The Zand tribe ( Laki:ئیل زند) is a

Laki Laki () or Lakagígar (, ''Craters of Laki'') is a volcanic fissure in the western part of Vatnajökull National Park, Iceland, not far from the volcanic fissure of Eldgjá and the small village of Kirkjubæjarklaustur. The fissure is proper ...

-speaking Kurdish tribe mainly populating the countryside of Khanaqin in Iraq and in the provinces of

Kurdistan Kurdistan (, ; ), or Greater Kurdistan, is a roughly defined geo- cultural region in West Asia wherein the Kurds form a prominent majority population and the Kurdish culture, languages, and national identity have historically been based. G ...

and

Hamadan Hamadan ( ; , ) is a mountainous city in western Iran. It is located in the Central District of Hamadan County in Hamadan province, serving as the capital of the province, county, and district. As of the 2016 Iranian census, it had a po ...

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 ...

History

The Zand tribe is originally from the Khanaqin area and settled in Malayer near

. Incorporated into the army of Iranian ruler

Nader Shah Nader Shah Afshar (; 6 August 1698 or 22 October 1688 – 20 June 1747) was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty of Iran and one of the most powerful rulers in Iranian history, ruling as shah of Iran (Persia) from 1736 to 1747, when he was a ...

(1736-1747), they were moved to Khorasan. The Zands and other tribes of the

Zagros Mountains The Zagros Mountains are a mountain range in Iran, northern Iraq, and southeastern Turkey. The mountain range has a total length of . The Zagros range begins in northwestern Iran and roughly follows Iran's western border while covering much of s ...

managed to return home following Nader's assassination in 1747. Many returned to Lorestan according to M. Reza Hamzeh'ee, while Soane notes that parts of tribe ultimately returned to Khanaqin. The tribe is most known for their member,

Karim Khan Zand Mohammad Karim Khan Zand (; ) was the founder of the Zand dynasty, ruling all of Iran (Name of Iran, Persia) except for Khorasan province, Khorasan from 1751 to 1779. He also ruled over some of the Caucasus, Caucasian lands and occupied Basra f ...

, who founded the

Zand dynasty The Zand dynasty () was an Iranian dynasty, founded by Karim Khan Zand (1751–1779) that initially ruled southern and central Iran in the 18th century. It later expanded to include much of the rest of contemporary Iran (except for the provi ...

, ruling from 1751 till his death in 1779. His death was followed by internal conflicts for his succession which resulted in the weakening of the dynasty, ending with the defeat of Karim Khan's nephew Lotf Ali Khan by the

Qajar The Guarded Domains of Iran, alternatively the Sublime State of Iran and commonly called Qajar Iran, Qajar Persia or the Qajar Empire, was the Iranian state under the rule of the Qajar dynasty, which was of Turkic origin,Cyrus Ghani. ''Iran an ...

ruler Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar (r. 1789-1797). The tribe was also known as one of the few where women fought alongside their husbands.The Zands are notable as one of the few Kurdish ruling bodies to allow women in their military. Zand women often fought alongside their husbands against invading Afghan forces

Origins

The Zands are a branch of the Laks, a people who are academically classified as Kurds. Perry also states that the Zands "belonged to the Lakk group of Lurs". Frye, likewise, states that the Zand tribe "spoke the Lakk dialect of the Lur language". When Soane visited the tribe around 1918, the tribe denied any connection to Lurs indicating that they are Kurds who later became assimilated into a so-called separate ethnic group known as Lurs.

Balochistan offshoot

There's 8 villages in Bamposht district of

Balochistan Balochistan ( ; , ), also spelled as Baluchistan or Baluchestan, is a historical region in West and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. This arid region o ...

that's inhabited by Balochi-speaking Zands. These Zands are descendants of Lutfi Khan Zand's Soldiers who accompanied him on his flight to Bam.

History

Origins

Balochistan offshoot

References

Further reading