+ Afghanistan By: Taylor Rae

+ Population -This graph shows the growth of Afghanistan’s population -Since 1960 the population has gone from just under 10 million to just under 30 million in 2009

+ Population Cont. -54% of the Afghan population is between the ages of 15 and 62 -The growth rate of the population is 2.34%

+ Ethnic Make Up There are eight main ethnicities in Afghanistan Pashtuns Tajiks Hazaras Uzbeks Aimaq Turkmen Baloch And Nuristani

+ Ethnic Make Up Cont. Modern Afghanistan is built up the Hotaki and Durrani dynasties The culture through out Afghanistan is not uniform all over There are no clear boundaries between the different cultures though

+ Language There are four main languages through out Afghanistan Persian (Also called Dari) 50% Pashto 35% Uzbek 8.5% Turkmen 2.5% There are thirty other languages that cover about 4% of Afghanistan

+ Language Cont. -Dari and Pashto are the two official languages of Afghanistan -Pashto is the native tongue throughout most regions

+ Religion Like in the United States there are more then just one religion Shia Islam Hindus and Sikhs Zoroastrian Christianity And Judaism

+ Religion Cont. -About 90% of Afghan is Islam -Shia Islam is about 10-19% of the total religious population of Afghanistan ,000 Afghan’s secretly practice Christian religions

+ Gestures In Afghanistan if someone bows to you and you don’t bow in response then you don’t respect the person as much as they do you The person that bows most deeply is the one with more respect Though bowing is common it’s no longer a greeting now rather it just shows respect

+ Greetings -Afghan’s usually have conversations the same way as we do -Hello, How are you?, are two common greetings -In Afghanistan the written word looks a lot different then it does here -Hello= سلام -Goodbye= خداحافظی

+ Holidays EID Al-Fitr is the month after the Ramadan fast EID Al-Adha is the tenth day of the twelth month on the Islam calander Ashura is the day of mourning on the Islamic calander it is located in the tenth month

+ Holidays Cont. -Nowrose is the first day of spring being March 21 -Jeshen August 19, is the Afghan independence day -Rememberence day and Labor day are two other holidays on the Islam calander

+ Rites of Passage When a baby is born their first rite of passage is to have the call for baby prayer in the child’s ear Baby boys are circumcised just like in Jewish religion

+ Rites Of Passage Cont. When girls become teenagers they are required to cover their hair with scarves and spend the majority of their time indoors When couples get married there is generally no dating before the marriage Marriages are often arranged When a daughter gets married she moves in with her new husbands family

+ Food -Rice is the most common food in Afghanistan used as both side dishes and main dishes -White rice is almost a requirement at a meal and is called Chalow -Palao is basically Chalow but has meat or herbs mixed in with it

+ Food Cont. -Sticky Rice is loved as a meal in Afghanistan almost as much as it is here -Usually sticky rice is made with chicken, herbs, or grains inside of it

+ Clothing -Girls and Women have to wear scarf to cover their hair -The scarves they were are called burka’s -Boys and men Kurtas which are loose fighting shirts that fall to the knees of the wearer

+ Clothing Cont.

+ Sports and Recreation One of the most popular sports in Northern Afghanistan is buzkashi or grab the goat Wrestling is also a popular sport Though in Afghanistan the object of wrestling is to pin one’s opponent without touching their legs Some men fly “Fighter Kites” as well as regular kites Children play games like tag, blind man’s bluff, hopscotch and even flying kites Girls enjoy playing sports like volleyball or basketball

+ Sports and Rec. Cont.

+ Arts Music Art Poetry And Architecture Are the most common forms of Art in Afghanistan

+ Arts Cont. Stone carving is another art form in Afghanistan Metal work with rocks like turquoise and gems are another part of Afghan art that can lead into jewelry making as well