Maymana (Persian/Uzbek/Pashto: ) is the capital city of Faryab Province in northwestern Afghanistan, near the Afghanistan–Turkmenistan border. It is approximately northwest of the country's capital Kabul, and is located on the Maymana River, which is a tributary of the Murghab River. The population of Maymana was 149,040 in 2015, making it one of the largest cities of northwestern Afghanistan.
On 14 August 2021, Maymana was seized by Taliban fighters, becoming the twenty-second provincial capital to be captured by the Taliban as part of the wider 2021 Taliban offensive. As of January 2022, however, clashes between Taliban and resistance fighters and protests have been reported in the city.
Location
Maymana is located at the northern foot of the Torkestan Range at an elevation of on the old terrace of the Qeysar or Maymana River, which is a right tributary of the Murghab River. The Maymana River branches off of the Band-e Turkistan River 50 km south of the city. The highlands of the Maymana region generally possess a very rich topsoil which supports the seasonal agricultural activities.
Land use
Maymana is a trading and transit hub in northern Afghanistan. Just over half of the land in Maymana is non built-up (57%) consisting largely of agriculture. The central districts (2-5) have higher dwelling density and clear road grids. The outer districts(1, 7-10) are characterized by more agricultural land.
Population
During the 19th century, the population of the settlement was estimated at 15,000–18,000 and was assumed to be a dominantly Uzbek city due to the market language which was mostly Chagatai language (Uzbeki). However, documents show it was a city of different ethnicities and people such as Tajiks, Turkmens, Pashtuns and Baluch. In 1958, the population was estimated to be 30,000. By 1979 this had risen to 38,250, and by 1982 to 56,973. Since there was never an official population census, those previous data should not be taken seriously. In 2004, it was estimated that Maymana has a population of 75,900 but was not backed by any evidence. In 2015, the population was estimated to be 149,040 by UN supported observers. Maymana has 10 districts and a total land area of 3,461 hectares. The total number of dwellings in this city are 16,560.
History
The town is of ancient origin. It seems clear that Maymana citadel dates back to the early Iron Age. Ceramic materials in a nearby cave at Bilchiragh are from the Paleolithic and late Neolithic-Bronze Age. Between 800 B.C and 700 A.D it was part of Median and Persian Empire, as well of Kushanian and Hephtalite, before being subjugated by Arabs during the Islamic Conquest who used local Iranian vassals to rule the region. In the 7th and 8th century it was the residence of the Malik of Guzganan, last Kushanian remnants, which was then under the control of the Farighunid, a native dynasty. From the 9th to 11th century the region was ruled by several rulers and dynasties (Saffarid, Mihrabanid, Nasrid...) from Sistan and then being subjugated by the Iranian Samanid and the Irano-Turkic Ghaznavid and Khwarizm rulers.
In the 12th and 13th century the region was devastated by nomadic Turks and invading Mongols. It took long for the region, nearly 200 years, to recover from the damage the nomadic and invading Turko-Mongol foreigners from northern Central Asia had caused. The area's population remained thin and the commercial trade was very weak but enough for the survivors to develop new agricultural and rebuild old structures. While the city was garrisoned and hosted Iranians and some Arabs, the villages as well owned by Iranians and settled remnants of Arabs, the deserts and steppe were home of wandering nomads of Turko-Mongolian and Iranian stocks (Aymaq). In the 16th century, the Turkic Uzbek influence came to Maymana with the invasions of Turkistan and Herat by Muhammad Shaibani. For the region it was again a complicated time. However, Shaibani was defeated by the Iranian Saffavids but the Uzbek elements remained dominant from then up to day in the region until in the 18th and 19th centuries.