Afghan Tribes Database

[Marwat Khan Lodhi]

Babar

The Babar (Pashto: باب&#1683 or Babori tribe is a Pukhtun tribe from the Sarbanri branch.

The Babar diaspora is spread across Pakistan and Afghanistan today. However, the most prominent communities remain the same, the most notable of which is in Pirpiai. Chaudhwan still has a large number of Babars living there. Other communities include, Zhob, Quetta, Multan, Kandahar, Shikarpur and Sindh [Dadu].

In the First World War 78 people of the Babar tribe from Pirpiai went to the war as Indian Army men and four were killed. Hence, Pirpiai is one of the very few villages which has an official plaque commemorating its First World War contribution.

Babars have risen to many prominent positions in the government and army of Pakistan, along with many other career fields such as Engineering, Medicine, Acting, etc. Some notable Babars from Pirpiai include, Khurshid Zaman Babar a well know lawyer, Abdullah Zaman Babar, Colonel Mir Haider Khan, Major General Adam Khan, Shah Zaman Babar a prominent lawyer and Justice of Peshawar High Court till 1975, Farouk Adam Khan (a prominent lawyer and later on the Prosecutor General of the National Accountability Bureau) and Major General Naseerullah Khan Babar. Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan also hails from the same tribe.

History

Babar, the ancestor of the Babar tribe was born at Koh-e-Sulaiman in 1175; six generations after Qais Abdur Rashid. It is interesting to note that the Babars were initially the same tribe as the Shiranis, also settled in and around the same region as the Babars. As far as the pedigrees show, Shirani was the father of Babar. The Shiranis have three sub-tribes, namely:

Marani

Miani

Babar

Maranis still refer to themselves as 'Shirani' as they are the main sub-tribe, but Babars and Mianis identify themselves as completely separate tribes. The Babars are treated by some genealogists as a section of the Shirani Tribe. They are, in fact, the latter's neighbours in the Zhob District of Pakistan, but so distinct that neither has any sense of common tribal solidarity; the Babars even collaborated with a British punitive expedition against the Sherani in 1853. Hence showing, they never speak of such a kinship.

In the 12th Century there was an initial settlement of a few Babar families in Chaudhwan, in the modern day district of Dera Ismail Khan in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. By the 14th Century, they had moved entirely from the Sulaiman Mountains. In the early 16th Century the tribe had moved to Chaudhwan and some to Zhob. In c.1534, some migrated on to Kandahar in present day Afghanistan from Zhob. Meanwhile, in Chaudhwan, the Babars fought a battle against a local Baloch tribe and emerged victorious. In 1628, they fought another battle against the Gandapur tribe. Soon after, in 1647, the Babars fought off the Marwat tribe in order to gain full command of Chaudhwan by the mid-17th Century. Around the year 1700 or so, some Babars migrated up north to Pirpiai, which they established and held control of. In the reign of Ahmad Shah Durrani many moved east to Multan as well from Chaudhwan. By 1783, others had moved south to Shikarpur in Sindh.

This is why the Babar diaspora is spread across Pakistan and Afghanistan today. However, the most prominent communities remain the same, the most notable of which is in Pirpiai. Chaudhwan still has a large number of Babars living there. Other communities include, Zhob, Quetta, Multan, Kandahar and Shikarpur.

Structural Division of the Babar Tribe

The further subdivision of the Babar Tribe has been debated frequently in many genealogical books but the ground reality is very clear.

The tribe is divided into sub-tribes based on the offsprings of four sons:

Maswad Khel

Gora Khel

Ibrahim Khel

Marwat Khel (Later modified as Mara Khel)

Maswad Khel
Maswad Khel is further divided into the following sub-sections:

Ahmed Khel

Mardanzai

Musazai

Bahadinzai

Ghorazai

Mochizai

These Maswad Khel reside in Chaudhwan, Qila Saifullah (Pakistan) and Sheberghan (Afghanistan). The Ahmed Khel, however, mainly reside in Shikarpur (Pakistan)

Gora Khel
Gora Khel is further divided into the following sub-sections:

Yasinzai

Safarzai

Shakarzai

Khidarzai

Mangalzai

Gora Khel reside in Chaudhwan, Qila Saifullah (Pakistan), Kandahar and Sheberghan (Afghanistan). The Yasinzai primarily live in Khangarh (Pakistan)

Ibrahim Khel
The Ibrahim Khel are known to be the most prevalent sub-tribe of the Babars. They primarily reside in Pirpiai, Chaudhwan, Multan, Ibrahim Khel Kot, Zhob, Qila Saifullah, Dera Ghazi Khan in Pakistan. In Afghanistan, they have communities in Kandahar and Sheberghan.

