The Kipchak Ethnic Component in the Composition of the Peoples of Afghanistan

Purpose. The aim of this study is to identify the Kipchak ethnic component in some of the peoples of Afghanistan – the Chahar Aimaks, Aimak-i Digar and the Hazaras.

Results. Beginning in the 11^th century, the Kipchak tribes moved into the territory of Maverannahr and established relations with Khorezmshah state. Marriage ties with the Khorezmshahs led to the Kipchaks becoming their military support, and as a result, becoming active participants in their expansion into Afghanistan. During the reign of Emir Timur and his political heirs, the Kipchak tribes, which were part of three military-tribal associations – the Ilchikdai ulus, the Sary-Buga ulus and its descendants, as well as the military corps of Emir Zu-n-Nun Arghun, moved into Afghanistan. During the reign of the Timurid Sultan Mahmud, the Turkestan Kipchak Khusrau Shah came to power and captured the territories of Northern Afghanistan from the Amu Darya to the Hindu Kush. From the beginning of the 16^th century, Northern Afghanistan came under the rule of the Uzbek tribes, among which the Kipchaks were also recorded. As a result of these processes, the Kipchaks gradually became part of the local peoples – the Chahar-Aimaks, Aimak-i Digar and the Hazaras. The Kipchaks are mentioned as a part of the Chahar-Aimaks in the notes of travelers Ferrier, Hanikov, Stewart and others. Sources connect the Kipchaks with the Chahar-Aimak tribes of Taimani, Hazara-Chahar, Jamshidi, and also mention them as a part of the Aimak-i Digar, as well as a part of the Hazara tribe of Khoja. Population genetics data records the relationship between the representatives of the Hazara tribe of Jaguri and the Kipchaks within the Kyrgyz.

Conclusions. Analysis of various sources shows that the Kipchak tribes appeared on the territory of Afghanistan during the reign of the Khorezmshahs. The second wave of the Kipchak tribes moved there during the reign of Emir Timur and his descendants. The Kipchak tribes, as part of the Uzbeks, penetrated into Afghanistan during their expansion led by Sheibani Khan. As a result of these events, the ethnic component of the Kipchaks became part of the nomadic peoples of this country – the Chahar-Aimaks, Aimak-i Digar and the Hazaras.

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