Physical Features of Afghanistan

The climate and geography of Afghanistan explain a great deal about its economy, its history, and the location of its ethnic groups. Situated between the historic civilizations of Iran, India, and Central Asia, Afghanistan is about the same size as the combined area of California and Nevada. It is similar to the latter two states in climate and topography. The country has a largely arid, continental climate with three distinct regional variants: the central mountains, the steppelike terrain on the periphery of these mountains, and the extreme desert in the southwest. Rainfall in all of these areas is sparse.

The greatest amount, sometimes as much as 16 inches (406 mm), falls in the Hindu Kush mountains, which dominate the center of the country, and in the Jalalabad region east of Kabul. Agriculture depends largely on the rivers and small irrigation canals that are fed by melting winter snows in these mountains. The principal exception to this weather pattern is the monsoon shadow region of eastern Afghanistan. This area receives rain from the southwest monsoons. Precipitation occurs mainly in July and early August, as some rain-laden clouds that strike the Himalayas are diverted to the west and northwest, producing the forested regions of Gardez and Nuristan and the subcontinental climate of Jalalabad.

 

The Hindu Kush (literally, "Hindu-killer") mountain system is not only the principal source of water for the agricultural economy; it is also a geographical feature influencing the region's settlement patterns, military and political history, distribution of ethnic groups, and patterns of trade. These mountains are an extension of the Himalayan and Pamir mountain system, which was formed when plate tectonics brought the present Indian subcontinent into collision with the Eurasian landmass. As part of this system, these ranges are prone to the earthquakes that plague regions along major plate fault lines. 

The Hindu Kush mountains spread in a fan-shaped pattern from the Pamirs in the extreme northeastern corner of the country, a sliver of territory known as the Wakhan corridor. The Pamirs themselves signify the same thing as the European Alps. That is, they are characterized by high mountain valleys. In Afghanistan these valleys have traditionally been the home of such nomadic and seminomadic people as the Turkic Kirghiz. In the Wakhan corridor the mountains rise to between 9,800 and 19,600 feet (3,000–6,000 meters). They are only slightly lower in the Badakhshan and Nuristan regions to the immediate west and south.

 

Due west of Kabul the central part of the Hindu Kush range is also known as the Hazarajat; it is named after the Hazarah population that inhabits much of this mountainous territory. There the highest peaks are between 13,000 and 16,000 feet (4,000–5,000 meters). A number of passes traverse these mountains from south to north, but most are closed by snow in the winter. Only in 1964 was the all-weather Salang Tunnel constructed to allow motorized traffic to pass from Kabul to the northern cities throughout the year. West and southwest of the Hazarajat, the Hindu Kush steadily declines in height. The mountains fan out in a series of smaller local ranges with broader valleys. These ranges include the Sefid Kuh, or Paropamisus, which extends nearly to the Iranian border just north of Herat, and the smaller Shah Maqsud range just above Qandahar in the southwest.

 

The five principal cities of 21st-century Afghanistan are all located on rivers fed by mountain snows that flow out of the Hindu Kush range to the south, southwest, west and north. All five are built above or near prehistoric, ancient, and medieval human settlements. In modern times, but not always historically, Kabul has been the most populous of these cities. It is located on the Kabul River, which flows eastward into the Indus River and thus into the Arabian Sea. The size of Kabul in modern times, however, is not entirely determined by its riverside location, for the city is situated in relatively mountainous terrain with a very modest agricultural hinterland. Two other factors behind the city's growth are its location on trade routes linking India, Iran, and Central Asia and its role as the political capital of the country since the mid-19th century. The latter factor was especially important in the 20th century because, as the capital, Kabul also became the industrial and educational center of the country.

 

Two other Afghan cities are located in far more favorable agricultural regions; historically, they rivaled Kabul in importance and population. These are Qandahar in the southwest and Herat in the far west. Both cities are situated in relatively fertile river valleys. Qandahar lies in the Arghandab-Helmand watershed, and Herat in the Hari Rud Valley. Both cities are also located on major trade routes linking India with Iran and, in the case of Herat, connecting Iran with Central Asia. 

After the Mongol invasions of the 13th century and prior to the formation of the first Afghan state in 1747, Herat was one of the most important artistic, literary, and religious centers in the eastern Islamic world. It was certainly the most important city within the territory of modern Afghanistan. All three of these cities, Kabul, Qandahar, and Herat, now dwarf the principal northern cities of Mazar-i Sharif and Qunduz, which lie, as well, on rivers flowing out of the Hindu Kush. Before the Mongol invasions, however, the city of Balkh, near present-day Mazar-i Sharif, was known as the "mother of cities." The title was bestowed because of its size, its economic importance as a trading link with Central Asia, and its role as a major center of Islamic learning.