The Uzbeks of Afghanistan practice Sunni Islam[1] and are thought to be of mixed Mongol, Turkic[2] and Mediterranean descent.[3]  Most speak a Turkic dialect known as Uzbeki, although some also speak Persian dialects.[4]

Many Uzbeks still practice the traditional occupations of farming and herding,[5] but others have migrated to urban areas, where many have become businessmen and artisans.  Uzbeks are also known for their carpet-making prowess – a skill which has proven to be relatively lucrative.[6]

Demography

The latest data from the CIA World Factbook indicates that Uzbeks constitute 9 percent of the Afghan population,[7] a figure that would put the group’s number at roughly 2.9 million.  Their numbers in relation to the total Afghan population have remained relatively steady over the past seventeen years, declining from 9 percent in 1991 to 6 percent in 1992, holding at 6 percent until 2001, and then rising to 8 percent in 2002.[8]  Further back, in 1979, Uzbeks were thought to number approximately 1.3 million in Afghanistan, according to a census that was reportedly severely limited in scope, which would mean that they constituted 9 percent of the population at that time.[9]

As is the case with data on other ethnic groups in Afghanistan, these fluctuations can be understood in the context of war-induced displacement, as the country has been mired in conflict for much of the past quarter century.  However, the abridged and partial nature of pre-2001 national censuses should also be taken into account.

Geographic Distribution

The Uzbek communities in Afghanistan are concentrated in the country’s northern plains, which are close to the border with Uzbekistan.[10]  Uzbeks in this area often live side-by-side with Tajiks.[11]  Mazar-i Sharif, located in Balkh Province, which abuts Uzbekistan, is a major regional city. 

Central Asia is the traditional Uzbek homeland, and as such, many members of the group today reside in the former Soviet republics of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.[12]

Historic Hardship

Uzbeks for centuries had a strong presence in what is today Afghanistan.  The fall of the Timurid dynasty in Herat in 1506 cleared the way for the group to dominate the politics of what at present is the northern part of the country.[13]  The khanates established in this region were under Uzbek control for nearly 400 years until they were seized by Amir Abdur Rahman in the late 19th century.[14]  Rahman, a Sunni Pashtun ruler who committed atrocities on a massive scale, would go on to subjugate Uzbeks as part of his tribal pacification campaigns.[15]

The 1920s and 30s were a time of more upheaval.  Many Central Asian Uzbeks migrated to Afghanistan during this period to escape the turmoil brewing in their homelands, where Russian forces were battling Islamic rebels.[16]  Meanwhile, significant numbers of Pashtuns were moving onto Uzbek land in northern Afghanistan; in thirty years, Uzbeks would become a minority group in the region.[17]

The 1980s and 90s were marked by extensive conflict, resulting in the mass exodus of millions of Afghans.  It is of note that in 1983, Turkey granted asylum to some 4,000 Turkic-speaking Afghans, including a large group of Uzbeks.[18] 

These decades also saw the rise of the Afghan military leader General Abdul Rashid Dostam, whose Uzbek-only forces supported Afghanistan’s Soviet-backed government and battled mujahideen fighters in the 1980s.[19]  Then, during the civil war that began in 1992, Dostam led a coalition opposing the Taliban.  (It should be noted that the Uzbek forces under the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance were also known to commit atrocities.)[20]  During this period the northern Uzbek areas of the country were granted local autonomy and expanded trading opportunities with the neighboring Central Asian republics.  

This relative prosperity would be short-lived, however, as the Taliban would eventually prevail, seizing Mazar-i Sharif in 1998.[21]  During the Taliban’s conquest of the city, the group’s fighters reportedly went to door-to-door looking for Uzbek, Tajik and Hazara men;[22] in all 2,000 to 5,000 Afghans were murdered in the massacre.[23]  The seizure of Mazar also spelled economic downturn for the region, as Uzbekistan subsequently closed off its border with Afghanistan, stifling transnational trade.[24]

In general, Uzbeks faced the same horrid fate as other ethnic minorities under Taliban rule; many were detained without charge and tortured.[25]  In a particularly gruesome incident in early 2001, Taliban fighters executed 31 Uzbek civilians in Takhar Province, which is to the east of Balkh along the border with Tajikistan.[26] 

Ongoing Hardship

While the plight of Uzbeks is now not as precarious as it was under Taliban rule, adversity persists.  The group has not been afforded full language rights or sufficient representation in the Afghan government; the need for greater economic opportunity and control over ethnically-dominated areas are also major grievances.[27]

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