First name of Afghanistan

From the Middle Ages to around 1750 part of Afghanistan was recognized as
Khorasan. Two of the four main capitals of Khorasan (Balkh and Herat) are now
located in Afghanistan. The countries of Kandahar, Ghazni and Kabul formed the
frontier region between Khorasan and Hindustan
Famous Province of Afghanistan
Nangarhār (Pashto: ‫ ;ننګرهار‬Persian: ‫ )ننگرهار‬is one of the 34 provinces of
Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country. It is divided into twenty-
two districts and has a population of about 1,436,000. The city of Jalalabad is the
capital ofNangarhar province.
Capital of Afghanistan
Kabul (Pashto/Dari: ‫کابل‬, Kâbol, pronounced [ˈkɒːbul]; English: /ˈkɑːbʊl/) is the
capital of Afghanistan as well as its largest city, located in the eastern section of
the country. According to estimates in 2015, the population of Kabul is 4.635
million,[1] which includes all the major ethnic groups.[2] Rapid urbanization had
made Kabul the world's 64th largest city,[3] and the fifth fastest-growing city in the
world.[4]
Kabul is said to be over 3,500 years old, mentioned since at least the time of
the Achaemenid Empire.

Resources in Afghanistan
Mining in Afghanistan is controlled by the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum,
which is headquartered in Kabul with regional offices in other parts of the
country. Afghanistan has over 1400 mineral fields,[1][2]
[3]
containing barite, chromite, coal, copper, gold, iron ore, lead, natural
gas, petroleum, precious and semi-precious stones, salt, sulfur, talc, and zinc,
among many other minerals.[1][4] Gemstones include high-quality emerald, lapis
lazuli, red garnet and ruby

Culture of Afghanistan
The culture of Afghanistan has been around for over three millennia, tracing
record to at least the time of the Achaemenid Empire in 500 BCE.
[1]
Afghanistan translates to "Land of the Afghans" or "Place of Afghans" in the
nation's official languages, Pashto and Dari.[2][3] It is mostly a tribal society with
different regions of the country having its own subculture. Nearly all Afghans
follow Islamic traditions, celebrate the same holidays, dress the same, consume the
same food, listen to the same music and are multi-lingual to a certain extent.
In the southern and eastern region, as well as western Pakistan which was
historically part of Afghanistan, the Pashtuns live according to the Pashtun
culture by following Pashtunwali (meaning "the way of the Pashtuns").[4] The
western, northern, and central regions of Afghanistan are influenced by
neighboring Central Asian and Persian cultures.[5][6] Some of the non-Pashtuns who
live in close proximity with Pashtuns have adopted Pashtunwali in a process
called Pashtunization (or Afghanization) while some Pashtuns and others
become Persianized.

Way of Life
Although the Afghan population is composed of many distinct ethnic groups,
certain elements of their way of life are much the same. Characteristically, the
family is the mainstay of Afghan society. Extremely close bonds exist within the
family, which consists of the members of several generations. The family is headed
by the oldest man, or patriarch, whose word is law for the whole family. Family
honor, pride, and respect toward other members are highly prized qualities. Among
both villagers and nomads the family lives together and forms a self-sufficient
group. In the villages each family generally occupies either one mud-brick house
or a walled compound containing mud-brick or stonewalled houses. The same
pattern prevails among the nomads, except that tents replace the houses.

Settlements in Afghanistan with less than 100 houses number over 10,000 and
those with 100 to 250 houses number about 1000. There are 53 urban centers that
range in size from 2500 to 25,000 people. In the smaller villages there are no
schools, no stores, nor any representative of the government. Each village has three
sources of authority within it: the malik (village headman), the mirab (master of
the water distribution), and the mullah (teacher of Islamic laws). Commonly
a khan (large landowner) will control the whole village by assuming the role of
both malik and mirab.

