Jadgal people
Ethnic group in Balochistan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Jaḍgāl (lit. 'Jaṭṭ-speakers';[3] also spelled as Jatgal[4] and az-Zighālī), also known as Nummaṛ, is an Indo-Aryan ethnic group which are present in the Balochistan region of Iran and Pakistan, as well as in Oman.[5] They speak the Jadgali language.[6]
History
Jadgal people are often connected with the Jats of Balochistan.[7] Anthropologist Henry Field notes the origin of the Jadgals to be in the western Indian subcontinent they subsequently migrated to Kulanch and are also found in Pakistani Balochistan. Regardless of their origins, they are generally seen as Baloch.
When the Arabs arrived in modern-day Sindh and Baluchistan, they met the Jadgal at the coast of Makran where the Arab name of az-Zighālī comes from.[8]
Demographics
Around 100,000 Jadgals live in Pakistan according to a 1998 census conducted by Pakistan.[9] In Iran, the Sardarzahi ethnic group is of Jadgal origin, claiming to be from Sindh.[10] The rest of the Jadgals number around 25,000 according to a 2008 census conducted by Iran.[8] All of the Jadgals in Iran live in the Sistan and Baluchistan, Hormozgan and Kerman provinces.[11][12]
Language
Jadgal people in Balochistan speak Jadgali language, although they converse with strangers in Balochi.[13] Many linguists believe the Lasi dialect of the Lasi people may be related to Jadgali.[14] The Jadgali tongue in Oman is similar to the language of Al Lawatia.[15]