Marwat Khel / Mara Khel
Mara Khel is further divided into the following sub-sections:

Mirzai

Sulaimanzai

They reside in

Garda Babar
Lighat
Zhob
Qila Saifullah

in Pakistan. In Afghanistan, their main settlements are Kandahar and Sheberghan.

Note: All sub-tribes of Babars except Mara Khel are present at Chaudhwan, that is why this town is labelled by English historians as a center of command and authority of Babar tribe.

Migration of Babars

Pirpiai
Amanullah Khan Babar (Also known by his nickname 'Manu Khan') is the forefather of all the Pirpiai Babars. He was the first well known personality from the Babar tribe. Amanullah Khan belonged to the Ibrahim Khel sub-tribe and, hence, all Babars from Pirpiai belong the same sub-tribe. Initially, he belonged to Ibrahim Khel Kot, situated near Zhob. The remnants of the great fort built there by him still exist. The date inscribed on this fort is of AD 1650 (era of King Shah Jahan).

By profession, Amanullah Khan was a great trader, leading the Babar caravan starting from Calcutta and Bombay (India) all the way to Samarkand and Bukhara (Uzbekistan). He was also renowned as being a great warrior, protecting the caravans from being looted. Many heroic stories are told about his fights with different tribes.

By the end of his life, Amanullah Khan moved to Pirpiai along with his family, the main reason for which was to save his children from his enemies. This migration towards Pirpiai is well known and remembered by all the Babars in Zhob and Ibrahim Khel Kot. His name is included in all the Shajra (Pedigree) collected from the Pirpiai Babars. The fort he built in Pirpiai also still exists and is located in the heart of the village.

With the arrival of Amanullah Khan, the Babars settled in the Pirpiai region, in the beginning of the 18th century (era of King Aurangzeb). All the Babars there today are his descendants.

Multan

Khan Bahadar Rub Nawaz Khan Babar was a famous Babar Pathan in Multan. He was appointed as a political agent by the British government, during their rule in the sub-continent, in Chitral. Khan Bahadar Rub Nawaz Khan was a brave man. He fought a battle in Chitral for which the British government gave him the title of Khan Bahadar. When Rub Nawaz Khan came back to Multan he was appointed the honorary magistrate.

Khangarh
Khangarh is a town/tehsil of Muzzafargarh District. In this district, there are two settlements of Babars.

1. Khangan village, Tehsil Muzzafargarh:

Descendants of Abdul Karim Khan Babar reside here.

2. Khangarh:

The Babars here belong to the Yasinzai sub-section of Ghora Khel sub-tribe of Babars. Initially from Chaudhwan, the family of Naik Qadam Khan Babar moved to Ghazni and settled there. The tomb of Naik Qadam Khan Babar can still be found there.

From Ghazni, they moved to Bannu and then back to Chaudhwan.

From Chaudhwan, their family head, Muhammad Hussain, moved to Multan. His son, Abdul Samad Khan settled in Multan.

Allah Dad Khan, son of Abdul Samad Khan, moved on request of Khan Bibi (sister of Nawab Shuja Khan) to Khangarh as the administrator of Khangarh. His mango plantations of the time were famous. Saifullah Khan, son of Allah Dad Khan, was awarded the title of “Nawab” and Honorary Majistrate during the British era.

Nawab Saifullah Khan has six sons, among them Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan is a big name in Pakistani politics.

Sheberghan
Babars are widely scattered in Afghanistan, but the biggest community resides in the city of Sheberghan. It is the provincial capital of Jowzjan Province.

Before the reign of Sardar Daud, four thousand families of Babars were living in Sheberghan. During his time, upon the arrival of the Soviet Army, the Babar tribe supported Mujahideen. As a consequence, the lives of Babars there became miserable and their killing and looting started.

