Mengal (Balochi: مینگل) are a Brahui speaking clan in Balochistan, Pakistan.[1] Mengal was originally one of the four Jat (Jadgal) tribes inhabiting Balochistan; the other three being Zehri, Bizenjo and Sajdi.[2][3][4]
Etymology edit
In the Balochi language, plurals of substantives and collective nouns are formed, generally, by adding the suffix "gal" to the noun itself, tribes like Jadgal, Kurdgal are formed in this manner, similarly the term Mengal (Meng-gal,) merely denotes the Meng (Ming, or Men, or Min) name of a tribe and the suffix "gal" means (Speech and group), thus meaning (the group of Mins). The well-known ancient city of Minnagara in Sindh (town of the Mins) have been also named from this tribe.[5]
Demographics edit
The Mengal tribe is one of the largest Brahui Speaking Baloch tribe. The tribe can be divided in two major branches: Zagar Mengal and Shahizai Mengal.[citation needed]
Notable clans of Mengal tribe are Shahizai, Lehri, Baranzai, Mahmudzai etc.[1]
Tribal area edit
The Mengal tribal area is around 70,000 square miles (180,000 km2), stretching from the Helmand River in the North to Lasbela District in the south, and bordering on the province of Sindh to the east.[6]
Politics edit
For many years the Mengal tribe has been seeking greater autonomy from the Pakistan government.[7][8][9] The Pakistani government and the Mengals have been clashing for the past four decades, for various reasons.[10][11] Large-scale military operations were carried out in the area of Khuzdar in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1973, the Pakistani government headed by the former Prime Minister Late Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, with support of the Shah of Iran, carried out one of the bloodiest military operations in the history of Balochistan against the Mengal and Marri tribes which lasted for 5 years, during which around 8,000 Baloch fighters and 6,000 army soldiers were killed.
Prominent people edit
- Sardar Ataullah Mengal is a former Chief Minister of Balochistan.[12]
- Sardar Akhtar Mengal is a former Chief Minister of Balochistan.[13]
- Mir Gul Khan Naseer was a renowned poet, historian and politician and the First Education Minister Of Balochistan.[citation needed]
- Mir Amir-ul-Mulk Mengal was Governor and Chief Justice of Balochistan.[14]
- Mir Muhammad Naseer Mengal served as acting Chief Minister of Balochistan[15] and as Pakistan's acting Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Resources.[16]
- Mir Nooruddin Mengal was a prominent politician of Balochistan. He was assassinated on 13 October 2010.[17][18]
- Mir Lawang Khan Mengal was a famous politician and tribal leader
References edit
- ^ a b Nahyan, Mansoor Bin Tahnoon Al; Hussain, Jamal; Ghafoor, Asad ul (9 May 2019). Tribes of Pakistan. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN 978-1-5275-3439-1.
- ^ Baluch, Muhammad Sardar Khan (1977). History of Baluch Race and Baluchistan. Gosha-e-Adab : distributors Nisa Trader. p. 268.
...Bizanjo, Mengal, Sajdi and Zehri as Jadgal or Jats...
- ^ "The Brahuis are not Brahuis". Araingang.
- ^ The Encyclopaedia Britannica: Bisharin-Calgary. At the University Press. 1910. p. 390.
- ^ Tate, George Passman (1912). Seistan: A Memoir on the History, Topography, Ruins, and People of the Country, in Four Parts. Superintendent government printing. p. 291.
- ^ Balochistan Administrative Districts database Planning and Development Department (P&DD) of the Government of Balochistan. Retrieved 25 November 2008
- ^ Balochistan tribes threaten Pakistan's gas riches Asia Times, Jul 25, 2002 Retrieved 25 November 2008
- ^ Explosive mix in Pakistan's gas province BBC News 4 February 2005. Retrieved 25 November 2008
- ^ A quick death The Economist Aug 31st 2006. Retrieved 25 November 2008
- ^ A Call to Resistance: The Khan of Kalat Gathers the Tribes Brooklynrail.org Retrieved 25 November 2008
- ^ Balochistan Militancy - An Insider's View Rafi Bhatti January 17, 2006. Retrieved 25 November 2008
- ^ Nothing but provincial autonomy, The DAWN Group of Newspapers, retrieved 25 March 2009
- ^ Taking on the State: Frontline March 09, 2007, Hindunet, retrieved 25 November 2008
- ^ Press briefing by the UN offices for Pakistan and Afghanistan, UN News Center, retrieved 25 March 2009
- ^ Senators: Mir Muhammad Naseer Mengal, Pakistan Senate, retrieved 26 March 2009
- ^ http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\11\11\story_11-11-2007_pg5_6
- ^ http://news.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/bnpm-leader-shot-dead-in-kalat-400
- ^ http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.page=2010\07\16\story_16-7-2010_pg1_4