celebration of culture

Language and religion

Both Pashtu and Dari  are the official languages of the country. Pashtu is spoken by about 35% of the population while approximately 50% speak Dari.The Turkic languages, spoken by 11% of the population, include Uzbek and Turkmen, and the Nuristanis speak some seven different dialects belonging to the Dardic linguistic group. There are about 30 minor languages, primarily Balochi and Pashai, spoken by some 4% of the population. Almost 99% percent of the population of Afghanistan are Muslim, so the main religion is Islam.

                                                            Traditions,customs,music,dance,art,and food 

Traditional as well as modern Afghan music is unique in appeal and is part of the celebrations. The people indulge themselves during the Nauroz celebration. Afghans are known to display a fierce loyalty to respective tribes. They believe that Islamic law permits every 'believer' to maintain arms when directed by the ruler. This requirement mainly springs from the geographical location and difficult living conditions in the mountains. They flaunt a very simple, but nourishing cuisine that comprises hand baked bread and meat or vegetable preparations. The food is rich and spicy, complimenting the climatic conditions. Their uncomplicated lifestyle has worked both, for and against the people. On the contrary, the Afghans are quite a hardy lot and basically non-interfering. The people of Afghanistan are firm believers in the omnipresent God and follow the principles of Islam. Their customs and way of life are designed to compliment the dictates of the Prophet, location of their country and clanship, essentially in that order. They are very hospitable and loyal people, who value personal honor and responsibility as the fundamentals of social structure. They greet one another with the phrase Assalaam Alaikum, which means 'Peace be with you. The response to the greeting is Waalaikum Assalaam, indicating unison in thought. It is not uncommon to see the highlanders walk bare-foot. It is a custom to remove footwear prior to prayers. Among the other common rules in etiquette that they follow are pointing directions with whole hand instead of one finger, a hand-shake and a pat on the back when men meet and a warm embrace and kissing thrice on alternate cheeks when women meet. Afghan society is kinship based and the traditional customs and practices, vary just a bit from one region to another.The people in Afghanistan celebrate weedings feast days, and religious holidays by public dancing.Afghan music is very different from American music. The beautiful performance of the Attan Dance in the open air has long been a feature of Afghan life.Afghanistan art has a unique heritage but during the three decades of war and conflict much of the arts were stolen from Afghanistan and smuggled mostly to Pakistan but also to Iran and neighboring countries.

Afghanistan etiquette

Etiquette is a code that governs the expectations of social behavior, according to the contemporary conventional norm within a society, social class, or group. Usually unwritten, an etiquette may reflect an underlying ethical code, or it may be codified in written form. Etiquette usually reflects formulas of conduct in which society or tradition have invested.