In 1953, 2000 Babar families moved further up to the mountainous areas while the remaining 2000 families moved to Balochistan (Pakistan). Pakistan arranged a camp for them in Loralai (Pakistan).

A few years back, Loralai camp was abolished. One thousand Babars families moved back to Sheberghan, 400 families are scattered throughout Balochistan and 600 families or so, live as a community in Qila Saifullah. Babars from all four sub-tribes are found here.

Afghanistan
There is a rough estimate of 70,000 Babars living in Afghanistan presently, in very scattered places.

The major settlements of Babars in Afghanistan includes:

Sheberghan (capital of Jowzjan province) - 9000 families

Kandahar (capital of Kandahar province) - 2000 families

Minor settlements include:

Maymana (capital of Faryab province) - 1500 families

Other settlements can be found throughout Afghanistan including, Kunar province, Herat province, Kundus province, Lugar province and Baghlan province. Babar communities can also be found in the cities of Kabul and Ghazni.

In the 16th century, a lot of Babar families migrated to Afghanistan from Chaudhwan and Zhob. They were tired of the high death toll resulting from bloody fights with neighbouring tribes for the sake of survival, water and lands. They were mainly rich people due to trading involvement. A majority of them settled in Kandahar, because Kandahar was a major economic and political center at that time in the region.

Gul Mohammad Khan was the chief of the tribe here and he was a member of the Loya Jirga during Mirwais Hotak's reign. He was also appointed as the Finance Minister during the era of Ahmad Shah Durrani.

In the 18th century, Nur Mohammad Khan, son of Gul Muhammad Khan was the Finance Minister during the era of Timur Shah Durrani and Zaman Shah Durrani. He did a lot for the Babar community in this whole region.

In the 19th century, in the time of Sher Ali Khan, Amir of Afghanistan, Pakhtun tribes from South Afghanistan were motivated to settle in the North. The same policy continued till King Zahir Shah.

This policy stimulated another big migration of Babars from Kandahar to Northern Afghanistan, mainly to Sheberghan.

Nowadays, the main trade in Sheberghan belongs to Babar tribe.

Tor Abbas Khan is chief of the Babar tribe at Sheberghan. The District Governor of Faizabad, Gohar Khan is also from the Babar community. The elders of these Babars still remember Chaudhwan as their native village.

Mehboob Ali Babar belongs to grand grand Son of Haji Gul Babar, gul babar is a Zamindar of his village

Dera Ghazi Khan
Babars here descendants of two families:

1. Madu Khan

He belonged to the Maswad Khel Babar sub-tribe and resided in Chaudhwan. He murdered his tribesman in the village. The Jirga decided to provide 200 animals and 2 women for marriage to the affected family in compensation. Madu Khan decided to leave the village. He travelled on the right bank of the Indus River and reached Dera Ghazi Khan, where he settled. His grandson, Abdul Karim, joined the British Police.

Today, the majority of this family serves in the Police Department.

2. Charsham Khan

He belonged to the Ibrahim Khel Babar sub-tribe and also resided in Chaudhwan. Charsham Khan Babar was a follower of Pir Khwaja Sulaiman. He moved to Druk, District Musa Khel, Balochistan to live with Pir Sahib. When Pir Sahib shifted to Taunsa in Punjab, this Babar family also accompanied him. From Taunsa Sharif, this family, later on shifted to Dera Ghazi Khan.

Notable People

Amanullah Khan Babar (Manu Khan)

Amanullah Khan Babar (Also known by his nickname 'Manu Khan') is the forefather of all the Pirpiai Babars. He was the first well known personality from the Babar tribe. Amanullah Khan belonged to the Ibrahim Khel sub-tribe and, hence, all Babars from Pirpiai belong the same sub-tribe. Initially, he belonged to Ibrahim Khel Kot, situated near Zhob. The remnants of the great fort built there by him still exist. The date inscribed on this fort is of AD 1650 (era of King Shah Jahan).

By profession, Amanullah Khan was a great trader, leading the Babar caravan starting from Calcutta all the way to Bukhara. He was also a renowned as being a great warrior, protecting the caravans from being looted. Many heroic stories are told about his fights with different tribes.

