Indigenous ethnoreligious group residing in Chitral, Pakistan
This article is about the Kalasha of Chitral. For the Kalasha of Nuristan, see Nuristani people. For other uses, see Kalash (disambiguation).
Kalash
Kalash girls photographed in April 2016
Total population
c. 3,800[1]
Regions with significant populations
Kalasha Valleys, Chitral District, Pakistan
Languages
Kalasha, Khowar
Religion
Ancient Hinduism[2][a][3]/Animism,[4][5][6] Islam[7]
Related ethnic groups
Nuristanis, other Indo-Aryan peoples
The Kalash (Kalasha: کالؕاشؕا, romanised: Kaḷaṣa), or Kalasha, are an Indo-Aryan[8][b] indigenous people residing in the Chitral District of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan.
They are considered unique among the people of Pakistan.[9][10][11] They are also considered to be Pakistan's smallest ethnoreligious group,[12] and traditionally practice what authors characterise as a form of animism.[13][4][5][c][6][d] During the mid-20th century an attempt was made to force a few Kalasha villages in Pakistan to convert to Islam, but the people fought the conversion and, once official pressure was removed, the vast majority resumed the practice of their own religion.[10] Nevertheless, some Kalasha have since converted to Islam, despite being shunned afterward by their community for having done so.[7][14]
The term is used to refer to many distinct people including the Väi, the Čima-nišei, the Vântä, plus the Ashkun- and Tregami-speakers.[10] The Kalash are considered to be an indigenous people of Asia, with their ancestors migrating to Chitral valley from another location possibly further south,[9][15] which the Kalash call "Tsiyam" in their folk songs and epics.[16]
They claim to descend from the armies of Alexander who were left behind from his armed campaign, though no evidence exists for him to have passed the area.[17][18][e] They are also considered by some to have been descendants of Gandhari people.[19]
The neighbouring Nuristani people of the adjacent Nuristan (historically known as Kafiristan) province of Afghanistan once had the same culture and practised a faith very similar to that of the Kalash, differing in a few minor particulars.[20][21]
The first historically recorded Islamic invasions of their lands were by the Ghaznavids in the 11th century[22] while they themselves are first attested in 1339 during Timur's invasions.[19] Nuristan had been converted to Islam in 1895–96, although some evidence has shown the people continued to practice their customs.[23] The Kalash of Chitral have maintained their own separate cultural traditions.[24]
^"The last of the Kalasha". 24 February 2019.
^ abWest, Barbara A. (19 May 2010). Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Asia and Oceania. Infobase Publishing. p. 357. ISBN 9781438119137.
^Bezhan, Frud (19 April 2017). "Pakistan's forgotten pagans get their due". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Retrieved 11 July 2017. About half of the Kalash practice a form of ancient Hinduism infused with old pagan and animist beliefs.
^ abSearle, Mike (28 March 2013). Colliding Continents: A geological exploration of the Himalaya, Karakoram, and Tibet. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-165249-3.
^ abcCamerapix (1998). Spectrum Guide to Pakistan. Interlink Books. ISBN 978-1-56656-240-9.
^ abcSheehan, Sean (October 1993). Pakistan. Marshall Cavendish. ISBN 978-1-85435-583-6.
^ abCite error: The named reference Ahmed-1986 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ abWest, Barbara A. (19 May 2010). Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Asia and Oceania. Infobase Publishing. p. 357. ISBN 9781438119137.
^ ab"The Kalash – Protection and Conservation of an Endangered Minority in the Hindukush Mountain Belt of Chitral, Northern Pakistan" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 July 2007.
^ abc"Richard Strand's Nuristân Site: The Kalasha of Kalashüm". www.nuristan.info. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
^Augusto S. Cacopardo. Pagan Christmas: Winter Feasts of the Kalasha of the Hindu Kush. p.28.
^"'Earthquake was Allah's wrath for Kalash community's immoral ways'". The Express Tribune. 10 November 2015. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
^"The Kalash: Pakistan's last animist tribe". Atalayar. 29 March 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
^"Tribe of Kalash: The Last Kafir". Global Human Rights Defence. 1 March 2021. Archived from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
^Nicolaisen, Johannes; Yde, Jens (1963). Folk: dansk etnografisk tidsskrift. Dansk etnografisk forening.
^East and West. Istituto italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente. 1992.
^Shah, Danial (29 September 2012). "In the land of infidels". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 16 March 2023.
^ abStrand, R. "The kalaṣa of kalaṣüm Strand". nuristan.info.
^ abCite error: The named reference Ludwig was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Saxena, Anju (12 May 2011). Himalayan Languages: Past and Present. Walter de Gruyter. p. 72. ISBN 9783110898873.
