History of the Pashtun people
Kalu Khan Yousafzai was 16th century leader of the Yousafzais who inflicted one of the greatest defeats upon Mughals. Roshan Khan gives his parentage as Kalu Khan son of Ali Khan (Rustam) son of Mubarak who was of Razar clan of the Mandanr tribe (Yusufzai Qaum Ki Sarguzisht”, pp-218-219). In 1581 A.D, when Mughals devastated … Read more
Yousafzais of Ghoriwala Hasan Khan Yousafzai, the progenitor of the Mughal Khels of Ghoriwala town in Bannu. was an adventurer from Yusufzai country, who settled in Bannu in early18th century. His son Umar Khan removed to Ghoriwal, and by degrees worked himself into position of a chief, his followers being mostly Jat and Awan Hindkis. … Read more
In the first quarter of the 19th century, a religious movement sprang up in the Yousafzai country that was headed by a non-Pashtun namely Syed Ahmad of Bareilly. Although not even Pashtun, Syed Ahmad was a notable figure in Pashtun history, one of those rare leaders who could actually prevail on feuding clans to bury … Read more
In 1519, Babur came into Yousafzai country with a large army. He devastated their lands but could make no impression on their sangar. In order to better judge the intentions of the Yousafzai , he disguised himself as a qalandar (religious ascetic) and went with friends one dark night to the Mahura hill where the … Read more
Bala Hissar means high fort in Persian. There are several other forts which are also named Bala Hissar. It is unknown as to when the Bala Hissar of Peshawar was erected. Chinese pilgrim, Hiuen Tsang makes a reference to it in 7th century AD when he uses the term “Kung shing” in the description of … Read more
Shahrukh Khan claims that his ancestors were from Afghanistan who settled in Peshawar. But his relatives in Peshawar are reported to have said that they are Hindkowans of Kashmiri descent. Yusuf Khan or Dilip Kumar is not a Pashtun but a Hindko-speaking Awan from Peshawar. Salman Khan’s family is from Indore (Madihya Pradesh). Exact details … Read more
The ancient home of Yousafzais and other Khashis was countryside of Kandahar, southern Afghanistan. After wanderings they settled down near Kandahar where they divided the territory by lots that was their custom from the remotest times. After some time, the Khashis made a cut in the Arghandab river and thus reduced the share of their … Read more
Dilazak (or Dalazak) Pashtuns of Karlanri division are said to have occupied Peshawar valley in 11th century. Dilazaks have tradition that when they first into Peshawar valley, they found red-complexioned Kafirs there. It is said that when Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni led his famous expedition against Somnath, he was joined by a large contingent of … Read more
Mughul-Yusufzai conflict animosity is said to be deep rooted when Ulugh Baig Mirza (uncle of Zaheer-ud-din Babur) killed almost seven hundred Yusufzais in Kabul. Afterwards Mughuls kings like Babur, Akbar and Aurangzeb tried to subdue them which further intensified the antagonism. The tussle between these old foes ultimately culminated into a resistance movement by the … Read more
The following account of Hari Singh Nalwa’s humiliating defeat at the hands of the Mashwanis and Said Khanis is drawn from two primary sources: (1) an eyewitness account, “Tawarikh-i-Hazara,” written by Lala Mehtab Singh in 1846. Extracts from this work were translated into Urdu by Sher Bahadur Khan Panni for his book, “Tarikh-i-Hazara” (pp. 56-59). … Read more