Introduction

The Utmankhel are Pashtun people and tribe living in the northeast of Pakistan. The Utmankhel tribe is a part of the Karlani tribal confederacy. The Utmankhel are mostly living in Bajaur District, Malakand District, Mohmand District’s sub-division Prang Ghar & Lower Dir, and also in considerable numbers in Batkhela Swat, Mardan, Swabi, and Peshawar, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province. Utmankhel speak the same dialect of Pashto called Yousafzai Pashto, Peshawari, and Northeastern Pashto and belong to Sunni Islam. Utmankhel also live in Loralai and Zhob districts of the Balochistan province in Pakistan, with a large number in Afghanistan.

The Utmankhel’s tract lying between the Rud and Ambar rivers, and thence, eastward, the tract lying between the Swat river and the Peshawar district as far as the Ranizai and Sam Ranizai. It is inhabited by the Utmankhel tribe, who appear to be Pathans of the Kodai branch of the Karlani Pashtuns. They migrated from the north-west of the Suleman Range and have, in the course of time, found themselves in possession of their present country, which they occupied in the sixteenth century, at the same time as the Yousafzai conquered Swat and the Tarkalani (Tarkani) took possession of Bajaur District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The tribe is a large one. They have always maintained complete independence and pay tribute to no one. Their country is a network of bare hills, with the exception of some tracts of alluvial soil on the southern bank of the Rud River in KPK. The tribe is divided into many clans and sections, which are constantly at feud with one another, and there does not appear to be much unanimity in the tribe as a whole. They keep themselves much farther away from their neighbours. The people of Total, however, a small tract bordering the Sam Ranizai, have intimate relations with the Sam Ranizai. The small portion of Utmankhel country lying between total on the east, the southern watershed of the Swat river as far as Bazargai on the north , and the Swat river below Bazargai on the west is called Laman or Daman Utmankhel and is under the Political Administration of the Peshawar District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

History of Utmankhel

Utmankhel are Karlani Pashtuns whose territory lies between Swat and Bajaur. According to a local legend the Utmankhels are the descendants of Baba Utman, a follower of Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni.

It is said that their original abode was in the mountains about Tank and Gomal from which they moved away in early 14th century AD and accompanied the Yousafzai by way of Kabul and Nangarhar to Peshawar. In the war between Yousafzai and Dilazak, the Utman Khel remained faithful to the former even though the latter were their Karlanri kinsmen. They contributed to the victory of Yousafzais over Dilazaks by effectively using shields of raw and tanned ox hides that protected them against the arrows of the enemy archers. They advanced boldly into the very lines of their enemies and routed the Dilazaks.

The whole or part of Utmankhel tribe were found in Tirah in the times of Pir Roshan.

Afzal Khan Khattak writes:
“It is stated that, in Pir Roshan’s day, the Utman Khel tribe was in Tirah and that on enmity arising between them and the Afridis, they left Tirah and went and took up their quarters in Arang Barang of Bajaur”.

References: (1) ‘Hayat-i-Afghani’ by Muhammad Hayat Khan (2) ‘History of the Pathans’ by Haroon Rashid.

Major Clans of Utmankhel

There are about 10 or more major clans of Utmankhel tribe. Here is an alphabetical order list of major clans.
(i) Alizai (ii) Aseel (iii) Biazai (iv) Gorai (v) Ismail Khel (vi) Mandal (vii) Miangan (viii) Muttakai (ix) Peghozai(x) Sanizai (xi) Shamozai (xii) Stanadar and other hundreds of sub-clans/branches.

Major Sub-Tribes and Their Areas
  1. Aseel → They live in Barang and Targhao
  2. Bimmarai→ They live in Totai and Sama Ranizai (Malakand District)
  3. Boot Khel→They live in Ambar and Laman / Prang Ghar (Mohmand District)
  4. Gorai→ They Live in the Panjkora bed near Talash opposite Sharbatai
  5. Mandal >→ They live in Mandal Bajaur, Gosam Munda, Shaikhan Timergara, Moranay.
  6. Muttakai→ They live on the northern slopes of the Koh-i-Moor mountains
  7. Peghozai→ They live in Totai and Sama Ranizai (Malakand District)
  8. Sanizai→ They live in Totai and Sama Ranizai (Malakand District)
  9. Shamozai → They live in Lar Tras, Bar Tras, Bandagai, Kulala, Sharbatai and near Agra.
Major Native Areas

(1) Utmankhel Tehsil (2) Barang Tehsil (3) Ambar Utmankhel (4) Prang Ghar Tehsil (5) Dara Utmankhel (6) Gosam (7) Agra (8) Kharkai (9) Kohi Barmol (10) Mian Khan (11) Sangao (Mardan District) (12) Baizo Kharki.

Customs and Constitution

Utmankheli is a separate constitution and legislation of the Utmankhel tribe which is passed through the Jirga system in non-written form to set a way of life. And no member of the Utman Khel tribe is considered above it until or unless it surpass or oppose Islamic rules.

If a government lawmaker participates in any Jirga of the Utman khel tribe, he will be informed about Utmankheli as a constitutional guide in such a way. For example, suppose two villages are fighting over a hill, each claiming it as their own. It will be decided in such a way that if the rainwater from the hill flows into one of the two villages, that will be claimed as part of that village. Making decisions becomes simple in this situation.

Or if animals belonging to one family destroyed the crops of another family and Jirga is resolving the issue, So, Utmankheli suggests that if this occurs during the winter, the owner of the animals will compensate. And if it happened in the summer, the owner of the field ought to take good care of his crops.

There are numerous laws like these that describe the lifestyle of Utmankhels and are referred to as Utmankheli.

Heading Utmankhel
Heading 2 Utmankhel

Content ……