Persian in Afghanistan

In the Al-Biruni University, the Taliban group imposes its anti-persianism. Photo: DR

At Al-Biruni University, a blue sign indicates the entrance to the institution. Writings in Pashto and Persian appear in white letters. Since the Taliban group returned to power in August 2021, the Persian word “Danishgah” meaning “university” has been erased, a symbol of the anti-persianism policy. Within the institutions, directors are replaced by people appointed by the Taliban group and professors teaching Persian are dismissed. 

A policy of eradicating Persian

The Taliban group has been pursuing a policy of eradicating Persian in the country. Removing words in Persian from the public sphere and school programs, censoring books written in Persian… The Taliban group largely favors the use of Pashto, their native language.

This marginalization of Persian didn’t come out of the blue. It happened gradually. For more than a century, governments of Afghanistan have wanted to make Pashto the only language in the country, despite Persian. The Taliban group return to power has only further weakened the place of this language in Afghanistan: since then it has been considered a foreign or Iranian language.

A supranational language 

Also spoken in many countries such as Tajikistan, Iran, part of Pakistan and Uzbekistan, this language remains “supranational” according to Alessandro Monsutti, professor of anthropology and sociology at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva. In major identity items, for example, the national anthem, adopted in 2006, should be in two languages: Persian and Pashto. Finally, they only remain in the Pashto language.

Spoken by the majority of the population, Persian should have been mentioned and recognized by the 2004 Constitution as an official language, just like Pashto. The Constitution was altered and Persian was replaced by Dari, an accent, at the last minute before the signature of the text.

“All people Afghanistan, now in exile, continue to keep this language alive. Persian will not disappear
with the Taliban.”

Sardar Mohammad Rahimi, researcher in Inalco University (France)

During the Ashraf Ghani presidency, he transferred the control of the Ministry of Education from a Tajik, Persian-speaking minister to a Pashto-speaking minister. For Sardar Mohammad Rahimi, professor for ten years at Kabul University, former Deputy Minister of Education, “their main objective was to prevent Persian from becoming further institutionalized as the dominant language in Afghanistan’s education system”. In Persian-speaking provinces of Kunduz, Balkh, Farah, Herat, and Nimroz, the Ministry of Education had to distribute textbooks written in Pashto, according to him. 

Actually researcher in Inalco University (France), Sardar Mohammad Rahimi insists: the diaspora of Afghanistan will save this linguistic identity. “The Taliban want to destroy the diversity of education in Afghanistan, he explains. But all people from this country, now in exile, continue to keep this language alive. Persian will not disappear with the Taliban.” He also adds: “Their policies reflect a long-standing pattern in which Persian cultural and linguistic influence is seen as a challenge to Pashtun political dominance.”

Books, one of the Taliban group’s targets

Censored, burned but also hidden by many people from Afghanistan, books are also one of the Taliban group’s targets. Nearly 400 books are now banned by the Taliban group Ministry of Information and Culture. “There are two reasons for this censorship: the content and the language in which the book is written, Sayed Mahdi Munadi, teacher at Sciences Po University (France), explains. To make books written in Persian disappear, the Taliban consider the content of the book to be contrary to Islamic values ​​and therefore justify its ban.”

The gradual elimination of Persian, continued by the Taliban group, is the link of a larger process. Under Ghani policy, the mention of “Afghan” on electronic identity cards has caused debate in minority groups. They saw this as an erasment of their ethnicity.