| Part of a series on the |
| Culture of Afghanistan |
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| People |
| Languages |
| Mythology |
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| Sport |
The nation of Afghanistan has various traditional games and sports.
| Part of a series on the |
| Culture of Afghanistan |
|---|
| |
| History |
| People |
| Languages |
| Mythology |
| Cuisine |
| Festivals |
| Religion |
| Sport |
The nation of Afghanistan has various traditional games and sports.
 | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (March 2024) |
Archery has been a popular game among the various ethnic groups of Afghanistan. [1] [2] [3]
This game is played during the time of year when the first snow falls. One person sends a messenger to another person's home, and if the recipient of the message fails to catch the messenger before the messenger can return home, then the recipient must pay for a large meal for the sender of the message; otherwise, the message-sender pays. [4] [5] [6]
Bujal bazi, known as Bijili in some parts of the country, is a game played by children with sheep knucklebones. [7]
Gudiparan bazi in Dari or kaghazbad in Pashto are some of the local names for kite fighting and kite running in Afghanistan. [8] [9] It has been going on in the country for over 100 years. [10]
In the game of khusai (pronounced as ghorsai in Persian), two teams attempt to pass each other to the other team's goal line, while preventing the other team from doing the same. [6] The game requires hopping on one foot in order to knock opponents down. [11] [12]
Two teams of four to five players compete by throwing stones at a target; each player gets 10 throws, and the player that throws the closest to the target in a given round wins that round. Hitting the target directly earns twice as many points. The team that reaches 10 points first wins. [13]
During certain public holidays such as Eid al-Fitr, participants in this game paint hard-boiled eggs and then bump them against other participants' eggs in order to break the other eggs. [14] [15] [16] [17]
The game of carrom is played in many Afghan homes, including in public parks. [18]
Chaka is the local name for Ludo board game in Afghanistan.
Koresh, also known as chepanki wrestling, is a form of belt wrestling. [20] [21]
Pahlawani is a form of wrestling contested over four rounds, in which each round is won by the participant who can flip their opponent onto their back. [22] [7]
Buzkashi (Persian: بزکشی, lit. 'goat pulling') is the national sport of Afghanistan and Tajikistan. It is a traditional sport in which horse-mounted players attempt to place a goat or calf carcass in a goal. Similar games are known as kokpar, kupkari, and ulak tartysh in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.
The economy of Afghanistan is listed as the 124th largest in the world in terms of nominal gross domestic product (GDP), and 102nd largest in the world in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP). With a population of around 41 million people, Afghanistan's GDP (nominal) stands at $14.58 billion as of 2021, amounting to a GDP per capita of $363.7. Its annual exports exceed $2 billion, with agricultural, mineral and textile products accounting for 94% of total exports. The nation's total external debt is $1.4 billion as of 2022.
A kite is a tethered heavier-than-air or lighter-than-air craft with wing surfaces that react against the air to create lift and drag forces. A kite consists of wings, tethers and anchors. Kites often have a bridle and tail to guide the face of the kite so the wind can lift it. Some kite designs do not need a bridle; box kites can have a single attachment point. A kite may have fixed or moving anchors that can balance the kite. The name is derived from the kite, the hovering bird of prey.
The modern pentathlon is an Olympic sport consisting of fencing, freestyle swimming, equestrian show jumping, pistol shooting, and cross country running. The event was first held in 1912, inspired by the traditional pentathlon held during the ancient Olympics, and designed to model skills needed by a soldier of that time. As well as being an Olympic event, a world championships has been held annually since 1949.
Eid al-Fitr is the earlier of the two official holidays celebrated within Islam. Eid al-Fitr is celebrated by Muslims worldwide because it marks the end of the month-long dawn-to-sunset fasting of Ramadan. Eid al-Fitr falls on the first day of Shawwal in the Islamic calendar; this does not always fall on the same Gregorian day, as the start of any lunar Hijri month varies based on when the new moon is sighted by local religious authorities. The holiday is known under various other names in different languages and countries around the world. The day is also called "Lesser Eid", or simply Eid.
Eid Mubarak is an Arabic phrase that means “Blessed feast/festival”. The term is used by Muslims all over the world as a greeting to celebrate Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. This exchange of greetings is cultural tradition and not part of any religious obligation.
Tent pegging is a cavalry sport of ancient origin, and is one of only ten equestrian disciplines officially recognised by the International Equestrian Federation. Used narrowly, the term refers to a specific mounted game with ground targets. More broadly, it refers to the entire class of mounted cavalry games involving pointed and edged weapons on horseback, for which the term "equestrian skill-at-arms" is also used.
Afghan passports are international travel documents issued by the General Directorate of Passports to nationals and citizens of Afghanistan. Every person with a valid Afghan identity card (Tazkira) can apply for and receive an Afghan passport, which is renewable every 5–10 years.
