View source for Makran

{{Short description|Semi-desert coastal region in Iran and Pakistan}}
{{other uses}}
[[File:Pakistan, Central Makran Range 01 (2294354578).jpg|thumb|The [[Central Makran Range]] in Pakistan and Iran.]]

'''Makran''' ({{langx|fa|مكران}}, [[Balochi language|Balochi:]] <span lang="sd" dir="ltr">مڪران</span>), also mentioned in some sources as ''Mecran'' and ''Mokrān'', is the southern coastal region of [[Balochistan]]. It is a semi-[[desert]] [[coast]]al strip in the [[Balochistan, Pakistan|Balochistan province]] in [[Pakistan]] and in [[Iran]], along the coast of the [[Gulf of Oman]]. It extends westwards, from the [[Sonmiani Bay]] to the northwest of [[Karachi]] in the east, to the fringes of the region of Bashkardia/Bāšgerd in the southern part of the [[Sistan and Baluchestan]] [[province]] of modern Iran. Makrān is thus bisected by the modern political [[Iran-Pakistan border|boundary between Pakistan and Iran]]. In January 2025, a government spokesperson informed that Iran is investigating the possibility of moving its capital to the Makran region.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Iran eyeing Makran for new capital, says government spokesperson |date=7 January 2025 |url=https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/508424/Iran-eyeing-Makran-for-new-capital-says-government-spokesperson |access-date=January 7, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Iran eyes Makran in southern coast as new capital after Tehran: All you need to know |work=The Times of India |date=10 January 2025 |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/iran-eyes-makran-in-southern-coast-as-new-capital-after-tehran-all-you-need-to-know/articleshow/117116388.cms |access-date=January 10, 2025}}</ref>
[[File:Iran provinces in Abbasid Caliphate.jpg|thumb|Map showing Makran's location during the time of the [[Abbasid Caliphate]], from the book of historical geography of the lands of the Eastern Caliphate.]]
[[File:Pakistan - Balochistan - Makran (division).svg|thumb|The Makran in Pakistan.]]

==Etymology==
The southern part of Balochistan is called ''Kech Makran'' on the Pakistani side and Makran on the Iranian side which is also the name of a former Iranian province.<ref name="Makran">{{cite encyclopedia|title=Makran|url=http://www.britannica.com/place/Makran-region-Asia|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=18 June 2016|archive-date=7 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240307222126/https://www.britannica.com/place/Makran-region-Asia|url-status=live}}</ref> The location corresponds to that of the [[Maka (satrapy)|Maka satrapy]] in [[Achaemenid Empire|Achaemenid]] times. The Sumerian trading partners of [[Magan (civilization)|Magan]] are identified with Makran.{{sfn|Hansman|1973|p=555}} In [[Varahamihira]]'s [[Brihat Samhita]], there is a mention of a tribe called ''Makara'' inhabiting the lands west of [[India]]. [[Arrian]] used the term ''[[Ichthyophagoi|Ichthyophagi]]'' (Ancient Greek for "fish eaters") for inhabitants of coastal areas, which has led to a suggestion to derive ''Makran'' from the modern Persian term ''māhī khorān'', meaning "fish eaters".<ref name="PoloYule1993">{{citation |editor1-last=Yule |editor1-first=Sir Henry |editor2-last=Cordier |editor2-first=Henri |title=The Travels of Marco Polo: The Complete Yule-Cordier Edition, Volume II |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3TexF3FC87YC&pg=PA402 |year=1993 |orig-year=first published 1903, revised 1920 |publisher=Courier Corporation |isbn=978-0-486-27587-1 |pages=402–}}</ref>

