In today's video, we'll be exploring 10 Interesting Facts about Afghanistan. Welcome back to FTD Facts.
I'm Sarah Carvalho, and I'm super looking forward to taking you through today's facts.
As you may have noticed, with recent events going on around the globe right now, we've had a huge
influx of requests for videos about Afghanistan. Now, you know we love to hear from you and we are
always happy to honor your video content requests, providing that they are topics that won't be
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more information about it later on in the video. But for now, let's get started with today's video -
10 Interesting Facts about Afghanistan. Alright, let's get started by talking about the capital
city. Kabul is the capital, and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern section of the
country, it is also a municipality forming part of the greater Kabul province, and it's divided
into 22 districts. According to estimates, in 2021, the population of Kabul is around 4.6 million and
it serves as Afghanistan's political, cultural, and economical center. Surprisingly, rapid urbanization
has made Kabul the world's 75th largest city. Kabul is located high up in a narrow valley between
the Hindu Kush mountains, and bounded by the Kabul River, with an elevation of 1,790 meters, making it
one of the highest capitals in the world. Now, this city is said to be over 3 500 years old mentioned
since at least the time of the Achaemenid Empire. Today, Kabul is known for its historical gardens,
bazaars, and palaces. Some well-known examples being, "The Gardens of Babur," and "Darul Aman Palace."
Alright, let's talk a little bit about the country's main sources of income. The main source of income
in the country is agriculture. And, during its good years, Afghanistan produces enough food and products
to provide for the people, as well as to create a surplus for export. The major food crops produced
include corn, rice, barley, wheat, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. In Afghanistan, the industry is also
based on agriculture and pastoral raw materials. The major industrial crops are cotton, tobacco,
madder, castor beans, and sugar beets. Sheep farming is also extremely valuable. The major sheep product
exports are wool and the highly prized Karakul Sheepskins. Afghanistan is also a land that is rich
in natural resources. There are numerous mineral and precious stone deposits, as well as natural
gas, and yet untapped petroleum stores. Some of these resources have been exploited, while others
have remained relatively untouched. Alright, have you ever heard of "The Country of The Pomegranate?"
Afghanistan may be considered the country of the pomegranate fruit because of the excellent quality
of the cultivars that thrive there. Afghanistan is a land for 48 leading world cultivars of
pomegranate, commonly growing in Kandahar, Kapisa, Samangan, Farha, Nenroz, and Balkh provinces. The
Kandahar province has historically, widely been known as the main production area for its high
quality and productivity. Interestingly, some leading Botanists believe that Afghanistan is
the cradle of world pomegranate production. And, that it has more varieties of pomegranate trees
than anywhere else in the world. In 2009, several hundred thousand pomegranate trees were planted
and the nation exported some 50,000 tons of this delicious fruit. In 2010, Afghanistan began
exporting the fruit to the French grocery store firm "Carrefour," in Dubai. This has created significant
competition there, among their Turkish and North African counterpart brands, as the Afghan product
is said to be larger, redder, and juicier. So, if you haven't done so already, try and get your hands
on an Afghan pomegranate. Alright, moving on to fact number 7, talking about
New Year celebrations. Unlike many countries around the world, who celebrate the New Year on
January 1st, New Year in Afghanistan is celebrated on the 21st of March. And they call it "Nawroz." It is
a pre-Islamic festival for those of you who may not know. It is celebrated by the gathering of
thousands of travelers from across Afghanistan, to the city of Mazar-i-Sharif during the first 40
days of the year. This is when it happens - when red tulips grow in the green plains, and over the hills
surrounding the city. Now, this location is home to a famous mosque in the center of the city.
it is known as the Blue Mosque or the Shrine of Hazrat Ali, who was the cousin and son-in-law of
the Islamic Prophet, Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him). During the first two weeks of the New Year, the
citizens of Kabul hold family picnics in Istalif, Charikar, and other green places where Redbud shrubs grow.
