Behsudi (Hazara tribe)

For other uses, see Behsud.

Behsudi or Behsud (Dari: بهسودی) are one of the major tribes of the Hazaras in Afghanistan.

History

The notable history of the Behsud tribe starts from the 19th-century when the 19th-century Behsud chieftain Mir Yazdan Bakhsh was one of the first Hazara chiefs, who tried in vain to unify all Hazaras.

In the Hazara resistance against the Soviet Union and later the Taliban most of the modern Hazara political leadership has emerged from the Behsuds. Afghan leaders from the Behsud tribe include Sultan Ali Keshtmand, the Prime Minister of Afghanistan from 1981 to 1989.

The people of Behsud in the past (from about five or six centuries ago) were scattered across a wide area of Afghanistan. Before the complete control of the Afghans, they had more or less influence over eastern regions Including the eastern Behsud, which takes its name from this ethnic group to significant parts of today's Maidan Wardak province. Since a large part of the Hazara population was nomadic in the past, the Behsudis would travel towards Jalalabad and Laghman during winters and camp in Hazarajat during summers. For example, the Behsud River in the foothills of the Qorigh mountains Is a relic from that time.

The grave of Baba Besud is located on the summit of that mountain. Hazara singers used to visit that grave before the turmoil of Abdul Rahman.

Notable people

• Karim Khalili, former vice president of Afghanistan.
• Sultan Ali Keshtmand, the communist Prime Minister of Afghanistan (1981–1990).
• Mir Yazdan Bakhsh, an early 19th-century Hazara chieftain.
• Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Pakistani qawwali singer.
• Sharbat Ali Changezi, Air Marshall Pakistan Air Force.
• Haji Kazim Yazdani, historical researcher and writer.
• Rohullah Nikpai, Taekwondo practitioner and two-time Olympic bronze medalist.

See also

• List of Hazara tribes
• Hazara people

Sources

• The Hazaras by Hassan Poladi
• The Hazaras of Afghanistan by Sayd Askar Musavi
• Hazaras of Afghanistan by Taimor Khanov, translated in Urdu by Hasan Raza Changazi