==History==
{{See also|Kingdom of Makran}}

=== Earliest settlements ===
The Kech-Makran region in southwestern Pakistan, along [[Kech River]], was inhabited as early as the 5th millennium BCE. The site of [[Miri Qalat]] was investigated by French and Pakistani archaeologists from 1987 to 2007. Later, the site of Shahi-Tump, near [[Turbat]], was also studied.<ref>[[Aurore Didier]], Benjamin Mutin (2015). [https://ancient-herat.de/uploads/attachments/ckvfk2r8p01o5nhcpe95gb0ap-11a-kech-makran.pdf "The Kech-Makran region in Protohistoric Times"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220403091132/https://ancient-herat.de/uploads/attachments/ckvfk2r8p01o5nhcpe95gb0ap-11a-kech-makran.pdf|date=2022-04-03}}. In Ute Franke; Elisa Cortesi. ''Lost and Found: Prehistoric Pottery Treasures from Baluchistan''. SMB. pp. 297–333. {{ISBN|978-3-00-051309-1}}.</ref>

Large and massive quadrangular stone building were constructed already before 4000 BCE. Flints, worked
stones, and bone tools used by the inhabitants were found by archaeologists, but no ceramics were yet used.

In this Period I the inhabitants of the Kech River Valley already cultivated wheat and barley, as well as lentils. They had domesticated cattle, goats, and sheep. They also caught fish from the Oman Sea.

During Period II, the building of massive architectural structures continued, and a quadrangular stone complex was built. Later, mud brick constructions also appear on top of some of these stone buildings.<ref>[[Aurore Didier]], Benjamin Mutin (2015). [https://ancient-herat.de/uploads/attachments/ckvfk2r8p01o5nhcpe95gb0ap-11a-kech-makran.pdf "The Kech-Makran region in Protohistoric Times"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220403091132/https://ancient-herat.de/uploads/attachments/ckvfk2r8p01o5nhcpe95gb0ap-11a-kech-makran.pdf |date=2022-04-03 }}. In Ute Franke; Elisa Cortesi. ''Lost and Found: Prehistoric Pottery Treasures from Baluchistan''. SMB. pp. 297–333. {{ISBN|978-3-00-051309-1}}.</ref>

At Miri Qalat, some links with [[Uruk]] culture ceramics were also found.<ref>Van De Mieroop, M. (2008). ''A history of the ancient Near East''. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell.</ref>

The related site of [[Balakot, Makran]], going back to 4000 BCE, was also studied by archaeologists.

===Ancient times===
After the victory of the [[Mauryan Empire]] against the Greeks in the [[Seleucid–Mauryan war]], Baluchistan came under the rule of [[Chandragupta Maurya]] of ancient India. Chandragupta and Seleucus made a peace settlement in 304 BCE. Seleucus I Nicator ceded the satrapies, including those in Baluchistan to the expanding Mauryan Empire.{{sfn|Kosmin|2014|p=33–34}} The alliance was solidified with a marriage between Chandragupta Maurya and a princess of the Seleucid Empire. An outcome of the arrangement proved to be mutually beneficial.{{sfn|Kosmin|2014|p=33–34}} The border between the Seleucid and Mauryan Empires remained stable in subsequent generations, and friendly diplomatic relations are reflected by the ambassador [[Megasthenes]], and by the envoys sent westward by Chandragupta's grandson [[Ashoka]].{{sfn|Kosmin|2014|p=33–34}}

====Sasanian Empire====
[[Shapur I's inscription at the Ka'ba-ye Zartosht|Shapur I's trilingual inscription at the Ka'ba-ye Zartosht]] in [[Naqsh-i-Rustam]], dated to 262 CE, had noted "Makuran"/"Makran" to be one of the many provinces of the [[Sasanian Empire]]:

[[File:Shapur Kabe Zartosht Pahlavi scripts.png|thumb|Parthian version of the Shapur I inscription at Ka'ba-ye Zartosht.]]
{{Blockquote|
And I ([[Shapur I]]) possess the lands: Fars {{bracket|[[Persis]]}}, Pahlav {{bracket|[[Parthia]]}}&nbsp;... and all of Abarshahr (all the upper (eastern, Parthian) provinces), [[Kerman]], [[Sakastan (Sasanian province)|Sakastan]], [[Turgistan]], [[Makuran]], Pardan {{bracket|[[Paradene]]}}, Hind {{bracket|[[Hind (Sasanian province)|Sind]]}} and [[Kushanshahr]] all the way to Pashkibur {{bracket|[[Peshawar]]?}} and to the borders of [[Kashgar]]ia, [[Sogdiana|Sogdia]] and Chach {{bracket|[[Tashkent]]}} and of that sea-coast Mazonshahr {{bracket|[[Oman]]}}.
|[[Shapur I's inscription at the Ka'ba-ye Zartosht]] (262 CE), translation by [[Josef Wiesehöfer]] (1996).<ref>The complete paragraph goes:<br>"And I [Shapur I] possess the lands: Fars [Persis], Pahlav [Parthia], Huzestan [Khuzistan], Meshan [Maishan, Mesene], Asorestan [Mesopotamia], Nod-Ardakhshiragan [Adiabene], Arbayestan [Arabia], Adurbadagan [Atropatene], Armen [Armenia], Virozan [Iberia], Segan [Machelonia], Arran [Albania], Balasagan up to the Caucasus and to the 'gate of the Alans' and all of Padishkhvar[gar] [the entire Elburz chain = Tabaristan and Gelan (?)], Mad [Media], Gurgan [Hyrcania], Marv [Margiana], Harey [Aria], and all of Abarshahr [all the upper (= eastern, Parthian) provinces], Kerman [Kirman], Sakastan, Turgistan, Makuran, Pardan [Paradene], Hind [Sind] and Kushanshahr all the way to Pashkibur [Peshawar?] and to the borders of Kashgaria, Sogdia and Chach [Tashkent] and of that sea-coast Mazonshahr ['Oman']."<br>in {{cite book |last1=Wiesehöfer |first1=Josef |author1-link=Josef Wiesehöfer |title=Ancient Persia : from 550 BC to 650 AD |date=1996 |publisher=I.B. Tauris |location=London |isbn=978-1860646751 |page=184}}</ref><ref>For a secondary source see {{cite book |last1=Kia |first1=Mehrdad |title=The Persian Empire: A Historical Encyclopedia [2 volumes]: A Historical Encyclopedia |date=27 June 2016 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-1-61069-391-2 |page=67 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B5BHDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA67 |language=en}}</ref><ref>For another referenced translation, visible online, see: {{cite book |last1=Frye |first1=Richard Nelson |title=The History of Ancient Iran |date=1984 |publisher=C.H.Beck |isbn=978-3-406-09397-5 |page=371|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0y1jeSqbHLwC&pg=PA371 |language=en}}</ref>}}

===Buddhist and Hindu past===
[[Al-Biruni|Abū Rayḥān Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad Al-Bīrūnī]] states in his book ''Alberuni's India'' that the coast of [[Indian subcontinent|India]] begins with [[Tis, Iran|Tiz]], the capital of Makran.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bīrūnī |first=Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad (about A.D. 1030) |author-link=Al-Biruni |title=Alberuni's India |date=1888 |location=London |publisher=[[Kegan Paul, Trench and Company|Trübner]], 1888 |volume=1 |page=208 |url=https://archive.org/details/alberunisindiaac01brnm/page/208/mode/1up?view=theater |access-date=2024-07-21 }}</ref>