By the end of his life, Amanullah Khan moved to Pirpiai along with his family, the main reason for which was to save his children from his enemies. This migration towards Pirpiai is well known and remembered by all the Babars in Zhob and Ibrahim Khel Kot. His name is included in all the Shajra (Family Tree) collected from the Pirpiai Babars.

With the arrival of Amanullah Khan, the Babars settled in the Pirpiai region, in the beginning of the 18th century (era of King Aurangzeb). All the Babars there today are his descendants.

Gul Mohammad Khan Babar

AD (1709–1747)

Gul Mohammad Khan Babar belonged to the Gora Khel sub-tribe and used to live in Kandahar. There, he was the chief of the Babar tribe and Member of the Loya Jirga in the era of Mir Wais Hotak. Gul Mohammad Khan Babar was also the Finance Minister in the reign of Ahmad Shah Durrani (AD 1737-1747). He is also remembered most for his participation in the Third Battle of Panipat against the Marathas.

Nur Mohammad Khan Babar

AD (1747–1798)

Nur Mohammad Khan Babar was a famous personality of his time. He belonged to the Gora Khel sub-tribe and was also from Kandahar. He was the son of Gul Mohammad Khan Babar and like his father, he was appointed as Finance Minister in the reign of Timur Shah Durrani. He later on continued with the same post in Zaman Shah Durrani's time. He was also the father-in-law of Zaman Shah Durrani.

Nur Mohammad Khan Babar served and helped his tribesmen in Shikarpur, Multan and Chaudhwan. Due to his efforts, the Babar tribe was exempted from taxes and compulsory recruitment in the army during the Durrani Empire. Sadly, in AD 1798, Nur Mohammad Khan Babar was murdered on the order of Zaman Shah Durrani, his own son-in-law and Shah of Afghanistan.
Abdul Kareem Khan Babar

He belonged to the Ibrahim Khel sub-tribe from Multan. Abdul Kareem Khan served as Chief of the Multan Provincial Army in the Sadozai and Sikh regimes. He was famous as a great administrator.

Sultan Mohammad Khan Babar

AD (1795–1822)

Another famous personality of his time, Sultan Mohammad Khan Babar belonged to the Gora Khel sub-tribe from Shikarpur. He was the grandson of Nur Mohammad Khan Babar. He was appointed as the Governor of Jalalabad in the era of Zaman Shah Durrani. He gave up his post and relocated to Shikarpur, upon the wish of his grandfather. Here, Sultan Mohammad Khan Babar purchased 50000 acres of land and also, a canal, from Dost Khan. He used to reside in Sultan Kot, just outside Shikarpur.

Sultan Mohammad Khan Babar was also on really good terms with Shuja Shah Durrani since his daughter was married to Shuja Shah Durrani's son, Fateh Jung. Shuja Shah Durrani stayed at his settlement in Shikarpur for many months.he also help him in his last attempt for throne of Afghanistan in 1838.

Sultan Mohammed Khan Babar was son of Behrose khan Babar governor of jalalabad in Tamoor Shah era.

Zaman Khan Babar

AD (1849–1901)

Zaman Khan Babar was a Maswad Khel babar from Chaudhwan. He served as a Commander in the army of Amir Abdur Rahman Khan. He also led the fight against the invaders from neighbouring tribes in order to protect Zam Chaudhwan (the only drinking water and irrigation source to Chaudhwan). Zaman Khan Babar was known as a brilliant warrior, leader and tactician. He also built a fort at Zam Chaudhwan.

Allama Abdul Shakoor Rashad

AD (1921–2004)

Allama Abdul Shakoor Rashad was an Ibrahim Khel Babar from Kandahar. He served as the Deputy Mayor of Kandahar and later on in life was a Professor at Kabul University. He has written a total of 139 books. 59 out of which have been published and 80 are unpublished. One of his unpublished books, "Aminul Mulk and Babar Clan" is the leading source on the history of Babars.