Sport in Afghanistan is managed by the Afghan Sports Federation. Currently, cricket and association football (soccer) are the most popular sports in Afghanistan. The Afghan Sports Federation has promoted many types of sports, including basketball, bodybuilding, boxing, bowling, cricket, football, golf, mountaineering, paragliding, skating, skiing, snooker, taekwondo, track and field, volleyball, and weightlifting. The traditional sport of Afghanistan has been Buzkashi, which is now occasionally seen in the northern parts of the country.
Belt wrestling is a form of wrestling that is one of the oldest historically recorded sports. It involves two belted contestants aiming to take each other over by grappling with a belt. There are hundreds of national belt wrestling styles, but contemporary most widespread and internationally competed are Alysh and Kurash, developed by the previously nomadic Turkic peoples of Central Asia. United World Wrestling recognized Alysh wrestling as the primary international belt wrestling style. It is regulated globally by the International Federation of Wrestling on Belts Alysh, the sport's governing body. Although the sport has been practiced for millennia, and local championships were held in various places of the world, it was until 2001 when Bayaman Erkinbayev started its international version, and it was called "Alysh". Until 2005, Rif Gaynanov and Bayaman Erkinbayev developed this style together, and then the ways separated. Two different styles appeared named "Alysh" and "Kurash" belt wrestling. Since then, the sport has been included in the 2013 Summer Universiade program, recognized by the Asian Olympic Council, and contested at the Asian Games and Asian Indoor Games. The sport's executives struggle to promote it to the level of an official Olympic sport.
Sports in Bhutan comprise both traditional Bhutanese and modern international games. Archery is the national sport in Bhutan. Competitions are held regularly in most villages. Other traditional Bhutanese sports include khuru, soksom, pundo and digor.
Presidential elections were held in Afghanistan on 5 April 2014, with a second round held on 14 June. Incumbent President Hamid Karzai was not eligible to run due to term limits. The registration period for presidential nominations was open from 16 September 2013 until 6 October 2013. A total of 27 candidates were confirmed to be running for office. However, on 22 October Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission disqualified 16 of the candidates, leaving only 11 in the race. By April 2014 three candidates gave up the race and decided to support some of the eight remaining candidates. Opinion polls showed Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani as the front-runners and indeed the results of the first round of the election had Abdullah in the lead and Ghani behind him. The second set of results came after the run-off on 14 June, two months after the first round. Preliminary results were expected on 2 July and the final result on 22 July. However, widespread accusations of fraud delayed these results. As a result, John Kerry, then United States Secretary of State, mediated the negotiations between the two final candidates, Ghani and Abdullah. After a series of negotiations and talks between Ghani, Abdullah and Kerry, the two candidates agreed to sign an Agreement to form a National Unity Government based on 50–50 power sharing. As a result of that political agreement, a separate position was created for Abdullah as Chief Executive. The National Unity Government's term ran out after the next Afghan presidential election was held in September 2019.
Nowruz is the beginning of springtime and a cultural holiday in Afghanistan. It is also celebrated by the majority of the Afghan diaspora around the world. Farmer's Day, which starts around the same time as the Afghan New Year, is celebrated nationwide alongside Nowruz and usually lasts around two weeks. Among other things, the celebration involves planting saplings and flowers throughout the country.
Presidential elections were held in Afghanistan on 28 September 2019. According to preliminary results, which runner-up Abdullah Abdullah appealed against, incumbent Ashraf Ghani was re-elected with 923,592 votes, 50.64% of the vote. After delays over disputed votes, Ghani was declared the winner in the final results on 18 February 2020. Abdullah Abdullah rejected the results and moved to set up his own parallel government and separate inauguration. However, Ghani was officially sworn in for a second term on 9 March 2020. The ensuing political crisis was not resolved until 16 May 2020, when Ghani and Abdullah signed a power-sharing deal in which Ghani would remain president and Abdullah would lead the peace talks with the Taliban when they start. Voter turnout was less than 20%.
Events in the year 2020 in Afghanistan.
King Abdullah Park, formerly Al-Malaz Square, is an equestrian field-turned municipal park in the al-Malazz neighborhood of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, located adjacent to Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium. Covering an area of 31.8 hectares, the square served as a horse racecourse from the early days of Saudi Arabia's unification until 2002, before being reopened as the largest public park in the country in 2013. Al-Malaz Square, as it was previously called, lent its name to the al-Malazz neighbourhood, which the park today forms a central part of.
Pakistan has many traditional games played in the rural and urban areas of the country.
Iran has some traditional games, sports, and martial arts that date back thousands of years. Many of these games have started to disappear due to urbanisation, the advent of computer games, and the neglect of cultural institutions.