According to historian Andre Wink:
{{South Asia in 350 CE|right|{{center|Approximate location of the Sasanian Province of Makran and contemporary South Asian polities, circa 350 CE.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Schwartzberg |first1=Joseph E. |title=A Historical atlas of South Asia |date=1978 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |page=145, map XIV.1 (h) |isbn=0226742210 |url=https://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/schwartzberg/pager.html?object=182 |access-date=2022-04-16 |archive-date=2021-02-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224162023/https://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/schwartzberg/pager.html?object=182 |url-status=live }}</ref>}}|{{Annotation|10|95|[[File:Long Rectangle (plain).png|35px]]}}}}
{{Blockquote|Further evidence in the [[Chach Nama|Chachnama]] makes perfectly clear that many areas of Makran  had a largely [[Buddhist]] population. When [[Chach of Alor|Chach]] marched to Armabil, this town is described as having been in the hands of a Buddhist Samani (Samani Budda), a descendant of the agents of [[Rai Sahiras]] who had been elevated for their loyalty and devotion, but who later made themselves independent. The Buddhist chief offered his allegiance to Chach when the latter was on his way to Kirman in 631. The same chiefdom of Armadil is referred to by [[Xuanzang|Hiuen Tsang]] O-tien-p-o-chi-lo, located at the high road running through Makran, and he also describes it as predominantly Buddhist, thinly populated though it was, it had no less than 80 Buddhist convents with about 5000 monks. In effect at eighteen km northwest of Las Bela at Gandakahar, near the ruins of an ancient town are the [[Shehr-e-Roghan|caves of Gondrani]], and as their constructions show these caves were undoubtedly Buddhist. Traveling through the Kij valley further west (then under the government of Persia) Hiuen Tsang saw some 100 Buddhist monasteries and 6000 priests. He also saw several hundred [[Deva (Buddhism)|Deva]] temples in this part of Makran, and in the town of Su-nu li-chi-shi-fa-lo – which is probably Qasrqand – he saw a temple of [[Shiva|Maheshvara]] Deva, richly adorned and sculptured. There is thus very wide extension of Indian cultural forms in Makran in the seventh century, even in the period when it fell under Persian sovereignty. By comparison in more recent times the last place of [[Hinduism|Hindu]] pilgrimage in Makran was [[Hinglaj]], 256 km west of present-day Karachi in [[Lasbela District|Las Bela]].<ref>André Wink, ''Al-Hind: Early medieval India and the expansion of Islam, 7th–11th centuries'', p. 135</ref>}}

Wink has recorded [[Xuanzang|Hiuen Tsang]]'s notes on the language and script in use in easternmost Makran (eastern parts of Pakistani Balochistan
):
[[File:MacedonEmpire-2.jpg|thumb|alt=Baluch and alexandar's empire|Paths that [[Alexander the Great]] took]]

{{Blockquote|Hiuen Tsang considered the script which was in use in Makran to be "much the same as India", but the spoken language "differed a little from that of India".<ref>André Wink, ''Al-Hind: Early medieval India and the expansion of Islam, 7th–11th centuries'', p. 137</ref>}}

===Early medieval times===
The Hindu Sewa dynasty ruled much of Baluchistan up until the 7th century CE. The Sibi division carved out of Quetta division still derives its name from Rani Sewi, the queen of the Hindu Sewa dynasty.<ref>Syed Abdul Quddus, ''The tribal Baluchistan'', p. 49</ref>

In 635 or 636 CE, the Hindu [[Brahman dynasty]] controlled parts of Balochistan.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Encyclopedia of the World's Minorities|publisher=Routledge|year=2005|isbn=1-57958-468-3|editor-last=Skutsch|editor-first=Carl|location=New York|pages=178}}</ref>

===Islamic conquest===
[[File:Centralmakran.jpg|thumb|Central Makran range]]
The first Islamic conquest of Makran took place during the [[Rashidun Caliphate]] in the year 643 CE . Caliph [[Umar]]'s governor of [[Bahrain]], Usman ibn Abu al-Aas, who was on a campaign to conquer the southern coastal areas beyond Sassanid, sent his brother Hakam ibn Abu al-Aas to raid and [[reconnoitre]] the Makran region.<ref>''Al Baldiah wal nahaiyah'' vol: 7 page 141</ref>{{full citation needed|date=September 2023}}

In late 644 CE Caliph [[Umar]] dispatched an army under the command of Hakam ibn Amr for the wholesale invasion of Makkuran. He was joined by reinforcements from [[Kufa]] under the command of Shahab ibn Makharaq, and by Abdullah ibn Utban, the commander of a campaign in [[Kerman]]. They encountered no strong resistance in Makran until the army of the King of [[Rai dynasty|Rai]], along with contingents from Makran and Sind, stopped them near the [[Indus|Indus River]]. In mid-644 the [[Battle of Rasil]] was fought between the forces of the Rashidun Caliphate and the Rai Kingdom; the Raja's forces were defeated and forced to retreat to the eastern bank of the Indus. The Raja's army had included [[war elephant]]s, but these had posed little problem for the Muslim invaders, who had dealt with them during the [[Muslim conquest of Persia|conquest of Persia]]. In accordance with the orders of Caliph [[Umar]], the captured war elephants were sold in Islamic Persia, with the proceeds distributed among the soldiers as share in booty.<ref>''Tarikh al Tabri'', vol: 4 page no: 180</ref> In response to Caliph [[Umar]]'s questions about the Makran region, the messenger from Makkuran who brought the news of the victory told him:

{{poemquote|
O Commander of the faithful!
It's a land where the plains are stony;
Where water is scanty;
Where the fruits are unsavory;
Where men are known for treachery;
Where plenty is unknown;
Where virtue is held of little account;
And where evil is dominant.
A large army is less for there;
And a less army is use less there;
The land beyond it, is even worse [referring to Sind]}}

Umar looked at the messenger and said:
"Are you a messenger or a poet?" He replied, "Messenger". Thereupon Caliph [[Umar]] instructed Hakim bin Amr al Taghlabi that for the time being Makkuran should be the easternmost frontier of the Islamic empire, and that no further attempt should be made to extend the conquests.

It was reconquered by the usurper [[Chach of Alor]] in 631. Ten years later, it was described to be "under the government of Persia" by [[Xuanzang]] who visited the region. Three years later however, when the Arabs invaded, it was regarded as the "frontier of ''Al-Hind''".<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g2m7_R5P2oAC&pg=PA136|title=Al-Hind, the Making of the Indo-Islamic World: Early Medieval India and the Expansion of Islam 7th–11th Centuries|publisher=Brill|pages=131–132, 136|isbn=0391041738|year=2002}}</ref> The [[Brahmin]], Maharaja Chacha met the invaders outside Broach and defeated them with heavy slaughter also killing their very Commander-in-Chief Abdul Aziz in the process.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Savarkar|first=Veer|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IajTDwAAQBAJ&dq=usman+the+governor+of+oman&pg=PT151|title=Six Glorious Epochs of Indian History|date=2020-01-01|publisher=Prabhat Prakashan|isbn=978-93-5322-097-6|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Munshi|first=Kanaiyalal Maneklal|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gfAdAAAAMAAJ&q=usman+the+governor+of+oman|title=The Glory that was Gūrjaradeśa: The Imperial Gūrjaras. 1st ed|date=1944|publisher=Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan|language=en}}</ref>

===Baloch attack on Mahmud Ghazni===
Baloch raiders plundered [[Mahmud of Ghazni]]'s ambassador between Tabbas and Khabis. In revenge, his son Masud defeated them at the latter place, which lies at the foot of the Karman Mountains on the edge of the desert.
<ref>Denzil Ibbetson, Edward MacLagan, H. A. Rose (1911). ''A Glossary of The Tribes & Casts of The Punjab & North-West Frontier Province''. Vol. II. p. 43.</ref>

===Modern era===
[[File:Map of Baluchistan from The Imperial Gazetteer of India (1907-1909).jpg|thumb|Map of the [[Baluchistan Agency]]]]
From the 15th century onward, the area was ruled by the [[Rind (tribe)|Rind]], [[Boledehi|Buledai]], [[Hammal Jiand]], and Gichki tribes.

Hammal Baloch lived during the 15th century and his father, Jiand was the ruler of Makran. He is best known for his resistance against [[Portuguese Empire|Portuguese]] incursions,<ref>{{cite book |last=Claus, Diamond, Ann Mills |first=  Peter J., Sarah, Margaret |title=South Asian Folklore |publisher= Routledge |date=2003 |page=44|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ienxrTPHzzwC|language=en|isbn=9780415939195}}</ref> particularly during the attacks on coastal towns like [[Pasni (city)|Pasni]] and [[Gawadar]].

The sultanate held onto the Makran coast throughout the period of British colonial rule, but eventually, only Gwadar was left in the hands of the sultan.

