The Khazarians have an unusual fate. They now live in a mountainous area of central Afghanistan. These people have a Mongoloid appearance and speak the language of the Iranian group. The Khazarians are descendants of the Mongol warriors who conquered the region in the 1220s.
The Khazarians call themselves hezare, which means «a thousand» in Persian. In 1221-1223, Afghanistan was conquered by the Mongols, who then left security garrisons in the region. At that time, the Mongol hordes swept through Central Asia, destroying towns and villages. At that time, Genghis Khan’s son Tolui led the Mongol troops.
Khan Tolui with his wife Sorgaktani. The photo is in the public domain.
Gradually, these people began to mix with the local population and adopted the local language of the Farsi group. However, the Khazarians spoke the Mongolian language even before the beginning of the XVI century. And when the Mongol empire gradually began to weaken, the Khazars gradually began to be ousted from their fertile lands. After the fall of the Mongol Empire, the Khazar people maintained their independence for several centuries. Later, the legendary Tamerlane defeated the troops of the Chagatai Prince Nikuder, and the Khazars moved to the east. They settled in the mountainous and rocky region of Afghanistan called Hazarjat, as well as in the northwestern part of the country. Some Hazara groups also live in the Afghan provinces of Herat, Kandahar, Nangarhar and Badakhshan. They are also present in Iran on the territory of Eastern Khorasan. Their number in Afghanistan reaches about 2 million people. The famous orientalist V. Bartold considered the Khazarians to be «Iranized Mongols.»
The Hazara region is a cultural and historical region in northern Pakistan. Photos from free sources on the Internet.
The Hazara people consist of various tribes with famous names: Barlas, Oirats, Merkits, Kipchaks, Tatars, Bayats, Uighurs, Khitans, etc. A little later, some of the Hazaras also moved to the Pakistani city of Quetta. This people remained independent for a long time until in the 19th century, the Afghan Emir Abdurrahman, with the help of the Pashtuns, captured Hazarajat. The Khazarians then repeatedly raised uprisings from the 1880s to the 20th century.
Hazara girl in Daikundi province (Central Afghanistan), 2017. Photo from free sources on the Internet.
The main fields of activity of this people are agriculture, cattle breeding, trade and handicrafts. They have a very developed production of cloth called barrack, from which caftans, trousers and winter plaid shawls are made. Until recently, the Khazarians led a nomadic lifestyle. Their settlements were surrounded by a mud-brick wall with watchtowers at the corners. The first Mongol ruler of Iran to convert to Islam was Ghazan, and with him thousands of Chingizi Hazaras (which means descendants of Genghis Khan) also converted to Islam. They have long converted to Shiite Islam, but they still have some shamanic customs. During the Afghan War of 1979-1989, the Hazaras fought stubbornly against the Soviet army, and then waged war with the Taliban.
The Khazarians are walking along the road to the city of Farand. Photos from free sources on the Internet.
This people still has a tribal division. Today, there are about 8 million Khazarians living in the world, who are gradually consolidating.