The Baluch of Afghanistan

Afghanistan's Baluch are part of the larger Baluch community of about 8 million people, whose homeland exists along the borders of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran. The Baluch of Afghanistan speak a dialect of Baluchi that is related to Kurdish. The high, dry region that is their home was once filled with large flowing rivers, but today it is a desert wasteland. There is a severe lack of rainfall in this area, but when it does rain, it transforms the dry, brown land into green pastures.

Baluch society is grouped together in clans or tribes. Whereas clan membership is based on family ties, tribal membership is based on territory alone. All tribes share a common system of social and political behavior called Baluchmayar. Marriages in Baluchi tribes are lifelong and monogamous, and marrying a non-Baluch is absolutely forbidden.

Many Baluch are illiterate, and until recently, their language was unwritten. However they have a long tradition of poets and professional minstrels, both of whom enjoy elevated status within Baluch society. Although the Baluch of Afghanistan are Sunni Muslims, Islamic law does not dictate social infractions. Secular authority belongs to the tribal leaders, who traditionally initiate a blood feud between the groups.