Farsiwan

Characteristics

Like the Persians of Iran, the Farsiwan are often distinguished from Tajiks by their adherence to Shia Islam as opposed to the Sunni Islam favored by the majority of Tajiks. However, there are also minor linguistic differences especially among the rural Farsiwan. The Farsiwan sometimes speak a dialect more akin to the Darī dialects of the Persian language, for example the dialect of Kabul, as opposed to the standard Tehrānī dialect of Iran. However, most of the Fārsīwān speak the Khorasani dialect, native to the Afghanistan–Iran border region, namely Herāt and Farāh, as well as the Iranian provinces of Khorasan. Unlike the Hazara, who are also Persian-speaking and Shia, the Farsiwan do not show any, or very limited, traces of Turkic and Mongol ancestry. Although the Qizilbash of Iran and Afghanistan are also Persian-speaking Shias, they are usually regarded as a separate group from the Farsiwan.

Some confusion arises because an alternative name used locally for the Fārsīwān (as well as for the Tājiks in general) is Dehgān, meaning "village settlers", in the sense of "urban". The term is used in contrast to "nomadic".

Geographic distribution

As of 1997, there were approximately 1.5 million Farsiwans in Afghanistan, mainly in the provinces of Herat, Farah Ghor, and Mazar-i-Sharif. They are also the majority inhabitants of the city of Herāt. Smaller populations exist in Kabul, Kandahar and Ghazni. Due to the large number of refugees from Afghanistan, significant Farsiwan communities also exist in Iran currently (mostly in Mashhad and Tehran).

References

References

1. The ''Encyc. Iranica'' makes clear in the article on Afghanistan — Ethnography that "The term Farsiwan also has the regional forms Parsiwan and Parsiban. In religion, they are Imami Shia. In literature, they are often mistakenly referred to as Tajik." [https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-iranica-online/afghanistan-COM_4803 Dupree, Louis (1982) "Afghanistan: (iv.) Ethnography", in ''Encyclopædia Iranica''] Online Edition 2006.
2. Maloney, Clarence (1978) ''Language and Civilization Change in South Asia'' E.J. Brill, Leiden, {{ISBN. 90-04-05741-2, on page 131.
3. Hanifi, Mohammed Jamil (1976) ''Historical and Cultural Dictionary of Afghanistan'' Scarecrow Press, Metuchen, N.J., {{ISBN. 0-8108-0892-7, on page 36
4. ""Afghanistan: Historical political overview" ''FMO Research Guide''".
5. [http://www.cal.org/co/afghan/apeop.html Robson, Barbara and Lipson, Juliene (2002) "Chapter 5(B)- The People: The Tajiks and Other Dari-Speaking Groups"] {{webarchive. link. (January 27, 2010 ''The Afghans - their history and culture'' Cultural Orientation Resource Center, Center for Applied Linguistics, Washington, D.C., [http://worldcat.org/oclc/56081073 OCLC 56081073])
6. (1999). "AFGHĀNISTĀN". Koninklijke Brill NV.
7. Emadi, Hafizullah (2005) ''Culture And Customs Of Afghanistan'' Greenwood Press, Westport, Conn., {{ISBN. 0-313-33089-1, on page 11 says: "Farsiwan are a small group of people who reside in southern and western towns and villages in Herat. They are sometimes erroneously referred to as Tajiks."
8. Ch. M. Kieffer, "Afghanistan v. - Languages of Afghanistan", in [[Encyclopaedia Iranica]], printed version, {{usurped
9. E. H. Glassman, ''“Conversational Dari: An Introductory Course in Dari (= Farsi = Persian) as Spoken in Afghanistan”'' (revised edition of “Conversational Kabuli Dari,” with the assistance of M. Taher Porjosh), Kabul (''The Language and Orientation Committee, International Afghan Mission'', P.O. Box 625), 1970-72.
10. Library of Congress Country Studies - Afghanistan - ''Farsiwan'' ([http://countrystudies.us/afghanistan/46.htm LINK])
11. Savory, Roger M. (1965) "The consolidation of Safawid power in Persia" ''In'' Savory, Roger M. (1987) ''Studies on the History of Ṣafawid Iran'' Variorum Reprints, London, {{ISBN. 0-86078-204-2, originally published in ''Der Islam'' no. 41 (October 1965) pp. 71-94
12. M. Longworth Dames, [[G. Morgenstierne]], R. Ghirshman, ''"Afghānistān"'', in [[Encyclopaedia of Islam]], Online Edition
13. Adamec, Ludwig W. (1997) ''Historical Dictionary of Afghanistan'' Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, {{ISBN. 0-585-21026-8, on page 106
14. P. English, ''"Cities In The Middle East"'', e.d. L. Brown, [[Princeton University]], USA 1973
15. {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20061019010821/http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/v1f5/v1f5a040a.html L. Dupree, "Afghanistan: (iv.) Ethnography", in ''Encyclopædia Iranica'']}} Online Edition 2006