Colonel Mir Haider Khan

AD (?-1973)

One of the first Pukhtun officers in the British Army, he was a much respected village elder from Pirpiai, a man of distinction. He served as the last Defence Minister of Kalat before its accession to Pakistan. A major landlord of Pirpiai and a notable person of the Babar tribe, he was a man known for his flair and principles. He was an avid antique collector. Col. Mir Haider Khan was also the one who, for a large sum of money, purchased Peshawar Zoo and shifted it to Pirpiai. Famous British generals were known to have been invited to Pirpiai Fort by him, which included Field Marshal Gracy, Field Marshal Roos Capel, General Hastings, the Governor General of India and many more notables of the time. The barbecues and shooting parties of the time were famous. Most remember him as the man that put a face to Pirpiai and probably is the architect of making the village what it is today.

Major General Adam Khan

AD (1910–1973)

A Sandhurst returned army officer, Maj. Gen. Adam Khan served in the British Indian Army and was later one of the first five Major-Generals in Pakistan. He was the nephew of Col. Mir Haider Khan and the son of Mir Safdar Khan. A distinguished officer of his time, he is still known in the Pakistan Army for his strong personality and principles. He was also appointed as the head of Pakistan Industrial Development Corporation. Maj. Gen. Adam Khan was a reputed landlord of Pirpiai, but in his later years chose to settle in the nearby village of Amangarh, where his sons and their families still reside. He was a recipient of the Military Cross, a British Military decoration, for "acts of exemplary gallantry".


Major General Naseerullah Khan Babar

AD (1928–2011)

A very well known personality in Pirpiai, Maj. Gen. Naseerullah Khan Babar served in the Pakistan Army. Throughout his life he remained an important political figure in Pirpiai and enjoyed several other posts. He was appointed the Inspector General of the Frontier Corps and was a senior central leader of Pakistan Peoples Party. He served as Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from 1975–1977 under Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto's government as well as the Interior Minister of Pakistan during Benazir Bhutto's second government from 1993–1996. He was a Special Assistant in Benazir Bhutto's first government from 1988–1990. He was awarded the Sitara-e-Jurat for single-handedly capturing an entire Indian company of soldiers during the 1965 war, and also the Hilal-e-Jurat, which he famously threw away along with other army medals at the presiding officer of a military tribunal, when Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was hanged by the military regime of General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq.


Major Farouk Adam Khan

AD (1940-)

One of the most prominent lawyers in Pakistan today, Maj. Farouk Adam Khan is the son of Maj. Gen. Adam Khan. Like his father, he was also a Sandhurst officer and was the architect of The Attock Conspiracy, whereby with the help of his brother Maj. Iftikhar Adam Khan and other army officers, he hatched a conspiracy in the 1970s to topple the government of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. They were apprehended by the then serving General Zia ul Haq and tried in the famous Attock Fort, after one of their own lost his nerve and went to report the entire scheme directly to the Prime Minister. Hence, naming the conspiracy by the same name and sentenced to life imprisonment later commuted to 5 years each, which they served. Farouk Adam Khan later served as the Prosecutor General of the National Accountability Bureau upon its formation. He was awarded the Sitara-e-Jurat for acts of bravery in the 1965 war


* IHSAN ULLAH BABER


One of the most respectable Judge in Pakistan,Ihsan Ullah Baber is the son of Abdul Sattar khan Baber.He was highly qualified and worked as District and Session Judge High Court Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhawa.He was born in 1947 and got retired in 2007 as District and Session Judge Peshawar.Now he is working as an Advocate OF HIGH COURT PESHAWAR.


Babar Queens

The first Babar Queen was the daughter of Nur Muhammad Khan. She was the wife of Zaman Shah Durrani, the Shah of Afghanistan. It is unclear as to whether her name was Shako Jan or Aziz Bibi.

The second Babar Queen was Ilum Bibi. She was the wife of Fateh Jung Durrani, son of Shuja Shah Durrani. She was the Queen of Afghanistan for the short duration that he was King.

 

[Pakistani E]

Hey I was wondering if you knew which major tribe is settled in Khost provine? Or is it all mix mash of different tribes? I needed this info because i'm trying to find which tribe a person I'm researching was from? If it helps he was from the village of sayed gah. That's all the Info I have sorry.

 

[Marwat Khan Lodhi]

Hey I was wondering if you knew which major tribe is settled in Khost provine? Or is it all mix mash of different tribes? I needed this info because i'm trying to find which tribe a person I'm researching was from? If it helps he was from the village of sayed gah. That's all the Info I have sorry.

