Afghanistan: the ethnic mix

Know your Pashtuns from your Tajiks and Uzbeks.

As 70 nations continue talking in London about the future of the country, here are some things you may not know about Afghanistan:

Ethnic mix

Pashtun: The dominant ethnic group, concentrated in the south-eastern regions, the Pashtuns furnish the Taliban with more recruits than any other group. Only 30% of the Afghan National Army’s trainees are Pashtun, 8% less than 2003 guidelines.

Tajik: Dari speakers of Iranian origin, concentrated in the north-east, Tajiks occupy many public roles in modern Afghanistan and account for 41% of all trained ANA troops.

Uzbek: The main Turkic people of Afghanistan, found in the northern regions; usually speak both Dari and Uzbek.

Hazara: Farsi speakers, mainly of the Hazarajat region. Set apart from the Sunni majority by their Shia beliefs.

Aimak: Dari speakers who inhabit the north-western highlands of Afghanistan and have a semi-nomadic lifestyle. Closely related to the Hazara; the main difference is religious.

Turkmen: Traditionally nomadic people of Turkic origin, closely related to the Uzbeks.

Baloch: A pastoral and desert-dwelling group of Iranian ethnicity, found in the south.

Other: Include Nuristanis and the Kirghiz.