Pashtun Americans Explained

Group:	Pashtun Americans
Population:	538,554 (2021) (Estimate)
Popplace:	New York City, San Francisco Bay Area, Virginia, Los Angeles Texas, Washington, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Alabama
Langs:	American English Pashto Dari Persian and Hindi Urdu spoken as second/third languages
Rels:	Sunni Islam, Shia Islam,
Related:	Afghan diaspora, Pakistani diaspora,

Pashtun Americans (Pushto; Pashto: د امريکا پښتانه) are Americans who are of Pashtun origin, an Eastern Iranian ethnic group originating from Afghanistan and Pakistan.^[1]

Demographics

In the United States, there are 538,554 Pashtuns. Pashtun Americans are a sub-community within the wider Pakistani American and Afghan American communities. Areas with large populations include New York City, where there are over 12,000 Pashtuns,^[2] as well as the San Francisco Bay Area, Virginia, Los Angeles, Georgia, Chicago metropolitan area, the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, and Oregon. Fremont, California has the largest Afghan community in the United States.^[3] According to the 2010 Census, 15,788 individuals identified Pashto as their first language spoken at home.^[4] Pashtun-Americans are categorized as White-Americans under the US census.^[5]

Military

A small number of Pashtun Americans have served in the United States Armed Forces, in varying roles in the War in Afghanistan. Lieutenant Colonel Asad A. Khan, a Pakistani-American marine, was a member of one of the first conventional units to enter Afghanistan.^[6] Khan would return to Afghanistan in command of the 1st Battalion 6th Marines in 2004; only to be later relieved of command.^[7] Pfc. Usman Khattak, an ethnic Pashtun from northwest Pakistan, is a US Army Food Specialist with the 539th Transportation Division and is based at the US Army camp in Kuwait.^[8]

Media

The Voice of America has a Pashto language service.^[9]

Organizations

The Pakhtoon American Community Association (PACA) is a cultural association based in Maryland, which organizes an annual Pashto Conference, in addition to other events.^{[10] [11]} The Khyber Society, founded in 1986 in New York, also arranges cultural events.^[2]

See also

• Pakistani Americans
• Afghan Americans
• Pashtun diaspora

References

12. ^ 42% of 200,000 Afghan-Americans = 84,000 and 15% of 363,699 Pakistani-Americans = 54,554. Total Afghan and Pakistani Pashtuns in USA = 238,554.

Notes and References

1. Book: Siddique. Abubakar. The Pashtun Question: The Unresolved Key to the Future of Pakistan and Afghanistan. 12. 2014. Oxford University Press.
2. Web site: 'I Am a Khan, I Am Not a Terrorist' Say Pashtuns in New York. Feet in 2 Worlds. 6 January 2011. 24 August 2015. Mohsin. Zaheer.
3. Web site: The Afghans: Their History and Culture. Center for Applied Linguistics. 2002. Barbara. Robson. Juliene. Lipson.
4. Web site: US Census 2010 (see row# 89). U.S. Census Bureau. Table 1. Detailed Languages Spoken at Home and Ability to Speak English for the Population 5 Years and Over for the United States: 2006-2008.
5. Web site: In the Matter of K, 2 I&N Dec. 253 Casetext . 2023-09-14 . casetext.com.
6. News: Tempest . Rone . 25 May 2002 . U.S. Heroes Whose Skills Spoke Volumes . Los Angeles Times . 20 November 2014 .
7. Book: Lowrey, Colonel Nathan S. . 2011 . U.S. Marines in Afghanistan, 2001-2002: From the Sea . Washington, D.C. . History Division, United States Marine Corps . 299–300 . 978-0-16-089557-9 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20141129020107/http://www.mcu.usmc.mil/historydivision/Pages/Publications/Publication%20PDFs/FROM%20THE%20SEA.pdf . 2014-11-29 .
8. Web site: Pakistani-American Soldier Compelled to Serve in U.S. Army. DVIDS. 13 May 2009. 15 November 2014. Kelli. Roesch.
9. Web site: Homepage. Pashto VoA. 24 August 2015.
10. Web site: Homepage. Pakhtoon American Community Association. 24 August 2015.
11. News: Portraying the true face of Pashtuns to the world. Dawn. 3 September 2013. 24 August 2015. Zahir Shah. Sherazi.