Balochistan

This article is about the geographic region. For the province in Pakistan, see Balochistan, Pakistan. For other uses, see Balochistan (disambiguation).
Balochistan
بلۏچستان
Region
Balochistan region in pink
Balochistan region in pink
Countries
Population
 (2013)
 • Totalc. 18–19 million[1][2][3]
Demographics
 • Ethnic groupsBaloch
Minor: Brahui, Pashtuns, Hazaras, Jadgals, Sindhis, Khetrans
 • LanguagesBalochi
Minor: Brahui, Jadgali, Pashto, Sindhi, Persian, Khetrani, Urdu
Largest cities
List

Balochistan[4] (/bəˈloʊtʃɪstɑːn, bəˌloʊtʃɪˈstɑːn, -stæn/ bə-LOHTCH-ist-a(h)n, -⁠A(H)N; Balochi: بلۏچستان, romanized: Balòcestàn, IPA: [baˈloːt͡ʃest̪ɑːn]), also spelled as Baluchistan or Baluchestan, is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. This arid region of desert and mountains is primarily populated by ethnic Baloch people.[5][6][7]

The Balochistan region is split among three countries: Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Administratively it comprises the Pakistani province of Balochistan, the Iranian province of Sistan and Baluchestan, and the southern areas of Afghanistan, which include Nimruz, Helmand and Kandahar provinces.[8][9] It borders the Pashtunistan region to the north, Sindh and Punjab to the east, and Persian regions to the west. Its southern coastline, including the Makran Coast, is washed by the Arabian Sea, in particular by its western part, the Gulf of Oman.

  1. ^ Iran, Library of Congress, Country Profile . Retrieved December 5, 2009.
  2. ^ Afghanistan, The World Factbook . Retrieved December 5, 2009.
  3. ^ Central Intelligence Agency (2013). "The World Factbook: Ethnic Groups". Archived from the original on June 13, 2007. Retrieved 3 November 2014.
  4. ^ Other variations of the spelling, especially on French maps, include Beloutchistan and Baloutchistan also Baloch Land.
  5. ^ Dashti, Naseer (October 2012). The Baloch and Balochistan: A Historical Account from the Beginning to the Fall of the Baloch State. Trafford Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4669-5896-8.
  6. ^ Ahmed, Manzoor; Khan, Gulawar (22 September 2020). "The History of Baloch and Balochistan: A Critical Appraisal". South Asian Studies. 32 (1 (2017)) – via University of the Punjab.
  7. ^ Dames, Mansel Longworth (1904). The Baloch Race: A Historical and Ethnological Sketch. Royal Asiatic Society.
  8. ^ Pillalamarri, Akhilesh (12 February 2016). "A Brief History of Balochistan". thediplomat.com. THE DIPLOMAT. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
  9. ^ "Human Rights in Balochistan: A Case Study in Failure and Invisibility". HuffPost. 25 March 2016. Retrieved 18 June 2016.