===Princely State of Makaran===
On the independence of [[Pakistan]], Makran became a district within the province of Balochistan, with the exception of an area of {{cvt|800|km2}} around Gwadar.
'''Makran''' ({{langx|ur|{{nq|ریاست مکران}}}}) was an autonomous [[princely state]] in a [[subsidiary alliance]] with [[British India]] until 1947, before acceding to Pakistan as an autonomous [[princely states of Pakistan|princely state of Pakistan]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://thediplomat.com/2016/02/a-brief-history-of-balochistan/|title=A Brief History of Balochistan|first=Akhilesh|last=Pillalamarri|website=[[The Diplomat (magazine)|The Diplomat]]|access-date=2024-03-13|archive-date=2024-04-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240401095200/https://thediplomat.com/2016/02/a-brief-history-of-balochistan|url-status=live}}</ref> It ceased to exist in 1955. It was located in the extreme southwest of present-day [[Pakistan]], an area now parts of the districts of [[Gwadar]], [[Kech District|Kech]] and [[Panjgur]]. The state did not include the [[enclave]] of [[Gwadar#Omani rule|Omani Gwadar]], which was under [[Muscat and Oman|Omani]] rule until 1958.

Makran state was ruled by [[Gichki]] Nawabs,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Malik |first=Fida Hussain |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VNwCEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA11 |title=Balochistan: A Conflict of Narratives |date=2020-10-14 |publisher=Saiyid Books |isbn=978-969-2200-02-8 |language=en |page=11 |access-date=2024-03-13 |archive-date=2024-03-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308214358/https://books.google.com/books?id=VNwCEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA11 |url-status=live }}</ref> who were of [[Muslim Rajputs|Rajputs]] origin.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Quddus |first=Syed Abdul |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FgFuAAAAMAAJ |title=The Tribal Baluchistan |date=1990 |publisher=Ferozsons |isbn=978-969-0-10047-4 |language=en|page=63|quote=The former rulers of Makran and Lasbela, Gichki and Jamots respectively, are Rajputs.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Spooner |first=Brian |date=1964 |title=Kūch u Balūch and Ichthyophagi |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4299552 |journal=Iran |volume=2 |pages=53–67 |doi=10.2307/4299552 |jstor=4299552 |issn=0578-6967 |quote=The Gichki are the descendants of a Rajput family which settled in 17th century. |access-date=2024-03-13 |archive-date=2024-01-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240103184353/https://www.jstor.org/stable/4299552 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref> Their ancestor, Jagat Singh had migrated from Rajputana in the 17th century and converted to Islam. In 1958 the Gwadar enclave was transferred to Pakistani control as part of the district of Makran. The entire region has been subdivided into new smaller districts over the years.

== Ancient Corridor of Makran ==
Between 2500 B.C. and 1700 B.C., a maritime trade route existed in the [[Indian Ocean]] and the [[Persian Gulf]]<ref>Blench, Roger (2009). "Remapping the Austronesian expansion" (PDF). In Evans, Bethwyn (ed.). Discovering History Through Language: Papers in Honour of Malcolm Ross. Pacific Linguistics. ISBN 978-0-85883-605-1. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 April 2020. Retrieved 23 March 2019. <nowiki>http://www.rogerblench.info/Language/Austronesian/General/Blench%20Ross%20Festschrift%20paper%20revised.pdf</nowiki></ref><ref>Manguin PY (2016). "Austronesian Shipping in the Indian Ocean: From Outrigger Boats to Trading Ships". In Campbell G (ed.). Early Exchange between Africa and the Wider Indian Ocean World. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 51–76. ISBN 978-3-319-33822-4. Archived from the original on 26 July 2020. Retrieved 4 June 2020.</ref>(which continued into later periods), connecting three primary regions as described in ancient [[Akkadian Empire|Akkadian]] inscriptions found in [[Iraq]]:

1- [[Meluhha]]: This land, referred to as Meluhha in ancient texts, likely corresponds to the Maluku Islands in present-day Indonesia or possibly southeastern India. It was central to trade activities during that era.

2- [[Magan (civilization)|Magan]]: Known as Magan in Akkadian records, this region extended from Gujarat in India to Balochistan, Makran, Oman, Yemen, and the coasts of Somalia and Sudan. It served as a crucial hub for raw materials and maritime navigation.

3- [[Dilmun]]: Identified as Dilmun, this area encompassed the Persian Gulf region, parts of southern Zagros, southern Khuzestan, Bahrain, and areas along the southern Persian Gulf. The name persists today in places like [[Bandar Deylam]] in southern Iran.

