Hazara

The origin of the Hazara traces back to the migrations and conquests that swept through Central Asia between the 13th and 15th centuries, when groups of Central Asian ancestry settled in the mountains of central Afghanistan and mixed with the local Persian population, giving rise to a people with a distinct identity and to the Hazaragi language.

Over the centuries, the Hazara established themselves as the majority in the Hazarajat region, but in the late 19th century they faced campaigns of subjugation that resulted in loss of land, displacement, and decades of political marginalization. This history of resistance in the face of oppression became a central part of the people's collective memory and identity.

Historically farmers and herders in the highlands of Hazarajat in central Afghanistan, many Hazara today also live in cities as merchants, laborers, and increasingly as university students. Social life revolves around the extended family and the qawm, the clan or lineage that organizes loyalties, marriages, and mutual support in hard times.

Migration has profoundly marked the people: entire generations grew up as refugees in Iran, especially around Mashhad, and in Pakistan, in the Quetta region, and today there are also established Hazara communities in Europe, Australia, and North America, keeping their language and customs alive outside their homeland.

The Hazara are predominantly Shia Muslims, which sets them apart from the Sunni majority of neighboring populations in Afghanistan and Pakistan, though there are also Sunni and Ismaili Hazara minorities. Shia faith is intertwined with ethnic identity itself: to be Hazara is, in practice, to be seen as Shia, and this combination has shaped centuries of tense relations with Sunni majority governments and groups.

Popular devotion includes the veneration of imams and martyrs of Shia Islam, notable religious observances such as Ashura, when processions commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, and a piety that blends formal religious practice with traditions passed down from generation to generation within the family and clan.

Hazaragi, closely related to Dari and Persian, already has the New Testament translated, and there are audio recordings and digital resources available for those who seek them. Even so, real access is limited: illiteracy in rural areas, the people’s dispersion across several countries, and distrust of anything associated with Christianity make it difficult for the Word to reach Hazara families in daily life.

Being Hazara is deeply tied to being Shia: faith is part of ethnic identity, and abandoning it is seen as betrayal of the people and the family. The historical discrimination the Hazara face as an ethnic and religious minority in Afghanistan, added to the instability and violence suffered in recent decades, makes a first encounter with the gospel rare and risky, especially where Sunni extremist groups persecute them doubly, for being Hazara and for being Shia.

Decades of war, displacement, and discrimination have left deep scars: many Hazara families live as refugees or displaced people, facing poverty, insecurity, and lack of access to basic services. There is a real need for lasting peace, fair opportunities for work and education, and protection from the violence that still targets them for their ethnicity and their faith.

In the spiritual realm, a Christian presence among the Hazara is practically nonexistent. Those who feel drawn to the gospel face almost total isolation, with no nearby faith community, discipleship, or support, and need courage to take even the first steps.