Musahiban

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The Musahiban (mus-hi-been; the name derives from Persian مصاحب Muṣāḥib, meaning "courtier" or "aide de camp"[1]) are a Mohammadzai family who founded the Afghan Barakzai dynasty, and members of the royal lineage that ruled Afghanistan as emir, king or president from 1823 to 1978.[2] They descend from Sultan Mohammad Khan Telai (1795–1861) and his older brother Emir Dost Mohammad Khan (1792-1863), and were the last rulers of the Mohammadzai dynasty before being overthrown in the Saur Revolution[3] in April 1978.

Name and origins[edit]

The family are descendants of Sultan Mohammad Khan (1795–1861), nicknamed "Telai" which means "possessor of gold"[4] or "golden" (a nickname he was given because of his wealth and love of fine clothing),[5] and his older brother was Dost Mohammad Khan who gained control of Afghanistan and became its ruler. Telai had a son named Yahya and Yahya's son, Sardar Mohammad Yusuf Khan, founded the Yahya-khel clan which was later named the Musahiban.[4] According to Amin Saikal, "by 1905, Yossef and his brother, Asef, became the Amir's Musahiban-e Khas (Attendants par Excellence), from which originated the tribe name Musahiban".[4]

Policies[edit]

The Musahiban have historically been known for a step-by-step, culturally progressive and tribally sensitive, evolution for the modernization and opening up of Afghanistan[6] in contrast to the often more radically accelerated strategies promoted in the past.

References[edit]

  1. ^ Caroe, Olaf (1958). The Pathans 550 B.C.--A.D. 1957. Macmillan & Co. Ltd. p. 307. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  2. ^ M. Nazif Shahrani (1986). "State Building And Social Fragmentation, in: Afghanistan: A Historical Perspective". In Banuazizi, Ali; Weiner, Myron (eds.). State, Religion and Ethnic Politics: Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan. Syracuse University Press. p. 43. ISBN 978-0815624486. Retrieved 30 May 2016.
  3. ^ M. Nasif Shahrani (2013). "Islamic Movements in the Political Process". In Esposito, John L.; Shahin, Emad El-Din (eds.). The Oxford Handbook of Islam and Politics. Oxford University Press. p. 459. ISBN 9780195395891. Retrieved 30 May 2016.
  4. ^ a b c Saikal, Amin (2004). Modern Afghanistan: A History of Struggle and Survival. B. Tauris. pp. 47–49. ISBN 978-1850434375. Retrieved 31 May 2016.
  5. ^ Noelle, Christine (1997). State and Tribe in Nineteenth-Century Afghanistan: The Reign of Amir Dost Muhammad Khan (1826-1863). routledge. p. 19. ISBN 978-0700706297. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  6. ^ Banuazizi, Ali; Weiner, Myron (1986). The State, Religion, and Ethnic Politics: Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan. Contemporary issues in the Middle East. Syracuse, New York: Syracuse University Press. pp. 50–57. ISBN 978-0-8156-2448-6.