Pashtuns
Sign in to savePashtuns are an Iranian ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically referred to as Afghans even into the 1970s, although the constitution of 1923 began the use of 'Afghans' as a demonym for all citizens of the Kingdom, regardless of their ethnic group, to create an Afghan national identity.
AI overview
Pashtuns are an Iranian ethnic group with a large population in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan who were historically called Afghans. They matter because they have played a significant role in Afghan history and identity, particularly as Afghanistan worked to build a unified national identity that included all ethnic groups rather than just one.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Key facts
- Ethnic group.native_name_lang
- ps
- Ethnic group.group
- Pashtuns
- Ethnic group.pop1
- 38,864,994 (2024)
- Ethnic group.pop2
- (2025)
- Ethnic group.pop4
- 578,315 (2008)
- Ethnic group.pop5
- 279,628 (2024)
- Ethnic group.ref5
- (based on extrapolations)
- Ethnic group.pop3
- 1.27 million (2024)
- Ethnic group.pop6
- 50,597 (2021)
- Ethnic group.pop7
- 48,000 (2023)
- Ethnic group.pop12
- 4,620 (2020)
- Ethnic group.pop8
- 31,700 (2021)
- Ethnic group.pop9
Article
32 sectionsContents
- Geographic distribution
- Afghanistan and Pakistan
- India
- Iran
- In other regions
- Etymology
- Ancient historical references: Pashtun
- Middle historical references: Afghan
- History and origins
- Linguistic origin
- Diverse origin
- Greek origin
- Hephthalite origin
- Anthropology and oral traditions
- Theory of Pashtun descent from Israelites
- Modern era
- Genetics
- Definitions
- Tribes
- Durrani and Ghilji Pashtuns
- Language
- Culture
- Jirga
- Religion
- Pashto literature and poetry
- Media and arts
- Sports
- Women
- Notable people
- Explanatory notes
- References
- Further reading
Pashtuns are an Iranian ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically referred to as Afghans even into the 1970s, although the constitution of 1923 began the use of 'Afghans' as a demonym for all citizens of the Kingdom, regardless of their ethnic group, to create an Afghan national identity.
The Pashtuns speak the Pashto language, which belongs to the Eastern Iranian branch of the Iranian language family. The dialect of Wanetsi is spoken mainly among Pashtuns of the Tareen tribe in Pakistan, and Ormuri among non-Pashtun Ormur people and Wazir Pashtuns. Additionally, Dari serves as the second language of Pashtuns in Afghanistan, while those in Pakistan speak Urdu and English. In India, the majority of those of Pashtun descent have lost the ability to speak Pashto and instead speak Hindi and other regional languages, while those in Iran primarily speak Southern Pashto, and Persian as a second language.