Khostwal tribe. Also Zadran/jadran, mangal, muqbil and chamkani. So it is hard to guess.

 

[Ayush]

so which one of them do you belong to??

 

[Kompromat]

It will take me some time to read and understand the whole thing.

 

[Marwat Khan Lodhi]

Gandapur

The Gandapurs (Pashto: ګنډہ پور‎, Urdu: گنڈہ پو&#1585, also called Gandapore or Afghanpur (Pashto: افغانپور&#8206, are a Pashtun tribe inhabiting the environs of Dera Ismail Khan, located in the southern region of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, near the frontier with South Waziristan. The Gandapurs reside principally in the small town of Kulachi on the bank of the Gomal River. Across the Durand line, a large part of the tribe lives in the Ghazni Province of Afghanistan, particularly in Sur Kelay.

They trace their origin to Afghanistan, and a large part of them settled in the Dera Ismail Khan area in the 17th century AD after a bloody feud with Lavun tribe near Qamar Din Karez.

Sardar Innayat ULLAH Khan Gandapur

History

The Gandâpûr, like many other nomadic Afghan groups in the region, regularly moved between Afghanistan and the Dâmân plains stretching from the Indus to the eastern slopes of the Sulaiman Mountains. They combined pastoral nomadism with the transportation and peddling of goods between Central Asia and South Asia. The pattern of these nomadic movements and the transformations of their society fluctuated with the rhythms of trade and the nature of their contacts with the surrounding political economies throughout their history. During the 17th century, most of the Gandâpûr had settled in Dêra Ismâîl Khân, with large numbers engaged in the trade between India and Khorasan, which intensified in the next two centuries

Origin legend

There are several contentious traditions about the origins of this tribe. It is, however, most commonly held that the original name of Gandapur was Tairi Khan, who was a Pashtun/Pukhtun living in Afghanistan. He had three sons and one daughter. Their names are as follows:

Yaqub Khan (His descendants are known as Yaqub Zai)
Ibrahim Khan (His descendants are known as Ibrahim Zai)
Hussain Khan (His descendants are known as Hussain Zai)
Khubai, the daughter of Gandapur. Her descendants are known as Khubezai

The Khaddal Lavuñ episode
Lavuñ is a small Pashtun tribe residing in and around Qamardin Karez in the west of Zhob district in northwest Balochistan. Gandapurs used to pass through their area while going from their place in Ghazni to Dera Ismail Khan in a usual annual cycle of nomadic life.

Khaddal Lavuñ was chief of the Lavuñ tribe in the 16th century AD. He chose a narrow pass in the way of nomadic tribes going to Dera Ismail Khan and the rest of Indus plain passing through his area and laid there. He demanded that girls from various tribes should come and lift him in their shawls. That was very humiliating demand and none of the tribe could accede to that. When the Gandapurs arrived at the narrow pass, they found Khaddal Lavuñ lying in the pass. When lengthy negotiations bore no fruit, some of the Gandapur young men disguised themselves as girls wearing shawls of women and came to Khaddal. Apparently they had come to lift him in their shawls but they divided him into pieces.

The death of Khaddal Lavuñ brought them in confrontation with the Lavuñ tribe and their route from Ghazni to Dera Ismail Khan no longer remained safe. This led to the separation of the tribe into two parts. One part of the tribe settled in Damaan, Kulachi, Dera Ismail Khan and the other part remained in their original abode in Ghazni, Afghanistan. A distance of more than 450 kilometers between the two places and the enemy tribe inhabiting the route divided the tribe. Over a period of almost four centuries, the two parts of the Gandapur tribe have lost any contact between them.
Gandapur or Afghanpur

When the great Afghan King and warrior Ahmad Shah Abdali gathered all the Pashtun tribes and conquered a large part of the area presently comprising Afghanistan and Pakistan, Gandapurs were part of his army. As the tradition goes, soldiers speaking Persian used to pronounce the "d" in the word Gandapur as soft "d" (like "th" in the English word "the"). With the soft "d", the word "Ganda" would become a Hindustani language word "Ganda" (meaning "not clean" or "untidy"). When Ahmad Shah Abdali came to know that fact, he bestowed upon Gandapurs the title of "Afghanpur". Gandapurs were held in high esteem by Ahmad Shah Abdali.