^South Asian Folklore: An Encyclopedia : Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka. Taylor & Francis. 2003. p. 318. ISBN 9780415939195.
^Pagan Christmas: Winter Feasts of the Kalasha of the Hindu Kush, By Augusto S. Cacopardo
^Klimberg, Max (1 October 2004). "NURISTAN". Encyclopædia Iranica (Online ed.). United States: Columbia University.
^Newby, Eric. A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush. 2008. ISBN 1741795281
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).
The Kalash (Kalasha: کالؕاشؕا, romanised: Kaḷaṣa), or Kalasha, are an Indo-Aryan indigenous people residing in the Chitral District of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa...
the Hindu Kush mountain range. The inhabitants of the valley are the Kalashpeople, who have a unique culture, language and follow a form of ancient Hinduism...
Look up kalash in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Kalash or Kalasha may refer to: Kalashpeople, or Kalasha, an ethnic group of Chitral, Pakistan Kalasha-mun...
Kalash cuisine consists of indigenous dishes as well as many local Pakistani cuisine influences. Foodstuffs such as apricots, grapes, mulberries, walnuts...
islands is distinct from Shinto, but shares similar characteristics. Kalashpeople of Northern Pakistan follow an ancient animistic religion identified...
[kaɭaʂaː], locally: Kal'as'amondr) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Kalashpeople, in the Chitral District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan...
"disbelievers" or "infidels". They are closely related to the Kalashpeople, an independent people with a distinctive culture, language and religion. The area...
Chilam Joshi Festival is a festival celebrated by the Kalashpeople, living in the Chitral District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan. It marks...
inspired Carl Barks' story Tralla La. Hunza Valley Nagar Valley Kalashpeople Brokpa people "Burushaski". Ethnologue. Retrieved 26 April 2022. "TAC Research...
her conversion to Islam. The Kalashpeople practise a form of ancient Hinduism mixed with animism. Adherents of the Kalash religion number around 3,000...
(Luwians of Anatolia) Lydian religion (Lydians) Indo-Aryan: Kalash religion (Kalashpeople of Kalasha Valleys in Pakistan) Sikhism (among Sikhs in Indian...
from the University of Peshawar. He is a social activist for rights of Kalashpeople. He joined Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in 2009. He was elected to...
dance of Kalashpeople of Chitral District of Pakistan is a circle dance. Dhan Nach of Limbu people, Syabru (dance) of Sherpa and Hyolmo people, Sakela...
significant populations. It is also spoken as a second language by the Kalashpeople. It has close relationship with other Indo-Aryan languages, especially...
Khowar "chitrimas" from cāturmāsyá, CDIAL 4742) is a festival of the Kalashpeople of Pakistan. It is also sometimes spelled chaumos. It is celebrated...
The Nuristani people were formerly known as the Kaffirs of Kafiristan before the Afghan Islamization of the region. The Kalashpeople who live in the...
Vedic rituals of Śrauta are practiced in Kerala and coastal Andhra. The Kalashpeople residing in northwest Pakistan also continue to practice a form of the...
Amira Kiziamina, known better by his stage name Kalash Criminel, is a French rapper. He was born with the melanin deficient condition, albinism and chooses...
was completely surrounded by Muslim states in the 16th century. The Kalashpeople of lower Chitral are the last surviving heirs of the area. The region...
Province at about 4,500 metres (14,800 ft). The valley is inhabited by the Kalashpeople, and has become a tourist destination. However, their population is...
Deccani people Dhivehi people Dogra people Garhwali people Gujarati people Haryanvi people Indus Kohistani peopleKalashpeople Kamrupi people Kashmiri...
Kavi Kalash (died March 1689 CE, Tulapur) was a poet, a close friend and helper to Maratha king (Chatrapati) Sambhaji who reigned 1680–1689. A Kanyakubja...
conquest over one's senses. Indra is an important deity worshipped by the Kalashpeople, indicating his prominence in ancient Hinduism. The Buddhist cosmology...
a male occupation among the Kalashpeople. Kalasha women Drummer boy Chitral Rumbur Valley, Chitral, NWFP, Pakistan Kalash girl in Rumbur. The girl is...
the conversion of the region to Islam in 1896. The Kalashpeople are very close to the Nuristani people in terms of culture and historic religion, and are...
meteorological and astronomical knowledge system practiced by the Kalasha people in the Hindu Kush mountain range. It involves observing the sun, moon, stars...
South Asia, it peaks among the Kalash, Ror, Jat, Brahmin and Bhumihar. The modern day Yaghnobis, an Eastern Iranian peoples, and to a lesser extent modern-day...
Global Information