'Abdali

'Abdali is the original name of the Durrani, the royal Pashtun tribe, located in the Kandahar area of Afghanistan. They claim descent from Tarin and his youngest son Bar Tarin, or 'Abdal, hence their name 'Abdali. The Abdalis were first mentioned in history in 1589 when the Safavid shah appointed Sado as their chief, entrusting him with the safe passage of long-distance trade from India. The 'Abdalis remained in the Safavid orbit until 1717 when they declared themselves independent in Herat.  

Defeated by Nadir Shah Afshar in 1732, the 'Abdalis were incorporated into his army and moved to Kandahar. Upon Nadir Shah’s death in 1747, the 'Abdalis founded the Afghan state. Later, in 1747, Pir Sabir Shah, a sufi shaikh, proclaimed Ahmad Khan of the 'Abdali tribe Badshah, Durr-i Dauran (“King, the Pearl of the Age”), which Ahmad Shah later changed to Durr-i Durran (“Pearl of Pearls”). His 'Abdali tribe thereafter became known as the Durrani.

The 'Abdalis (Durranis) have been prominent leaders, as the royal family of Afghanistan is derived from the tribe, and a substantial number of Durrani Pashtuns are bureaucrats and public officials, as well as businessmen and merchants. The Durranis, like most Pashtuns, are of the Hanafi Sunni Muslim sect and continue to follow the Pashtun honor code known as Pashtunwali.

The 'Abdali were  one of the two chief tribal confederations of Afghanistan, the other being the Ghilzay. In the time of  Nadir Shah Afshar (Nader Shah), the 'Abdali (Durrani) were granted lands in the region of Qandahar, which was their homeland.  They moved there from Herat.

In the late 18th century, the 'Abdali (Durrani) took up agriculture. Under Ahmad Shah Durrani and Timur Shah, the 'Abdali (Durrani) constituted the most significant political and military support of the monarchy. The later 18th-century policy of reducing their power aroused 'Abdali (Durrani) resistance and served as one of the principal causes of the 18th- and early 19th-century civil wars.

Originally known by their ancient name 'Abdali and later as Durrani, the 'Abdali have been called Durrani since the beginning of the Durrani Empire in 1747. The Durrani are found throughout Afghanistan, although large concentrations are found in the South, they are also found to less extent in East, West and Central Afghanistan. The Durrani Pashtuns of Afghanistan are usually bilingual in Pashto and Persian.

The Durranis have been prominent leaders, as the royal family of Afghanistan is derived from this tribe, and a substantial number of Durrani Pashtuns are bureaucrats and public officials, as well as businessmen, wealthy merchants and hold high ranks in the military.

The Durranis are, like other Pashtun people, most probably Indo-European, Iranic in heritage and language. They were known in the past as Abdalis, from approximately the 7th century until the mid-18th century when Ahmad Shah Durrani was chosen as the new Emir and the Durrani Empire was established. One of Ahmad Shah's first acts as Emir was to adopt the title padshah durr-i durran ('King, "pearl of the age").  He united the Pashtun tribes following a loya jirga in western Kandahar and changed his own name from Ahmad Shah 'Abdali to Ahmad Shah Durrani. Since that period, the kings of Afghanistan have been of Durrani extraction.

The origins of the 'Abdalis were most likely with the Hephthalites. However, the traditional tribal-mythical account of the 'Abdalis is traced to (Qais ul-Malik) 'Abdal Rashid (the first and supposed founder of the Pakhtun/Pukhtun race).

The Durranis were the most divided Pashtun tribe during the rule of the Ghilzai, with some having openly opposed them. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the Durrani were the politically dominant Pashtun group in Afghanistan as the President of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai, was of the Durrani sub-group known as the Popalzai and had close ties to the last king of Afghanistan, Zahir Shah, another member of the Durrani tribe known as the Mohammadzai/Barakzai.

The Sadozai 'Abdali tribe is the tribe of Ahmad Shah 'Abdali. The Durrani Tareen tribe is divided into two branches Panjpai and Zirak. Durrani tribes of the Zirak branch include Popalzai, Alikozai, Barakzai, Badozai, and Achakzai.

The Panjpai branch are mainly found in the western Kandahar, Helman and Farah and they include Alizai, Noorzai, Ishaksai or Sakzai, Khogyani (Khakwani), and Maku.

The literacy rate of the Durrani is the highest among all the Pashtun tribes and the Durrani are also considered the most liberal of the Pashtun tribes. The Durranis continue to live close to other people of Afghanistan and culturally overlap in many ways with the Tajiks with whom they often share more cultural and socio-economic traits in comparison to the more tribal Pashtuns, such as the Ghilzai. 

Alternative names include:

'Abdali
Achakzai
Alikozai
Alizai
Badozai
Barakzai
Durani
Durrani
Ishaksai
Khakwani
Khogyani
Maku
Noorzai
Panjpai
Popalzai
Sadozai
Sakzai
Tareen
Zirak