You may also be surprised to hear that at one point, between 1996 - 2001,
Nawruz was banned and labeled as an ancient Pagan holiday, centered on fire worship. Alright,
Afghanistan is home to the world's largest Buddhas? Well, let's talk about that. Unfortunately, these
amazing historical statues have been for the most part, destroyed as of 2001. Prior to their recent
destruction the 6th to 7th-century rock-carved Buddha sculptures in the Bamiyan valley of central
Afghanistan, were considered the largest in the world. Known collectively as the Bamiyan Buddhas ,
the two monumental sculptures have amazed both Buddhist and non-Buddhist visitors for more than
a thousand years. Both images were carved into the cliffside in high relief. The area near the
heads of both Buddha figures, and the area around the larger Buddha's, feet were carved in the round
allowing worshippers to circumambulate. Circumambulation, which is the act of walking
around an object such as a Stupa (a reliquary mound), or an image of the Buddha. It is a common
practice in Buddhist worship. Like many of the world's great ancient monuments, little is known
about who commissioned the Bamiyan Buddhas, or the sculptors who carved them. However, their very
existence points to the importance of the Buddhist faith and the Bamiyan valley during this period.
Alright friends, we've downed 5 facts, we've got 5 more to go. But before we do that,
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click that link! Alright, I think we are all ready to move on and get through the second half of the
facts for today's video. Coming in at fact number 5, we have, Accessibility to Communications
and Technology. So, communications in Afghanistan is under the control of the Ministry of
Communications and Information Technology. It has rapidly expanded since late 2001, and has increased
on the accessibility to wireless companies, the internet, radio stations, and television channels.
The Afghan government signed a $64.5 million dollar agreement in 2006 with china's "ZTE,"
on the establishment of a countrywide optical fiber cable network. The project began to improve
telephone, internet, television, and radio broadcast services throughout Afghanistan. About 90% of the
country's population had access to communication services as of 2014. According to the Ministry of
Communication and Information Technology, there are 4,760 active towers throughout the country,
which covers 85% of the population. The Ministry plans to expand its services
in remote parts of the country where the remaining 15% of the population, will be covered with the
installation of 700 new towers. So, yes, believe it or not, having a mobile phone is actually
considered to be a status symbol for many. Next up, we're going to talk about Democracy in Afghanistan?
Well, yes, you may not have been aware, but since 1978, Afghanistan has been in a state of continuous
internal conflict and foreign interventions. So, it makes sense that having a stable and reliable form
of government would have posed as a challenge. But, surprisingly, in December of 2004, Mr. Hamid
Karzai became the first-ever Democratically elected Head of The State of Afghanistan.
Alright, coming in at number 3, we're talking about the "poster boy of Afghan men." Perhaps the
most surprising fact for me today, is that Arnold Schwarzenegger is considered to be the "poster boy"
for legions of young Afghan men. Photographs of a muscled Arnold in his prime, hang from the walls of
hundreds of bodybuilding centres across the country. Some Afghans say the action star, turned
U.S Governor, even looks like an Afghan. Alright, and let's talk about how the family is
essential to Afghan culture. In Afghanistan, men are typically laden with the responsibility of
earning for the family, while women are expected to stay home and serve the family. However, in modern
Afghanistan, you may also find some women working in the cities and earning a living for themselves
and their families. In most cases, the family lives together in the same house. Even upon marriage, the
son and his wife live separately in a different room, but still in the family home. So, we can see
here that the bond of family is so strong that even after marriage, newlyweds are happy to live
amongst the rest of the family. Although many other global countries have this same cultural practice,
this is quite different than the Western tradition of moving out of the family home, and starting a
new life, in a new home, as a married couple. And, coming in at number one, we're gonna be talking
about the religion of Islam. Now, you might be surprised to find out that the history of Islam
in Afghanistan is quite detailed and thoroughly documented. Literally, it would probably take me
a lot of time to read through all of the details. However, for the simple purposes of this video
today, I'm not gonna go into the specific details of how Islam was introduced to Afghanistan.
However, what I did find interesting, was the belief that Arab Muslims spread the religion of Islam
in Afghanistan around 642 CE in Herat and Zarang. At the time, they recognized Afghanistan as "Al - Hind,"
due to the country's proximity to India. Alright, FTD Facts family,
this brings us to the end of our video, exploring 10 More Interesting Facts about Afghanistan.
If you enjoyed this video, we have so many more videos for you about Afghanistan, but also about
so many other highly engaging topics as well. Don't believe me? Well, see for yourself! I've posted some
video links and suggestions for you below in the description section. Be sure to check them
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