Bugti

Bugti (Urdu: بگٹی), is a Baloch tribe located in Balochistan, Pakistan. They are divided into various clans such as Rahija, Kalpar, Nauthani, Masuri, Ferozani, Salamaan Zai, Mundarani, Qasimani, Shambani, Sobazai, Pah'i and Moharkanzai etc., numbering around 300,000.

On a bigger scale the Bugti tribe are claimed to be a clan of the Rind tribe. Like the Marris, the Bugtis are considered fine horsemen and good fighters. A military expedition against the Bugti was organized by Sir Charles Napier in 1845, but the British could not control the tribe till later when Sir Robert Sandeman ruled Baluchistan. It is claimed that the construction of the Sukkur-Quetta railway line bifurcated the territory of the Bugtis and made them adopt to modern ways of life. Marri and Bugti both are blood-related tribes. In fact, it is said that Marri, Bugti, Khetran and Rind have the same origins. Bugti is the most powerful tribe of the Baluch. They are thought to have settled in their present location around 1500 AD when Mir Chakkar (a 16th-century Baluch king) settled in the barren terrain of the present Bugti territories in Baluchistan, i.e., the large area around the town of Dera Bugti.

Origin

The origin of the Bugti tribe is often recounted by the Bugti Sardars (elders) claiming that the Bugtis to be from Aleppo (Halab) () in Syria. It is claimed that the tribe migrated to Dera Bugti, Balochistan after the death of the fourth Muslim Caliph Hazrat Ali ibn Abi Talib after 661 A.D. The cause...
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