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Dardic ethnic group of Pakistan and Afghanistan
Ethnic group
The
Yidgha-Munji people
(
????? ????? ?? ????
) also known as
Mukhbani
(
???????
) are the
Iranian
-
Pamiri peoples
inhabiting the
Lotkoh Valley
in
Chitral
(
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
) and
Kuran wa Munjan District
in
Badakhshan
in both
Pakistan
and
Afghanistan
.
[3]
History
[
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]
Historically the Munji and the Yidgha were one group. 500 years ago, the Yidgha people fled
Munjan Valley
(in Afghanistan) to Chitral because of persecution by the
Arghun dynasty
which then had lost control of Chitral.
[4]
The place where the Munjis originated was from
the village of Munji
, hence the name.
[5]
Many Munji later fled to Pakistan during the
War in Afghanistan
as there were many killed during the
American Invasion of Afghanistan
.
[6]
Lifestyle
[
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]
The Yidgha are engaged in agriculture and livestock including potatoes, animals, and dry fruits.
[7]
Many Yidgha speakers have married
the Kho
as well as
Dari speakers
. The literacy rate of the Yidgha is only three percent. The people visit
Shekhani speakers
in nearby Afghanistan's
Hamadiwanababa
in
Nuristan Province
where they trade.
The Munji people, the majority who now live in Pakistan, have intended to return to their homes in Afghanistan after the conflict ends.
[8]
The Munji live a simple life and are primarily involved in trading with nearby communities like the
Gawar
(
Gawar-Bati speakers
) and the
Parachi
(
Parachi speakers
). Many Munji are said to have come earlier to Chitral, from
Nasir Khusrow
, who went to treat his sick wife.
[9]
Languages
[
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]
The Munji and Yidgha speak their respected language,
Munji
and
Yidgha
, which are both
mutually intelligible
with each other and belong to the
Pamiri languages
, a subgroup of the
Eastern Iranian languages
, which in turn is part of the
Iranian languages
.
[10]
The languages have some dialectal differences with Yidgha borrowing more words from
Khowar
than Munji, with Munji rarely borrowing from Khowar and more from
Nuristani languages
like
Kata-vari
and
Shekhani
.
[11]
References
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]