| Barakzai | |
| Local Name: | بارکزئ |
| Ethnicity: | Pashtun |
| Location: | Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan |
| Population: | several millions |
| Branches: | Mohammadzai |
| Language: | Pashto and Dari |
| Religion: | Islam |
Bārakzai (Pushto; Pashto: بارکزی, Bārakzay; plur. Pushto; Pashto: بارکزي, Bārakzī) is the name of a Pashtun tribe from present-day Kandahar, Afghanistan. '"Barakzai" is a common name among the Pashtuns and it means "son of Barak" in Pashto.[1] According to the Encyclopædia Iranica, "In the detailed Pashtun genealogies there are no fewer than seven instances of the ethnic name Bārakzī, at very different levels of tribal segmentation. Six of them designate simple lineages within six different tribes located in the Solaymān mountains or adjacent lands... The seventh instance, on the other hand, designates one of the most important Pashtun tribes in numbers and historic role, part of the Zīrak branch of the Dorrānay confederation.
Ludwig W. Adamec wrote that the Barakzai are "an important section of the Zirak branch of the Durrani to which the former Barakzai/Muhammadzai ruling family belongs. In numbers, economic, and political strength, the Barakzai were the paramount tribe of Afghanistan...They were soldiers in the service of Nadir Shah, founder of the short-lived Afsharid dynasty in Iran, and were settled on land seized from the Ghilzai. They continued to hold jagirs, fiefs, in exchange for their military services to Ahmad Shah Durrani. When Painda Khan, leader of the Barakzais, was assassinated, the Barakzai chiefs under Dost Muhammad ousted and replaced the Sadozai dynasty. The Barakzai continue to possess large areas of agricultural land and extensive flocks in the area between Herat and Kandahar."[2]
Mohammadzai are the most prominent & powerful sub-tribe of Barakzai, they belong to the Zirak branch of the Durrani confederacy, and are primarily centered around Kandahar. They can also be found in other provinces throughout Afghanistan as well across the border in the Pakistan's Balochistan Province.
The Musahiban, originally the Yahya Khel clan,[3] are descendants of Sultan Mohammad Khan. Mohammadzai Barakzai are closely related to Amanullah Khan.
Shaghasi are sub-tribe of Barakzai, they belong to the Zirak branch of the Durrani confederacy, and are primarily centered around Kandahar.
The Shaghasi Khel were even more powerful than the Mohammadzai during the reign of Emir Sher Ali Khan - Emir of Afghanistan, and Emir Amanullah Khan - Emir of Afghanistan (February 28, 1919 – 1926), later King of Afghanistan (1926 - January 14, 1929).[4] Shaghasi Barakzai are closely related to Amanullah Khan. Queen Sawar Sultana Begum Shaghasi daughter of Loinab Sher Dil Khan of Shaghasi, Governor of Balkh was King Amanullah Khan's mother.
Ali Ahmad Khan Shaghasi (1883–1929) who was declared King of Afghanistan twice in 1929 was also Shaghasi Barakzai.
From 1826 to 1978, most rulers of Afghanistan belonged to the two branches of one Barakzai dynasty descending from the chiefs of the Barakzai tribe (belonging to the Mohammadzai sub-tribe).
The principal language of Barakzai is Pashto. Dari is also used as the language for records and correspondence.[5] [6]