Size of the tribe
Gandapurs living in Pakistan do not form a very large tribe. They have occupied northern part of Tehsil Kulachi. The area occupied by Gandapurs is roughly one-third of the area as occupied by the Marwat tribe. The population of Gandapurs may range from 70,000 to 90,000. But their influence is relatively large.

The Gandapurs living in Afghanistan may also range between 30,000 to 40,000, according to conservative estimates. They live in Ghazni district in Afghanistan, where they associate themselves with the Tarakai tribe.

There is no interaction between Gandapurs living in Afghanistan and Pakistan.


Sub-tribes
The tribe is further divided into the following sub-tribes; it has not been possible to trace how these sub-tribes are interrelated. These are the sub-tribes existing in Kulachi, Dera Ismail Khan region at present. It is also possible that some of these sub-tribes may not be part of the original lineage of Gandapur. They may have been living with Gandapurs and may have merged with them over a period.

Ali Zai (not to be confused with the Alizai of Dera Ismail Khan)
Allah Dad Khel
Bahadar Khel
Badi khel
Bara Khel
Dai Khel
Khwaji Khel
Behlol Khel
Bazeed Khel
Hafiz Khel
Hammarh (cousins of Gandapur)
Hussain Zai
Ibrahim Zai
Kamal Khel
Khadar Khel
Akteyar Khel
Marirh (cousins of Gandapur)
Musa Zai
Nasar Khel
Natthu Zai
Shakhi (Cousins of Gandapur)
Sheikh
Shehzad Khel
Usman Khel
Yakhel (or Yahya Khel)
Yaqub Zai
Zarni Khel
zuhaq zai

Some of the sub-tribes, though living with Gandapurs, are not considered part of the original tree. They are as follows:

Ghurani
Marhail
Rana Zai
Jafar Zai
Nur Ahmad Khel

In Afghanistan, Gandapurs are considered as cousins or a part of the large Tarakai tribe.

Gandapur villages in Kulachi
Gandapurs reside in many villages other than the city of Kulachi. Important settlements or villages are as following;

Abdullah Gara
Attal Sharif
Daulat
Guldad Gara
Hathala
Ibrahim Gara
Isa Khan Gara
Jaana
Jahan khani
Kanorhi
Kirri Malang
Kundo Kot
Luni
Madda Gara
Maddi
Mastaan
Pota
Qalandar (Daulatpur Gharbi)
Rorhi
Sultan Kot
Takwara
Wali Kot

Further reading
The most important sources regarding the history of Gandapurs are as follows:

Tarikh-e-Pushtun (History of Pushtun) by Sher Muhammad Khan Ibrahim Zai Gandapur. It is originally a book written in Persian under the title "Khurshid e Jahan" (Sun of the World) for Begum of Bhopal. The Urdu translation of this book was published in the 80s by Alauddin Khan Gandapur, the great grandson of Sher Muhammad Khan in collaboration with the Urdu research writer Jamil Jalibi who arranged the book to be translated in Urdu by Siraj Uddin Alvi. The book was written in the later half of the 19th century.

Tarikh-e-Ganadapur (History of the Gandapurs) by Qadir Dad Khan Gandapur. This book is mainly based on information drawn from Tarikh-e-Pushtun (History of Pashtun) by Sher Muhammad Khan. This book was written in the 1970s and also gives valuable information about Gandapurs and their town Kulachi in the mid-twentieth century.

Tarikh-e-Sarzamin-e-Gomal (Urdu) (History of the Gomal Land) by Aminullah Khan Gnadapur, published by National Book Foundation, Islamabad, 2008. The book besides other tribes of D.I.Khan, Tank and Waziristan; comprehensively covers the details about this tribe from their origin and migration into this area right up to 1977. The only book on the subject having a detailed bibliography and further reading references.

Gazetteer of District Dera Ismail Khan (1882–83) provides valuable information about the Gandapurs and their areas. This is one of the most authentic sources about the Gandapurs from the latter half of the 19th century. It provides various statistics regarding the Gandapur population and their area.

