Jadgal people
The Jadgal (also known as Nummaṛ or az-zighālī) are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group who speak the Jadgali language.[2] They are found in the Balochistan region of Iran and Pakistan.[3]
Nummaṛ نماڑ الزيغآلي | |
---|---|
Regions with significant populations | |
![]() | 100,000 |
![]() | 25,000 |
Languages | |
Jadgali and Balochi (Makrani dialect)[1] | |
Religion | |
Islam | |
Related ethnic groups | |
Sindhis |
History
Anthropologist Henry Field notes that the origin of the Jadgals lies in western India; they subsequently migrated to Kulanch and are still found in Sindh and Balochistan.[4] Many historians believe that the Jadgal were the original natives of Balochistan before the Baloch arrived.[5] The Arwal and Manjotha tribes of Dera Ghazi Khan are of Jadgal origin. When the Arabs arrived in modern day Sind and Baluchistan, they met the Jadgal at the coast of Makran where the Arab name of az-zighālī comes from.[6] Many Jats in Pakistan are actually of Jadgal origin. In 1811, Saidi Balochis as well as Jadgal mercenary troops were killed in a battle with the Wahhabis in a battle against the Sultanate of Oman.[7]
Demographics
Around 100,000 Jadgals live in Pakistan according to a 1998 census conducted by Pakistan.[8] In Iran, the Sardarzahi ethnic group is of Jadgal origin, claiming to be from Sindh.[9] The rest of the Jadgals number around 25,000 according to a 2008 census conducted by Iran.[6] All of the Jadgals in Iran live in the Sistan and Baluchistan province.[10]
Language
Most Jadgals speak their native Jadgali language. It is one of the Sindhi languages and one of the only two native Indo-Aryan languages spoken in Iran.[11] Many linguists believe that the Lasi language of the Lasi people may be related to Jadgali.[12]
References
- Butt, Allah Rakhio (August 15, 1998). Papers on Sindhi Language & Linguistics. Institute of Sindhology, University of Sindh. ISBN 9789694050508 – via Google Books.
- Jahani, Carina; Korn, Agnes; Gren-Eklund, Gunilla (2003). The Baloch and Their Neighbours: Ethnic and Linguistic Contact in Balochistan in Historical and Modern Times. Reichert. p. 172. ISBN 978-3-89500-366-0.
- "Pakistan Economist". October 1975.
- Field, Henry (1970). Contributions to the Physical Anthropology of the Peoples of India. University of Michigan. p. 197.
Since they appear to be a purely Indian people, it is presumed that they migrated westward. Although the name Jadgals is now confined to Kulanch, the influential Rais-Baluch are connected with them.
- Risley, Sir Herbert Hope (August 15, 1908). "The People of India". Thacker, Spink & Company – via Google Books.
- Barjasteh Delforooz, Behrooz (August 15, 2008). "A sociolinguistic survey among the Jadgal in Iranian Balochistan": 23–43 – via uu.diva-portal.org.
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(help) - Mirzai, Behnaz A. (16 May 2017). A History of Slavery and Emancipation in Iran, 1800-1929. ISBN 9781477311868.
- https://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1140&context=anthro_papers
- http://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1071&context=anthro_papers
- Jahani, Carina (2014). "The Baloch as an Ethnic Group in the Persian Gulf Region". The Persian Gulf in Modern Times. pp. 267–297. doi:10.1057/9781137485779_11. ISBN 978-1-349-50380-3.
- "Jadgali in Iran".
- "Glottolog 4.5 - Lasi-Jadgali".