Zaman Shah Durrani
King of Afghanistan
Sketch work of Zaman Shah Durrani
Reign	Durrani Empire: 1793 – 1800
Full name	Zaman Shah Durrani
Born	1770
Died	1844
Predecessor	Timur Shah Durrani
Successor	Mahmud Shah Durrani
Dynasty	Durrani dynasty
Father	Timur Shah Durrani

Zaman Shah Durrani, (Pashto, Persian, Urdu, Arabic: زماں شاہ درانی), (c. 1770 – 1844) was ruler of the Durrani Empire from 1793 until 1800. He was the grandson of Ahmad Shah Durrani and the fifth son of Timur Shah Durrani. An ethnic Pashtun like the rest of his family and Durrani rulers, Zaman Shah became the third King of Afghanistan. Zaman Shah Durrani was the grandson of Alamgir II and a nephew of Shah Alam II.

Early years[link]

Zaman Shah Durrani in Durbar

He seized the throne of the Durrani Empire on the death of his father, Timur Shah. He defeated his rivals, his brothers, with the help of Sardar Payenda Khan, chief of the Barakzais. He extracted an oath of allegiance from the final challenger, Mahmud, and in return relinquished the governorship of Herat. In so doing, he divided the power base between Herat and his own government in Kabul, a division which was to remain in place for a century. Kabul was the primary base of power, while Herat maintained a state of quasi-independence. Kandahar was fought over for the spoils.

During his reign he tried to combine his dispersed relatives together who were deported by his father Timur Shah. His uncle Saifullah Khan Durrani, his sons Mohammad Umar, Bashir Ahmad Khan and Shams Ur Rehman, his cousins Faizullah Khan and Abdullah Khan lived in Akora Khattak^{[citation needed]} in present day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. They were contacted to come back to Afghanistan but without success. Saifullah Khan died in 1779 and after that the family was led by Faizullah Khan but he disliked the bad habits of Abdullah Khan and Bashir Ahmad Khan and left Akora Khattak and went to Bannu without informing his relatives.^{[citation needed]} Later on, after the death of his wife, Abdullah Khan Durrani migrated to Kohat in 1791 where he married a widow, Pashmina.

Zaman Shah tried his best to recombine his family members and relatives so as to gain power but many of them were living an unknown life. Some of them have even been forgotten their identity.

He attempted to repeat his father's success in India, but his attempts at expansion brought him into conflict with the British. The British induced the Shah of Persia to invade Durrani, thwarting his plans by forcing him to protect his own lands.

In his own lands things went well for Zaman, at least initially. He was able to force Mahmud from Herat and into a Persian exile. However, Mahmud established an alliance with Fateh Khan, with whose support he was able to strike back in 1800, and Zaman had to flee toward Peshawar. But he never made it; on the way, he was captured, blinded and imprisoned in Kabul, in the Bala Hissar. Little information about the rest of his life is available, but he was probably imprisoned for nearly 40 years, until his death, during which time Afghanistan continued to experience much political turmoil.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Zaman Shah Durrani

• The British Library – Chronology: from the emergence of the Afghan Kingdom to the Mission of Mountstuart Elphistone, 1747–1809
• Encyclopædia Britannica – Zaman Shah (1793–1800)

Durrani (Pashto: دراني) or Abdali (Pashto: ابدالی) is the name of a chief Pashtun tribal confederation in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Originally known by their ancient name Abdali later as Durrani they have been called Durrani since the beginning of the Durrani Empire in 1747.^[1] The number of Durranis are estimated to be roughly 16% of the population of Afghanistan or 5 million individuals.^[2] Durrani are found throughout Afghanistan, although large concentrations are found in the South, they are also found to less extent in East, West and Central Afghanistan. They are also found in large numbers in Pakistan, mainly inhabiting the Western area of the nation. The Durrani Pashtuns of Afghanistan are usually bilingual in Pashto and Persian while those of Pakistan in Pashto and Urdu.

The Durranis have been prominent leaders, as the royal family of Afghanistan is derived from this tribe, and a substantial number of Durrani Pashtuns are bureaucrats and public officials, as well as businessmen, wealthy merchants and hold high ranks in the military.

History[link]

Ahmad Shah Durrani established the Durrani Empire in 1747 and the name Durrani originates from that period.

