroz). This is the biggest recorded Nowroz gathering where up to 200,000 people from all over Afghanistan get together in Mazar central park around blue mosque to celebrate the banner raising (Jahenda Bālā ) ceremony. The Guli Surkh party continues with other special activities among people in the Tulip fields and around the blue mosque for 40 days.
Buzkashi: Along with other customs and celebrations, normally a Buzkashi tournament is held. The Buzkashi matches take place in northern cities of Afghanistan and in Kabul.
Special cuisines: People cook special types of dishes for Nowroz, especially on the eve of Nowroz. Normally they cook Sabzi Chalaw, a dish made from rice and spinach, separately. Moreover, the bakeries prepare a special type of cookie, called Kulcha-e Nowrozī, which is only baked for Nowroz. Another dish which is prepared mostly for the Nowroz days is Māhī wa Jelabī (Fried Fish and Jelabi) and it is the most often meal in picnics. In Afghanistan, it is a common custom among the affianced families that the fiancé's family give presents to or prepare special dishes for the fiancée's family on special occasions such as in the two Eids, Barā'at and in Nowroz. Hence, the special dish for Nowroz is Māhī wa Jelabī.
Sightseeing to Cercis fields: The citizens of Kabul go to Istalif, Charikar or other green places around where the Cercis flowers grow. They go for picnic with their families during the first 2 weeks of New Year. Jashni Dehqān: Jashni Dehqan means The Festival of Farmers. It is celebrated in the first day of year, in which the farmers walk in the cities as a sign of encouragement for the agricultural productions. In recent years, this activity is being performed only in Kabul and other major cities, in which the mayor and other high governmental personalities participate for watching and observing.

AFGHAN DANCE

Afghan dance be for information only and not to be misrepresented by night club or show dancing but only to be further studied to be possibly eventually performed by very serious folk and ethnic dancers in a respectful egoless manner. No part of this copyrighted material which is drawn from publications by Eastern Arts may be used in any way without written permission from Eastern Arts, Thank you.
TERMINOLOGYPASHTUN - people of southern area of Afghanistan
TAJIK - Asiatic people in the north
TURKOMEN - people of the northwest
LOGARI - type of dance from Logar valley
SHAUQI - amateur musician, dancer; unpaid hobbyist
SAMOWAR - tea house where musicians meet and play
KESPI - professional (musician or other)
REBAB - skin-covered stringed instrument native of Afghanistan
TAMBUR - long necked stringed instrument
ZERBAGHALI - single headed clay goblet drum
DHOL - double headed wooden barrel drum
ATAN - national circle dance of Afghanistan
DOIRA - round frame drum
KHAGHAZBADBAZI - kite dance
CHOPBAZI - stick dance
NAZ - flirtatious or coy attitude
MAIDA - tiny shuffling footwork

AFGHANISTAN

Afghanistan was one of the first stops for Indo-Aryan tribes on their way to India and Persia. It is the area where the original Vedic and Avestan hymns were developed and from whence most of the great Persian poets hail including Molana Jalalladin Rumi. Afghanistan was on the path of Buddhism which found it's way to Central Asia and China with Bamyan as a major Buddhist center with it's huge statue of the Buddha carved in a cave which was recently destroyed because is was considered a pagan a graven image. Afghanistan is a land of three main ethnic groups: the Pashtuns who inhabit the southern half, the Tajiks who are said to be the former inhabitants of the area and the Asiatic people of the north (mainly Uzbek), and Turkoman in the northwest. The southwest is inhabited by a minority group known as Baluchi who spread over from Iran and into Pakistan. The western border area of Afghanistan, Herat province, is inhabited by people similar to those living on the other side of the border in Iranian Khorasan. Music in Afghanistan seems to be divisible along these ethnic lines: Pashtun, Herati, Uzbek and the less predominant Baluchi and Turkoman styles. Logar province, south of Kabul is known for it's musicians and dancers and has a special style of it's own. In recent decades, Indian classical music has influenced the Kabul area.

Afghanistan Traditional Dance (Attan)

Attan is a traditional Afghan dance; It's origin lies in the Afghan Pashtoon tribes pagan yester-years and usually involved men performing a ritual dance. This was later modified into a Muslim dance of soldiers to allow the dancers to get 'closer to God' before they advanced on their missions. It was noted by the Moghuls of the period and is unique only amongst Afghans living in and around southern borders of Afghanistan.It is performed usually with a Dhol, which is a double-headed barrel drum that has a very deep and low resonance sound. Other instruments can include a single barreled Dhol, Tablas, the 18-stringed Robab, Surnai flute (aka shanai-India, zurna - Central Asia and Turkey, and zurla Macedonia), or wooden flute known as a Toola. The technique behind the Attan has changed much for over centuries, but its base has not changed. Its a circular dance ranging from two to over a hundred people, and the performers will follow each other going round and round in a circle to the beat as the rhythm and beats faster.More complex Attans involve an Attan troup leader who begins the attan slowly using a variation of styles and techniques, and the ultimate spin is performed after the leader gives the signal, either by placing his hand on the floor or raising it in the air. The musicians perform the music at the technique of the leader and is fully dependent on the attan leader for guidance. The dance can be anywhere from 5 minute to 30 minutes long. The attan will end when no dancer is left standing on the dance floor. It is not uncommon for a dancer to faint during the performance as it is very physically intensive. The dance has become very popular throughout Afghanistan and can be performed year-round in all festive occasions. In Afghanistan each valley has its own unique style.There are many different kinds of Attan in Afghanistan, Kabuli, Wardaki, Logari, Khosti/Paktia, Herati, Kochyano, Khattak, Pashayi (played with Surnai flute), and Nuristani.

Attan,

Atan, a 7/8 meter circle dance, is considered the national dance of Afghanistan. It is performed by groups of up to ten or more to the accompaniment of the large dhol usually played with sticks and sometimes the sorna (double reed pipe). The 7/8 beat is divided in two measure increments with the main accents falling on 1, 4, 6, 8 and pickup accents on 3, 13 and 14. The atan begins with an announcement by the drum, the dancers then move slowly in a circle around the drummer(s). Speed builds gradually until accelerated to wild movement and rhythm. The dancers go through various attitudes and figures, sometimes singing, sometimes shouting or at other times clapping or snapping their fingers. The dancers often carry handkerchiefs in their hands. Quick spinning and whirling movements of the body are prominent; although in some areas movement of the head and flying hair is more important. In villages the men may carry swords and guns while dancing the atan and the dance can go on for hours, sometimes until dawn. Although the dance is usually a men's dance, on rare ocasions it is performed by men and women together known as ghberg atan. In this case the men sing love songs, answered by the women, and the dialogue continues along with the dance. Advanced moves done with scarves in each hand are characterized by rhythmic snappy head tosses which follow the spins. The Atan can also be done by a group of all women.