 

[Shabaz Sharif]

All these tribes marry each other? Or they work like caste system?

 

[Marwat Khan Lodhi]

All these tribes marry each other? Or they work like caste system?

Depend whether the population is homogenous or mixed. E.g nowshera is tribe-wise heavily mixed area so lot of inter-tribal marraiges. On the other hand Afridi population of khyber agency is very homogenous and they tend to marry within their own tribe. For such reason traits and features of afridis are heavily defined, you can identify an afridi just from his looks while pashtun of nowshera, mardan, peshawer etc is not well defined and distinct.
To some degree neighbour tribes do marry with each other, most of the inter-tribal marraiges take place in the areas where boundry of one tribe meets with another tribe's boundry.
Some tribes have superiority notions about themeselves and do not marry with those tribes which they deem inferior e.g wazirs look down upon bannuchis and khattaks while afridis look down upon khattaks and peshaweris. Though i must exceptions are always there and also times are changing , education and ecomonic and social status are becoming standards.

 

[Hyperion]

Yara, almost everyone looks down upon Khattaks, as per my perception, at least. And "Banuchis", isn't a tribe by itself.

And no. Time will never change us.

Depend whether the population is homogenous or mixed. E.g nowshera is tribe-wise heavily mixed area so lot of inter-tribal marraiges. On the other hand Afridi population of khyber agency is very homogenous and they tend to marry within their own tribe. For such reason traits and features of afridis are heavily defined, you can identify an afridi just from his looks while pashtun of nowshera, mardan, peshawer etc is not well defined and distinct.
To some degree neighbour tribes do marry with each other, most of the inter-tribal marraiges take place in the areas where boundry of one tribe meets with another tribe's boundry.
Some tribes have superiority notions about themeselves and do not marry with those tribes which they deem inferior e.g wazirs look down upon bannuchis and khattaks while afridis look down upon khattaks and peshaweris. Though i must exceptions are always there and also times are changing , education and ecomonic and social status are becoming standards.

 

[Hyperion]

Btw, good work!

@Pak-one

 

[Marwat Khan Lodhi]

Yara, almost everyone looks down upon Khattaks, as per my perception, at least. And "Banuchis", isn't a tribe by itself.

And no. Time will never change us.

I have talked with bannuchis on this, they consider themeselves descendants of bibi bano and her husband shitak. But they are heavily mixed people, you will find even yousafzais, awans, durranis, khattaks etc among them.

 

[Icewolf]

Gosh this is so confusing... Any extended family that is Pashtun can basically call itself a tribe...

 

[Hyperion]

Yara, those are just fairytales, just like some other so called "tribes", who have no lineage to speak of. Yousafzai's & Durrani's are a different case, they aren't Banuchis to begin with. Bannu is a geographical locality, unrelated to any particular tribe.

I have talked with bannuchis on this, they consider themeselves descendants of bibi bano and her husband shitak. But they are heavily mixed people, you will find even yousafzais, awans, durranis, khattaks etc among them.

Nope, not so simple. These are pure races, always have been.

Gosh this is so confusing... Any extended family that is Pashtun can basically call itself a tribe...

 

[farhan_9909]

why do other pashtuns look down upon the khattak?any specific reason about this?

i do have a few khattak friend and they are very proud of being khattak

And i guess pak1 is right.banuchi or banusi indeed are a tribe.and has something to do with shetak.

those claiming to be durrani or awan or yousafzai might not be banusi to begin with.but rather those settled in bannu and speaking the local language.

found this on wiki

Bannuchi - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
@Pak one

can you post some detailed info about the baka khel wazir?
if possible about the surrani banusi people aswell

 

[Armstrong]

Yara, those are just fairytales, just like some other so called "tribes", who have no lineage to speak of. Yousafzai's & Durrani's are a different case, they aren't Banuchis to begin with. Bannu is a geographical locality, unrelated to any particular tribe.

You mean like the lot of you tracing ancestry to a fictional & heavily romanticized fellow called Qais Abdur Rasheed ?

Nope, not so simple. These are pure races, always have been.

Pure - My Arse !

I've seen Pashtuns in all sizes, complexions & features !

Purity sirf Horse Breeding mein hotiii haii not amongst us Human beings !