Daraban
| Daraban Kalan | |
|---|---|
| Tehsil Daraban | |
| Country | Pakistan |
| Province | Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa |
| District | Dera Ismail Khan District |
| Time zone | PST (UTC+5) |
Daraban Kalan is a Tehsil in Dera Ismail Khan District of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. It is located at 31°44'3N 70°20'11E and has an altitude of 221 metres (728 feet). Daraban Kalan, pronounced “Draban “ is to be distinguished from Daraban Khurd, a village lying to the east of Dera Ismail Khan city. Draban lies 40 miles west of Dera Ismail khan in the foothills of Sulaiman Mountains .
There are various theories as to the origin of the word Daraban. The word “Daraban”, according to some accounts actually came from term ”Durruh-Bund” which means the closed pass. Centuries back the people who settled down in present-day Draban aimed to close the pass which connected Draban with Sherani hills. Sherani hill tribe in those days was in habit of pillaging villages in Damaan below their hills. The term "Durruh_Bund" in due course of time became the name of the village of people living in present-day Draban. ”Durruh-Bund” got shortened as Daraban and now in further reduced form the word is pronounced as Draban. According to another popular narrative the words Daraban and Darazinda, the chief town of F.R Sherani originate in similar sound, are Persian in origin and can be traced back to Dara Shikoh, a son of Mughal king Shajahan. Daraban as per this account gets translated as Dara’s forest, here came to hunt wild animals, while Darazianda was his zindan, or prison, there he kept his prisoners. The former account as to the origin of the name of the town seems more plausible and is very much attested by the history of enmity and hostility between Sherani tribe and Miankhel Pashtoon possessors of Draban.
Not much is known about the earliest history of Daraban, perhaps it grew out of small villages lying in the foothills of Sulaiman Mountains and later on, due to its excellent geographical setting grew in size and population. Some of tribes came to Daraban from Zhob by their family wars mostly Miankhel also live in Zhob Balouchistan specially mallakhel came from Zhob to Daraban before independence. Its early inhabitants could have been either Saraikis or Pashtoons or both.The idea of Saraikis being the indigenous people of the region is bolstered by the fact that the region is part of Pashtoon but the Saraiki people over there and the Baoloch is only name in this tehsile. In addition, Saraikis constitute the majority of District Dera Ismail Khan, so it seems plausible that Pashtoons were the later arrivals in Daraban and areas around it. On the other hand, it is equally possible that Pashtoon nomadic tribes founded Daraban. If the name Daraban really originated in ”Durruh-Bund” then Pashtoons were its founders, as they aimed to close pass leading to the mountains because of their quarrels and blood feuds with the Sheranis. The Pashtoons have been coming into this western part of Dera Ismail khan through Gomal Pass since the 13th century. These Pashtoon Powindas followed patterns of seasonal migration; they journeyed in caravans to Dera Ismail Khan and other lands beyond Indus and returned to Afghanistan with the onset of hot weather. With the passage of time some of these nomads began to settle on the land on permanent basis. The lodhi tribe is believed to have settled in the area of Draban in the time of Shahbu -din -Ghori in the beginning of the 13th century. In between (1555 and 1600 AD) Miankhels tribe invaded the area and after defeating the Lodhis became the new possessors of Draban. The Miankhels are still most influential in terms of politics and economics in Draban and neighbouring Musazai town. Historical pattern of Pashtoons leaving their mountains and settling on the plains of Damaan continues even today. Many Sheranis of the Sulaiman Mountains have settled in Draban permanently. In addition, Nasir, another Pashtoon tribe has, casting aside its nomadic way of life, has started living in permanent settlements in the peripheries of Daraban. The said tribe, being the newest arrival, has not been accorded proper acceptance as a legal residents of Daraban, and their hasty attempts at getting political influence has given rise to whole sorts of conflicts between Drabanwals and the Nasirs.
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