The Durranis are, like other Pashtun people, most probably Indo-European, Iranic in heritage and language. They were known in the past as Abdalis, from approximately the 7th century until the mid-18th century when Ahmad Shah Durrani was chosen as the new Emir and the Durrani Empire was established. One of Ahmad Shah's first acts as Emir was to adopt the title padshah durr-i durran ('King, "pearl of the age").^[3] He united the Pashtun tribes following a loya jirga in western Kandahar and changed his own name from Ahmad Shah Abdali to Ahmad Shah Durrani. Since that period, the kings of Afghanistan have been of Durrani extraction.

The origins of the Abdalis were most likely the Hephthalites.^[4] However, the traditional tribal-mythical account of the Abdalis is traced to (Qais ul-Malik) Abdal Rashid (the first and supposed founder of the Pakhtun/Pukhtun race). Abdal had three sons, one of them was Ibrahim [Sarabun] whose first son was Sharf ud-din [Sharakh-bun] and his eldest son was Tarin (or Tareen) and Tarin's son was Malik Abdul and Abdul's son was Rajjal [Rajor] after Rajjal comes his son Isa, who produced a son Sulaiman (Zirak Khan) who was the ancestor of the Durranis. The Zirak line begins with Sulaiman (Zirak Khan). Zirak was father to Popalzai, Barakzai, and Alakozai.^[5]

The Durranis were the most divided Pashtun tribe(مهمبن)during the rule of the Ghilzai, with some having openly opposed them. The Durrani are the politically dominant Pashtun group in Afghanistan as the current President of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai, is of the Durrani sub-group known as the Popalzai and has close ties to the last king of Afghanistan, Zahir Shah, another member of the Durrani tribe Mohammadzai/Barakzai.

According to Hayat Khan's history of Afghanistan from their progenitor Bor Tarin/Tareen, otherwise known as Abdal, are descended their two main divisions the Zirak and the Panjpai. The term Abdal, however, gradually superseded that of Bor Tareen and came into special prominence when Ahmad Shah Abdali Sadozai/Popalzai commonly known as Durrani, began his career of conquest. The Achakzais are, in strictness, a branch of the Barakzai but Ahmad Shah, Durrani himself an Abdal/Bor Tarin/Tareen, fearing the growing numbers of the Barakzai, separated them from the parent stock, since which time their organization has remained distinct. It is still used, though sparingly, for the Achakzais, who have become localised in Toba and are regarded as a separate political unit from the rest of the Tarin/Tareens.

Durrani prince tomb in Kohat

Branches or subtribes[link]

Sadozai Abdali tribe is the tribe Ahmad Shah Abdali was from. The Durrani Tareen tribe is divided into two branches Panjpai and Zirak. Durrani tribes of the Zirak branch include Popalzai, Alikozai, Barakzai, Badozai, and Achakzai.^{[citation needed]}

The Panjpai branch are mainly found in the western Kandahar, Helmand and Farah area, and they include Alizai, Noorzai, Ishakzai or Sakzai, Khogyani(Khakwani), and Maku.

The literacy rate of the Durrani is the highest among all the Pashtun tribes and are also considered the most liberal of the Pashtun tribes. The Durranis continue to live close to other people of Afghanistan and culturally overlap in many ways with the Tajiks whom they often share more cultural and socio-economic traits in comparison to the more tribal Pashtuns such as the Ghilzai, which is the other major Pashtun tribe.

See also[link]

• Alizai
• Ghilzai
• Hephthalite

References[link]

External links[link]

• Encyclopædia Britannica - Durrani

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (November 2010)

Nazia Iqbal is a popular Pashto singer. She was born in 1980 Swat Valley, Pakistan.^[1] She has fan base stretching from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pashtun areas of Balochistan, Pakistan to most parts of Afghanistan, and has achieved much recognition. Nazia sings in several languages: Pashto, Urdu, Punjabi, Persian and English. In 2005 she confirmed her marriage to Javid Feza, an Afghan singer from Ningarhar province of Afghanistan^[2] and settled in Dubai.^[3]

Her first Urdu album Paigham was released in 2001. Recently^[when?] her famous Albums in Pashto are: De Okhko Baran,Rasha Rasha,Armanoona and Ta Na Marawara Yem etc. ^[4]. Nazia pashto songs are liked by Pashtun people from every walk of life. In 2012, she announced that she would stop singing and concentrate more on following her religion. She stopped singing in January 2012 and her last public show was held on 27th January 2012 in Sharjah - UAE. She announced that she will establish an Islamic Education Center for children to let them know Islam properly. She also requested people to follow their parents instruction and don't hurt them as it will affect all of their lives.

References[link]