Sana Samad
The word Baloch, by its connotation, is meant to be nomad. Over 70 per cent of the Baloch live in Balochistan. Apart from Balochistan, Baloch also dwell in other provinces of Pakistan.
Naveed Ahmad, an investigative journalist and an academic, writes in his article “harnessing the GCC’s Baloch pedigree” published in The Express Tribune on February 10, 2016 that Baloch are also a distinct community in GCC countries such as Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, The UAE and Yemen. In these countries, Naveed writes, the word Baloch is spelt as al-baloshi or al-blooshi.
Moreover, about the origin of the world “Baloch”, Rawlinson (1873) estimates that the word “Baloch” came from the name of Babylonian King and god blues. Similarly, Dames (1904) explains that it is derived from the Persian language in the 6th century. Naseer Dashti (2012) believes that the word “Baloch” has been derived from the name of ethnic group Balaschik living in Balashagan.
The population of Baloch people according to some estimates is said to be 25 million worldwide, however it is difficult to estimate the exact number. They make 5 percent of Pakistan’s population. According to Naveed Ahmad many Baloch are said to have migrated to Balochistan from Aleppo (Syria) in 12th century. Naveed further writes that Baloch make around 35 per cent of Oman’s population and have assimilated themselves to their culture but have preserved their culture as well. In last few decades, many Baloch have migrated to Punjab for securing jobs due to rising unemployment in their province. Currently Baloch also reside in South Punjab, Central Punjab and Lahore.
Today the Baloch are present in various parts of the world and still they have never forgotten their culture, and have never forgotten that they are Baloch.
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