Afghan cameleers in Australia

other uses Grave of Afghan camel driver Zeriph Khan (1871-1903) at Bourke Cemetery, New South Wales Australia The Afghans or Ghans were camel drivers who worked in outback Australia from the 1860s to the 1930s. While called Afghans , not all of them were from Afghanistan . The Afghans played a great role in establishing the Muslim faith in Australia. The first Afghans arrived in Melbourne in June 1860 , when 8 men arrived with a shipment of 24 camels for the Burke and Wills expedition . Camels were the primary means of bulk transport in the outback (where the climate was too harsh for horses and other beasts of burden) prior to the widespread adoption of motor vehicles . A large population of Australian feral camels remains from this time. The train from Adelaide to Darwin is known as The Ghan in memory of the Afghans. Although the number of Afghans coming to Australia was small (no more than 3000) compared with other ethnic groups, their contribution to this country has been much greater than most people realise. Afghans have made a substantial contribution to South Australia and Australia but history has almost ignored them, and the role they played opening up inland Australia.

Camel drivers in Australia (c.1860s-1930s) Afghan cameleers in Australia , also known as " Afghans " or " Ghans ", were camel drivers who worked in Outback Australia from the 1860s to the 1930s. Small groups of cameleers were shipped in and out of Australia at three-year intervals, to service the Australian inland pastoral industry by carting goods and transporting wool bales by camel trains . They were commonly referred to as "Afghans", even though they originated mainly from British India , and others from Afghanistan, Egypt and Turkey . The majority of cameleers, including Indian cameleers, were Muslim , while a sizeable minority were Sikhs from the Punjab region . They set up camel-breeding stations and rest-house outposts, known as caravanserai , throughout inland Australia, creating a permanent link between the coastal cities and the remote cattle and sheep grazing stations until about the 1930s, when they were largely replaced by the automobile . They included members of the Pashtun , Baloch , and Sindhi ethnic groups from south-central Asia (present-day Iran , Afghanistan and Pakistan ); others from the Punjabi , Kashmir , and Rajasthan regions of the Indian subcontinent; as well as people from Egypt , Iraq , Syria , and Turkey . They provided vital support to exploration, communications and settlement in the arid interior of the country where the climate was too harsh for horses. They also played a major role in establishing Islam in Australia , building the country's first mosque at Marree in South Australia in 1861, the Central Adelaide Mosque (the first permanent mosque in Adelaide , still in use today), and several mosques in Western Australia . Many of the cameleers and their families later returned to their homelands, but many remained and turned to other trades and ways of making a living.

Camel drivers in Australia (c.1860s–1930s) This article is about early camel drivers in Australian history. Afghan cameleers in Australia , also known as " Afghans " ( ) or " Ghans " ( ), were camel drivers who worked in Outback Australia from the 1860s to the 1930s. Small groups of cameleers were shipped in and out of Australia at three-year intervals, to service the Australian inland pastoral industry by carting goods and transporting wool bales by camel trains . They were commonly referred to as "Afghans", even though the majority of them originated from the far western parts of British India , primarily the NWFP and Balochistan (now Pakistan ), which was inhabited by ethnic Pashtuns and Balochs . Nonetheless, many were from Afghanistan itself as well. In addition, there were also some with origins in Egypt and Turkey . The majority of cameleers, including cameleers from British India, were Muslim , while a sizeable minority were Sikhs from the Punjab region . They set up camel-breeding stations and rest-house outposts, known as caravanserai , throughout inland Australia, creating a permanent link between the coastal cities and the remote cattle and sheep grazing stations until about the 1930s, when they were largely replaced by the automobile . They included members of the Pashtun , Baloch , and Sindhi ethnic groups from south-central Asia (present-day Iran , Afghanistan and Pakistan ); others from the Punjabi , Kashmir , and Rajasthan regions of the Indian subcontinent; as well as people from Egypt , Iraq , Syria , and Turkey . They provided vital support to exploration, communications and settlement in the arid interior of the country where the climate was too harsh for horses. They also played a major role in establishing Islam in Australia , building the country's first mosque at Marree in South Australia in 1861, the Central Adelaide Mosque (the first permanent mosque in Adelaide , still in use today), and several mosques in Western Australia . Many of the cameleers and their families later returned to their homelands, but many remained and turned to other trades and ways of making a living. Today, many people can trace their ancestry back to the early cameleers, many of whom intermarried with local Aboriginal women and European women in outback Australia. Afghan cameleers in Australia . 3rd September 2009.

Camel drivers in Australia (c.1860s–1930s) This article is about early camel drivers in Australian history. Afghan cameleers in Australia , also known as " Afghans " ( Pashto : افغانان ) or " Ghans " ( Pashto : غانز ), were camel drivers who worked in Outback Australia from the 1860s to the 1930s. Small groups of cameleers were shipped in and out of Australia at three-year intervals, to service the Australian inland pastoral industry by carting goods and transporting wool bales by camel trains . They were commonly referred to as "Afghans", even though the majority of them originated from the far western parts of British India , primarily the North-West Frontier Province and Balochistan (now Pakistan ), which was inhabited by ethnic Pashtuns (historically known as Afghans ) and Balochs . Nonetheless, many were from Afghanistan itself as well. In addition, there were also some with origins in Egypt and Turkey . The majority of cameleers, including cameleers from British India, were Muslim , while a sizeable minority were Sikhs from the Punjab region . They set up camel-breeding stations and rest-house outposts, known as caravanserai , throughout inland Australia, creating a permanent link between the coastal cities and the remote cattle and sheep grazing stations until about the 1930s, when they were largely replaced by the automobile . They provided vital support to exploration, communications and settlement in the arid interior of the country where the climate was too harsh for horses. They also played a major role in establishing Islam in Australia , building the country's first mosque at Marree in South Australia in 1861, the Central Adelaide Mosque (the first permanent mosque in Adelaide , still in use today), and several mosques in Western Australia . Many of the cameleers and their families later returned to their homelands, but many remained and turned to other trades and ways of making a living. Today, many people can trace their ancestry back to the early cameleers, many of whom intermarried with local Aboriginal women and European women in outback Australia. Afghan cameleers in Australia . 3rd September 2009.