The Timuri or Taimuri () are a sub-tribe of the

Aimaq people The Aimaq, Aimaq Persians (), or Chahar Aimaq (), also transliterated as Aymaq, Aimagh, Aimak, and Aymak, are a collection of Sunni and mostly Persian-speaking nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes. They live mainly in the central and western highla ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

and

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

, which also include Jamshidi, Aimaq Hazara, Firozkohi, and Taymani. The Timuri originated in western

Badghis Province Bādghīs () is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, located in the northwest of the country, on the border with Turkmenistan. It is considered to be one of the country's most underdeveloped provinces, with the highest poverty rate. T ...

. They mostly speak the

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

dialects A dialect is a variety of language spoken by a particular group of people. This may include dominant and standardized varieties as well as vernacular, unwritten, or non-standardized varieties, such as those used in developing countries or iso ...

. The Timuri were once the largest and most powerful of the Aimaqs. They are believed to be descendants of

Timur Timur, also known as Tamerlane (1320s17/18 February 1405), was a Turco-Mongol conqueror who founded the Timurid Empire in and around modern-day Afghanistan, Iran, and Central Asia, becoming the first ruler of the Timurid dynasty. An undefeat ...

. Nowadays, they live in Afghanistan and Iran. In Iran, they live in the former

Khorasan Province Khorasan ( ; also transcribed as Khurasan, Xorasan and Khorassan), also called Traxiane during Hellenistic and Parthian Empire, Parthian times, was a Provinces of Iran, province in northeastern Iran until September 2004, when it was divided in ...

and around

Mashhad Mashhad ( ; ), historically also known as Mashad, Meshhed, or Meshed in English, is the List of Iranian cities by population, second-most-populous city in Iran, located in the relatively remote north-east of the country about from Tehran. ...

. In Afghanistan, their traditional nomadic homeland is Badghis Province, while others are settled in oases near

Herat Herāt (; Dari/Pashto: هرات) is an oasis city and the third-largest city in Afghanistan. In 2020, it had an estimated population of 574,276, and serves as the capital of Herat Province, situated south of the Paropamisus Mountains (''Se ...

and Shindand in western Afghanistan and near

Ghazni Ghazni (, ), historically known as Ghaznayn () or Ghazna (), also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana (), is a city in southeastern Afghanistan with a population of around 190,000 people. The city is strategica ...

in central Afghanistan. There is also a small group of Pashtunised pastoralist Timuri in Baghlan Province in northeastern Afghanistan. Johnathan Lee notes that in 19th century accords, the Taimuri were often confused with the Taimani, but as the Taimuri were generally a small tribe living in Persian territory, it is usually the Taimani that chroniclers intended to note.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Timuri Aymaq Ethnic groups in Badghis Province Ethnic groups in Afghanistan Ethnic groups in Iran Modern nomads Timurid dynasty

See also

References