The Madakhel is a Pakhtoon/Pashtoon/

Pathan Pashtuns (, , ; ;), also known as Pakhtuns, or Pathans, are an Iranic ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically also referred to as Afghans until 1964 after the ...

tribe. It is a division of the Isazai clan of the

Yousafzai The Yusufzai or Yousafzai (, ), also referred to as the Esapzai (, ), or Yusufzai Afghans historically, are one of the largest tribes of Pashtuns. They are natively based in the northern part of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ( Malakand, Dir, Swat, Shangl ...

tribe.

History

The Madakhels are from the family of

The Black Mountain (Tor Ghar) Tribes The Black Mountain (Tor Ghar), is located in the Hazara Division of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. Tor Ghar is a Pashto phrase which means Black (Tor) Mountain (Ghar). It is also called Kala Dhaka, which means the same thing as its Pu ...

. They are a division of the Isazai clan of the Yousafzai tribe. Madakhels are the descendants of Mada the son of Isa (Isazai) and the grandson of Yusuf/Yousaf/(Yousafzai). The Madakhels are further divided into four Sections; each Section having two or more sub-sections.

Sections and sub-sections

Geography

Madakhels are among the dwellers on the

Tor Ghar Torghar District (, ) formerly known as Kala Dhaka (, English: Black Mountain) is a district in the Hazara Division of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It was officially separated from Mansehra District in 2011 under Article 246 of ...

. Madakhel country is on the northern slopes of the Mahaban Mountain down to the right bank of the

Indus The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans- Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in the Western Tibet region of China, flows northwest through the dis ...

and is bounded on the north by the

Hassanzai The Hassanzai is a sub-clan of Yousafzai, which is a Pakhtoon/Pashtoon/ Pathan tribe. It is one of the divisions of the Isazai clan of the Yousafzai tribe. Yousafzai tribe is regarded as one of the most powerful, famous, and respected tribes of P ...

s, on the east by the

, on the south and west by the

Tanoli The Tanoli (Hindko: تناولی; ) is a Hindkowan tribe living mainly in the Hazara region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. They form the majority of the population of Lassan Nawab union council. The Tanoli describe themselves as of Barlas ...

s and Amazais. Most of the villages are on Mahaban Mountain, with two on the banks of the Indus. The easiest approaches to Madakhel territory pass through Hassanzai territory.

Culture and traditions

Like other Pashtoons, Madakhels maintained their cultural identity and individuality. They lead their lives in accordance with code of ethics of

Pashtunwali Pashtunwali (), also known as Pakhtunwali and Afghaniyat, is the traditional lifestyle or a code of honour and tribal code of the Pashtuns, Pashtun people, from Afghanistan and Pakistan, by which they live. Many scholars widely have interpreted it ...

, which combines Manliness, Goodness, Gallantry, Loyalty and Modesty. Madakhels have also maintained the Pashtoon customs of

Jirga A jirga (, ''jərga'') is an assembly of leaders that makes decisions by consensus according to Pashtunwali, the Pashtun social code. It is conducted in order to settle disputes among the Pashtuns, but also by members of other ethnic groups who ...

(Consultative Assembly),

Nanawati Nənawā́te (, "sanctuary") is a tenet of the Pashtunwali code of the Pashtun people. It allows a beleaguered person to enter the house of any other person and make a request of him which cannot be refused, even at the cost of the host's own life ...

(Delegation pleading guilty), Hujhra (Large drawing room) and Melmastya (Hospitality).

Language

Pushto Pashto ( , ; , ) is an eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family, natively spoken in northwestern Pakistan and southern and eastern Afghanistan. It has official status in Afghanistan and the Pakistani province of Khybe ...

is the basic language of Madakhels. Living away from urban centres and having less interaction with people from other languages, Madakhels speak purest form of Pushto. Due to migrations for better prospects of life and marriage in non-Pushtoon families, some Madakhels adopted other languages such as

Hindko Hindko (, , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken by several million people of various ethnic backgrounds in northwestern Pakistan, primarily in the provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and northern Pun ...

and

Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...

Recent developments

On 28 January 2011, Tor Ghar became the 25th district of

Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ; , ; abbr. KP or KPK), formerly known as the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), is a province of Pakistan. Located in the northwestern region of the country, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the fourth largest province of Paki ...

.Tor Ghar: Kala Dhaka becomes 25th K-P district
The Express Tribune. 28 January 2011. Retrieved 12 November 2011. Judba is the district headquarters of this newly born district with following tehsils:- * Judba * Kandar Hassanzai * Mada Khel Most of the Mada Khel areas come under the Mada Khel tehsil.

References

{{Pashtun tribes Yusufzai Pashtun tribes