Baggy cotton trousers are a standard part of the Afghan villager's costume. The
men wear long cotton shirts, which hang over their trousers, and wide sashes
around their waists. They also wear a skullcap, and over that, a turban, which they
take off when working in the fields. The women wear a long loose shirt or a high-
bodice dress with a swirling skirt over their trousers; they drape a wide shawl
about their heads. Many women wear jewelry, which is collected as a form of
family wealth. When urban women leave their houses they usually wear
a burka or shadier, a long tentlike veil that covers them from head to foot. Women
in villages seldom wear the burka, and educated urban women discarded the
custom, especially under Soviet domination where it was regarded as backward.

The diet of most Afghan villagers consists mainly of unleavened flat bread
called nan, soups, a kind of yogurt called mast, vegetables, fruit, and occasionally
rice and meat. Tea is the favorite drink.

Exports

Afghanistan's chief exports are natural gas and dried fruit. Other exports
include carpets, fresh fruit, wool, and cotton. Afghanistan imports food, motor
vehicles, petroleum products, and textiles. Most of the foreign trade of
Afghanistan is controlled by the government or by government-controlled
monopolies. The USSR was Afghanistan's chief trading partner even before
the 1979 Soviet invasion, and this relationship intensified in the 1980s. The
leading purchasers of Afghan products, in addition to the USSR and the
former Soviet republics, have been Pakistan, Great Britain, Germany, and
India. In 1991 exports amounted to about $188.2 million, while imports cost
$616.4 million.

History of Afghanistan Trade, Exports and

Imports
Although Afghanistan is rich in natural resources, very little has been done to
explore them. Some of these resources are extensive deposits of natural gas,
petroleum, coal, copper, chromite, talc, barites, sulfur, lead, zinc, iron ore, salt,
and precious and semiprecious stones. However, the country’s rugged terrain
and lack of transportation network restrict trade activities. In the 1980s, export of
natural gas was at its peak, with $300 million in export revenues annually.
However, 90% of this revenue was utilized for the payment of imports and debts
to the Soviet Union. The Afghan economy also rode on goods smuggled into
Pakistan.
 Afghanistan Trade, Exports and Imports
Statistics
There is not enough information and guaranteed statistics available about the
economy of Afghanistan, but here are some estimates:

Exports: $603 million (2008)

Imports: $8.27 billion (2008)

Exports-to-GDP ratio: 3,5 % (2008)

Imports-to-GDP ratio: 47,6 % (2008)

Trade-to-GDP ratio: 51,1 % (2008)

(Note: Trade-to-GDP ratio = (Exports + Imports) / GDP)

Exports Partners
The major export partners of Afghanistan include (figures as of 2008):

 India 23.5%

 Pakistan 17.7%

 US 16.5%

 Tajikistan 12.8%

 Netherlands 6.9%

Imports Partners
The major import partners of Afghanistan include (figures as of 2008):

 Pakistan 36%

 US 9.3%

 Germany 7.5%
 India 6.9%

Afghanistan Trade, Exports and Imports

Commodities
The following are the major commodities that form the basis of Afghanistan’s
economy:

 Export commodities include opium, fruits and nuts, handwoven

carpets, wool, cotton, hides and pelts, precious and semi-precious
gems.

 Imports include machinery and other capital goods, food, textiles,

petroleum products.

Afghan Armed Forces

The Afghan Armed Forces are the military forces of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. They
consist of the Afghan National Army and the Afghan Air Force. The President of
Afghanistan is Commander-in-Chief of the military, which is administratively controlled through
the Ministry of Defense. The National Military Command Center in Kabul serves as the headquarters
of the Afghan Armed Forces. Afghanistan's military currently has approximately 200,000 active duty
soldiers,[2][5] which are expected to reach 260,000 in the coming year.

Foreign relations of Afghanistan

Foreign relations of Afghanistan are handled by the nation's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which is
headed by Salahuddin Rabbani. He answers to, and receives guidance from, the President of
Afghanistan, Ashraf Ghani.
The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan has close and friendly relations with a number of countries
around the world, including: Turkey, United States, United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, Spain, South
Korea, Italy, India, China, Canada, United Arab Emirates and many others