are a people in India who inhabit a province of CAUL or CAULISTAN (see Encycl.), and have always been connected with the kingdoms of Persia and Hindostan. They boast of being descended from the first king of Israel; of whose advancement to the royal dignity they give an account which deviates not very widely from the truth. They say indeed, that their great ancestor was raised from the rank of shepherd, not for any princely qualities which he possessed, but because his stature was exactly equal to the length of a rod which the angel Gabriel had given to the prophet Samuel as the measure of the stature of him whom God had destined to fill the throne of Israel.

SAUL, whose descent, according to some of them, was of Judah, and according to others of Benjamin, had, they say, two sons, BERKIA and IRMIA, who served David, and was beloved by him. The sons of Berkia and Irinia were AFGHAN and USREK, who, during the reigns of David and Solomon, distinguished themselves; the one for his corporeal strength, and the other for his learning. So great indeed was the strength of Afghans, that we are told it struck terror even into demons and genii.

This hero used frequently to make excursions into the mountains, where his progeny, after his death, established themselves, lived in a state of independence, built forts, and exterminated infidels. When the select of creatures (the appellation which this people give to Mahomet) appeared upon earth, his fame reached the Afghans, who fought him in multitudes under their leaders Khalid and Abdul Respid, sons of Wadi; and the prophet honouring them with this reception—“Come, O Muluk, or Kings!” they assumed the title of Muluk, which they retain to this day.

The history, from which this abstract is taken, gives a long and uninteresting detail of the exploits of the Afghans, and of their zeal in overthrowing the temples of idols. It boasts of the following monarchs of their race who have sat upon the throne of Dehli: Sultan Behlole, Afghan Lodi, Sultan Secander, Sultan Ibrahim, Shiz Shah, Islam Shah, Adil Shah Sur. It also numbers the following kings of Gaur descended of the Afghan chiefs: Solaiman Shah Gurzani, Beyazid Shah, and Kurn Shah; besides whom, their nation, we are told, has produced many conquerors of provinces. The Afghans are sometimes called Solaimani, either because they were formerly the subjects of Solomon king of Israel, or because they inhabit the mountains of Solomon. They are likewise called Patahs, a name derived from the Hindi verb Pataha “to rush,” which was given to them by one of the Sultans whom they served, in consequence of the alacrity with which they had attacked and conquered his enemies. The province which they occupy at present was formerly called Rob; and hence is derived the name of the Afghan Rebillar. The city which was established in it by the Afghan was called by them Patshewar or Paikher, and is now the name of the whole district. The sects of the Afghans are very numerous; of which the principal are, Lodhi, Labwani, Sur, Serwani, Yufusibhi, Bangibi, Dila-wani, Khetti, Yafia, Khaili, and Biloje. They are Musulmans, partly of the Sunni, and partly of the Shiick persuasion.

Though they are great boasters, as we have seen, of the antiquity of their origin, and the reputation of their race, other Musulmans reject their claim, and consider them as of modern, and even of base, extraction.

This is probably a calumny; for it seems inconsistent with their attention to the purity of their descent—an attention which would hardly be paid by a people not convinced of their own antiquity. They are divided into four classes. The first is the pure class, consisting of those whose fathers and mothers were Afghans. The second class consists of those whose fathers were Afghans and mothers of another nation. The third class contains those whose mothers were Afghans and fathers of another nation. The fourth class is composed of the children of women whose mothers were Afghans and fathers and husbands of a different nation. Persons who do not belong to one of these classes are not called Afghans.

This people have at all times distinguished themselves by their courage, both singly and unitedly, as principals and auxiliaries. They have conquered for their own princes and for foreigners, and have always been considered as the main strength of the army in which they served. As they have been applauded for virtues, they have also been reproached for vices, having sometimes been guilty of treachery, and of acting the base part even of assassins.

Such is the account of the Afghans published in the second volume of the Asiatic Researches. It was translated from a Persian abridgment of a book written in the Pushto language, and called The Secrets of the Afghans, and communicated by Henry Vanfittart, Esq.; to Sir William Jones, then president of the Asiatic Society. Their claim to a descent from Saul king of Israel, whom they call Melic Talut, is probably of not a very ancient date; for the introduction of the angel Gabriel with his rod, gives to the whole story the air of one of those many fictions which Mahomet borrowed from the later rabbins. Sir William Jones, however, though he surely gave no credit to this fable, seems to have had no doubt but the Afghans are descendants of Israel. “We learn (says he) from Esdras, that the ten tribes, after a wandering journey, came to a country called Arfaret, where we may suppose they settled; now the Afghans are said by the best Persian historians to be descended from the Jews. They have traditions among themselves of such a descent; and it is even asserted, that their families are distinguished by the names of Jewish tribes, although, since their conversion to Islam, they studiously conceal their origin from all whom they admit not to their secrets. The Pushto language, of which I have seen a dictionary, has a manifest resemblance to the Chaldaic; and a considerable district under their dominion is called Hazareh or Hazaret, which might easily have been changed into the word used by Esdras. I strongly recommend an inquiry into the literature and history of the Afghans.” It is to co-operate with this accomplished scholar that we have inserted into our Work this short account of that singular people; and it is with pleasure that, upon the authority of Mr Vanstatt, we can add, that a very particular account of the Afghan has been written by the late Hafiz Rahmat Khan, a chief of the Robilakhs, from which such of our readers as are oriental scholars may derive much curious information.