Qumi Governorate

Qumi Governorate محافظة القمي
Governorate of Gandhara
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Qumi in Gandhara
Country	Gandhara
Capital	Tabatabaei
Government
• Governor	Elias al-Zahrawi
Area
• Total	19,484 km2 (7,523 sq mi)
Population (2016)
• Total	103,724
• Density	5.3/km2 (14/sq mi)

Qumi Governorate (Arabic: محافظة القمي Muḥāfaẓah al-Qumi) is a governorate of Gandhara, located in the western part of the country. In 2016, the governorate had a population of 103,724 and a total area of 19,484 km² (7,523 sq mi). Tabatabaei serves as its capital. The governorate is largely mountainous and contains Outernatia's highest point, Mount Taysir, at 5,769 m (18,927 ft).

History

The area that is now known as the Qumi Governorate has been inhabited for thousands of years. It is known that the Qumi people were inhabiting the mountainous region north of Rhea already in the 9th century, as the Arab traveler Al-Masudi speaks of them.

The territory was under the rule of the Mongol Empire between 1246 and 1295, after which it became independent as the Qumi Khanate. From 1557, it became a protectorate of the expanding Gandhari Empire. After the collapse of the Gandhari Empire, the area became part of the State of Gandhara. Due to its mountainous character and low population, the area remained relatively untouched during the Gandhari Revolution.

Geography

Landscapes of Qumi

Qumi children from a village located in the Hare Krishna mountains

At 19,484 km² (7,523 sq mi), Qumi Governorate ranks as the 19th largest governorate of Gandhara, and it has the second-smallest population, only having approximately 2,000 inhabitants more that the least populated Dabbagh Governorate. Covered with the Hare Krishna mountain range, the entire governorate is at a high altitude: the lowest point is at 2,902 m (9,521 ft) and 99,9% of the governorate is above 3,000 m (9,800 ft).

Qumi lies south of the region Gandhari Kurdistan. It borders Khani in the north, Dabbagh in the east, Kirmani and Sadat in the south, and Badawi in the west.

Climate

Qumi has a cold desert climate (Köppen BWk), influenced by the high elevation, with long, very cold winters, and warm summers. The coldest month is January with average temperatures of between −15 °C (5.0 °F) and −20 °C (−4.0 °F) and the warmest months are June through August when temperatures average between 10 °C (50.0 °F) and 15 °C (59.0 °F) at 4,000 m (13,000 ft) elevation. An average of only 100 millimetres (3.94 in) of precipitation falls per year.

Fauna

The fauna of the region is Palaearctic, and includes large carnivores such as the snow leopard, the gray wolf, and the brown bear, and the mountain ungulates Siberian ibex, Marco Polo sheep, and the yak.

Demographics

A Kuchi girl

Major ethnic groups of Qumi are the Qumi, the Kyrgyz, and the Kho people. The Qumi make up around 75% of the governorate's population, while the Kyrgyz and the Kho people each make up around 9% of the population. Smaller groups include Tajiks, Uzbeks, and Kuchis.

The Qumi people speak Arabic or the Ishkashimi language, and most of them adhere the Shia Ismaili faith. Qumi people practice agriculture in the river valleys, and herd animals in the summer pastures at higher elevations. Many Qumi are traditional pastoralists who live in yurts.

The Kyrgyz are predominantly Muslims of the Hanafi Sunni school. Like the Qumi, many Kyrgyz lead a nomadic lifestyle. They are herders living at higher altitudes, and are led by a khan or tekin.

The Kho people are a Dardic ethnic group. They speak the Khowar language, a member of the Dardic subgroup of the Indo-Aryan language family, and are Sunni and Ismaili Muslims. Some of the Kho people use Urdu as a second language. Because of Gandhara's central location on the Outernatian Silk Route, the Kho display a wide variety of cultures, largely depending upon their ancestral ethnic group and family history.

The Kuchis, who make up around 3% of the governorate's population, live mostly in the south of Qumi. Traditionally, the Kuchis live a semi-nomadic lifestyle with their herds of camels, sheep, and goats. Nowadays only a few hundred still follow their traditional livelihood of nomadic herding. Others have become farmers or settled in cities.