Farah Province

Farah ( Pashto / Dari: فراه ) is a province in western Afghanistan. The capital of this province is the city of Farah. Most of the 488,000 residents of this province are Pashtuns and Tajiks and Fars (Persia ), the proper name of the Persian-speaking population in Fars Farah is. The spoken language is Dari, in which case the so-called Herati dialect is widespread ( see Language ). The name Farah comes from Arabic and means " happiness" and "Celebration ". In Persian, it is in contrast to the Arab pronounced with a slight "h", ie not from the neck.

Farah is bordered by Iran, which also has a similar culture communicates. The province is historically unexplored. It houses numerous treasures from the era of the Middle Ages and other eras. It was once the northern province of Herat belong before an independent province was the beginning of the 20th century. Farah was until the early 20th century, a city in the present province of Herat.

Basic Information

• Height: 653 m
• Ethnic groups: Pashtun, Fars, Baluchi
• Religions: Sunni, Shia, ( Sufis - Qadiriyyah * - in Shindand )

Personalities

Perhaps the most well-known personality from the province of Farah is clear from the Islamic civilization. It is the scholar Ata al -Mulk Dschuwaini, which comes from the city Dschuwain. He was the teacher of Islamic scholar al -Ghazali.

Similarly, one can call the Persian poet Abu Nasr Farahi. According to him, today there are numerous schools, educational institutions and memorials named.

From Farah province derives its songwriter and lyricist Salim Sarmast. He wrote countless titles for the Afghan pop icon Ahmad Zahir.

A native of Malalai Joya Farah received in the parliamentary elections in September 2005, the second highest number of votes in their province and has since become the youngest member of Afghanistan.

The above- mentioned poets, philosophers, musicians and politicians are all ethnic Persians.

Population

Ethnic distribution in Farah:

• Pashtuns: 65-70 %
• Fars: 20-22%
• Baluch: 5%
• Other: 1-3 %

The Farah Province is historically and been a part of Herat province in the wake of the nation state of Afghanistan. Later, it was separated from the powerful Pashtun tribes it so that the numerical number, the influence of the Persian ethnicity and religious, ethnic or kinship interactions decrease, for example, for the district Yazdi, from the numerous Persians before and after the founding of the state of Afghanistan in this area immigrated from what is now the Iranian province of Yazd. The Paschtunisierung the province can not be determined, but it must, according to the latest findings of historical documents, have been around the year 1893 completed.

Had the ethnic Persians and always have contact with their ethnic kinsmen in Iran, both to the Iranian border towns as well as for the interior: Mashhad, especially nearby parts of Birjand and Zabol, the entire Sistan and Baluchistan and other Iranian provinces such as Kerman or Yazd, now took away their inhabitants the name of their old home to Farah and a new Yazdi founded. In particular, residents of Yazdi in Farah, who belong to ethnic Persian and Shiite confession, which forms the majority of these residents traveled and still travel the pilgrimage city of Mashhad to visit the Shrine of the 8th Shi'ite Imam, Imam Reza.

The development of the city and the province of Farah from a Persian cultural-historical perspective lost its connection to the national- Persian Iran's development in general and in particular to Herat or Birjand or Mashhad and Zabol. One example is the development of the Persian language in Farah in the Yazdi and Persian cultural monuments, which have found no attention among the Pashtun domination. The Farah province has remained unexplored for many scientific perspectives, as the policy of a different ethnic and religious ideology ( Paschtunisierung; majority Sunni ) pursued to allow the roots of the Persians and their marks unnoticed.

In the same context maintain ethnic Pashtuns or Baluchis contacts with their ethnic and or religious relatives and follow the developments of their ethnicity.

Climate and vegetation

Farah is very desert -like. It is reminiscent of an oasis that is enormously fertile in some places. In the north and southwest, the province is characterized by numerous rivers. In the north the valley known Anar Dare (Persian Anar " pomegranate "; Dare means " valley " ) should be mentioned. In Farah Farah Rud River, which runs through the whole province flows. At the approximate center of this river is the provincial capital of Farah. In the southwest there is a huge water reservoir of the neighboring province is Nimrus (formerly called Chekhansoor ) will also be divided. In general, the province is dry. Farah is on the same geographical level as the city of Birjand in Iran.

Attractions

In the provincial capital of the Old Town is located (Persian Schahre Koohne ). This old town was called before Fereydoon Shahr ( Persian " Fereydoons city " according to a previous king). This district in the heart of the province was a meeting place, a bazaar and commercial center. The old town dates back to pre-Islamic times, that is, from the time of the ancient religion of Zoroaster. The old town was also a Ausruhestätte the ancient Silk Road.

From the pre-Islamic period and historical monuments in the east of the province, which was called Kafir Qalah ( Persian " house of the unbelievers " ) originate. Qalah is a house that has a front door with several buildings located therein, which, for example, is designed to provide protection against an alien invasion. In Farah such Qalah occur frequently.

In Farah also exists Takhte Rostam ( Persian " throne Rostams "). Rostam ( and his son Sohrab ) dates (s ) from the city Jowain in Farah, which occurs through his heroic deeds in the Shahnameh of Ferdowsi. As previously, there were no borders between Iran and Afghanistan, which have only been 150 years, he was regarded as the brave man from the Sistan (see " Historical embedding of geography ").

Latest developments for Farah

In Farah, a road is built, which connects it with Iran. The province of Farah is associated with the Iranian province of South Khorassan. In the first and second phase of this road has specific meaning to the trade based in Farah or the insert at the border customs, but on Iranian territory ( to Persian: Gomrok subscription Nasr Farahi ). In the third phase of the road project, it will be important to build the construction of the road to the Farah province into it. This project is funded and supported by Iran.

Likewise, it is about a technical assistance project and a technical center for the province of Farah, which can be put into operation already and was also accompanied by Iran with technical know -how.