Karlāṇī or Karrani (Pashto: کرلاڼي) is a Pashtun tribal confederacy.[1] They primarily inhabit the FATA region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan and certain parts of eastern Afghanistan. In the 16th century the Karlani founded the Karrani dynasty, the last dynasty to rule the Bengal Sultanate.

Karlani
کرلاڼي
EthnicityPashtun
LocationAfghanistan, Pakistan
Populationseveral millions
BranchesAfridi, Bangash, Banusi(Shetakzai) , Dawar, Dilzak, Khattak, Khogyani, Mahsud, Mangal, Marwat, Orakzai, Utmankhel, Wardak, Wazir, Zadran, Zazi (Dzadzi),Turi
LanguagePashto
Religion Islam

Origins

The Karrani are likely to be related or descendants of the house of karen of Parthians[2] Their name is said to be derived from Parthian royal families.[3] Karlani itself means "adopted". The 17th century Mughal scribe Nimat Allah al-Harawi does not mention Karlani tribes in his Makhzan-i-Afghani.[4] According to a legend, Karlan was the adopted son of Qais Abdur Rasheed, the eponymous ancestor of Pashtuns.[5] In another variant of the tradition, Karlan was adopted in exchange of a cooking pot, and was found by two Ormur brothers in an empty field where an army had encamped previous night. The childless brother then exchanged baby for a pot.[6][7] This suggests that Karlanis are adopted tribes of non-Pashtun origins unlike the rest of the tribes.[8] The exact genesis of Karlani Pashtuns remains disputed,[6] with Karlani tribes like Afridis and Bangash having Dardic or Arab origins.[9] Sections of Karlanis claim descent from Muhammad.[4] Nevertheless, the Karlanis consider themselves as Pashtuns.[5]

Dialect

Karlani tribes speak central dialect, a distinct dialect of Pashto.[10]

Karlani tribes

  1. Afridi
  2. Bangash
  3. Banusi
  4. Dawari
  5. Dilazak
  6. Khattak
  7. Khogyani
  8. Mahsud
  9. Mangal
  10. Marwat
  11. Orakzai
  12. Utmankhel
  13. Wardak
  14. Waziri
  15. Zadran
  16. Zazi (Dzadzi)
  17. Turi

See also

References

  1. ^ "THe History of The Dilzak Tribe" (urdu) By Asarjan, First Edition_2011 p 68
  2. ^ Iran and the Caucasus. Brill. 2023. p. 154.
  3. ^ Iran and the Caucuses. Brill publishing. pp. 154–157.
  4. ^ a b Brill, E. J. (1993). E.J. Brill's First Encyclopaedia of Islam: 1913-1936. A - Bābā Beg. BRILL. p. 153. ISBN 978-90-04-09787-2.
  5. ^ a b Siddique, Abubakar (2014). The Pashtun Question: The Unresolved Key to the Future of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Hurst. p. 13. ISBN 978-1-84904-292-5.
  6. ^ a b Quddus, Syed Abdul (1990). The North-west Frontier of Pakistan. Royal Book Company. p. 72. ISBN 978-969-407-105-3. Their origin still remains disputed, but according to the most current theory they are known as Karlanis or Karranis, being descendents of Karlani who, as a newborn baby, was picked up from an army...
  7. ^ Acheson, Ben (2023-06-30). The Pashtun Tribes in Afghanistan: Wolves Among Men. Pen and Sword Military. p. 36. ISBN 978-1-3990-6924-3.
  8. ^ Blunt, Sir Edward (2010). The Caste System of Northern India. p. 182. ISBN 978-81-8205-495-0.
  9. ^ "AFRĪDĪ". Encyclopaedia Iranica.
  10. ^ Khan, Ibrahim (2021-09-07). "Tarīno and Karlāṇi dialects". Pashto. 50 (661). ISSN 0555-8158. Archived from the original on September 8, 2021.((cite journal)): CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
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