According to these inscriptions, [[ship]]s carrying up to 20 tons of goods (20,000 kilograms each) traversed this trade route regularly.

==Geography==
[[File:Makran.makoran pars1744 Amesterdam.jpg|thumb|Makran.makoran pars1744 Amesterdam]]
[[File:Gwadar Fishing Port.jpg|thumb|alt=Gwadar in Makran|[[Gwadar]] beach in Makran region-today the economy of Makrani Baloch is largely based on use of the ocean.]]
The narrow coastal plain rises rapidly into several mountain ranges. Of the {{cvt|1000|km}} coastline, around {{cvt|750|km}} are in [[Pakistan]]. The climate is dry with little rainfall. Makran is very sparsely inhabited, with much of the population concentrated in a string of small ports including [[Chabahar]], [[Gwatar]], [[Jiwani]], [[Jask]], [[Sirik, Iran|Sirik]], [[Gwadar]] (not to be confused with Gwatar), [[Pasni City|Pasni]], [[Ormara]] and many smaller fishing villages.

There is only one island off the coast of Makran, [[Astola|Astola Island]], near Pasni although there are several small islets. The coastline has a number of lagoons and bays. The main lagoons are [[Miani Hor]], [[Khor Kalmat]], and the [[Jiwani Coastal Wetland]]. The main bays are from east to west: Ormara East Bay, Ormara West Bay, Pasni Bay, [[Surbandar]] Bay, Gwadar East Bay, Gwadar West Bay and [[Gwatar Bay]] (which includes Jiwani Bay). This latter bay shelters a large [[mangrove]] forest and the nesting grounds of endangered turtle species. The [[Mirani Dam]] provides irrigation, flood prevention and water supply to Gwadar city.

== Demographics ==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Religious groups in the Makran Division of [[Kalat State]] ([[Baluchistan Agency|British Baluchistan]] era)
! rowspan="2" |[[Religion in Pakistan|Religious]]<br>group
! colspan="2" |1911<ref name="Census1911B">{{cite web|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/saoa.crl.25393764 |jstor=saoa.crl.25393764 |access-date=8 September 2024 |title=Census of India 1911. Vol. 4, Baluchistan : pt. 1, Report; pt. 2, Tables. |year=1911 |volume=2 |pages=11}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |1921<ref name="Census1921B">{{cite web|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/saoa.crl.25394124 |jstor=saoa.crl.25394124 |access-date=8 September 2024 |title=Census of India 1921. Vol. 4, Baluchistan : part I, Report; part II, Tables. |year=1921 |pages=165}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |1931<ref name="Census1931B">{{cite web|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/saoa.crl.25797115 |jstor=saoa.crl.25797115 |access-date=8 September 2024 |title=Census of India 1931. Vol. 4, Baluchistan. Pts. 1 & 2, Report [and] Imperial and provincial tables. |year=1931 |pages=390}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |1941<ref name="Census1941B">{{cite web|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/saoa.crl.28215993 |jstor=saoa.crl.28215993 |access-date=8 September 2024 |title=Census of India, 1941. Vol. 14, Baluchistan |year=1941 |pages=17 |author1=India Census Commissioner |volume=14 }}</ref>
|-
![[Population|{{abbr|Pop.|Population}}]]
!{{Abbr|%|percentage}}
!{{abbr|Pop.|Population}}
!{{Abbr|%|percentage}}
!{{abbr|Pop.|Population}}
!{{Abbr|%|percentage}}
!{{abbr|Pop.|Population}}
!{{Abbr|%|percentage}}
|-
! [[Islam]] [[File:Star and Crescent.svg|15px]]
| 71,758
| {{Percentage | 71758 | 71942 | 2 }}
| 71,625
| {{Percentage | 71625 | 71860 | 2 }}
| 68,213
| {{Percentage | 68213 | 68462 | 2 }}
| 86,406
| {{Percentage | 86406 | 86651 | 2 }}
|-
! [[Hinduism]] [[File:Om.svg|15px]]
| 137
| {{Percentage | 137 | 71942 | 2 }}
| 216
| {{Percentage | 216 | 71860 | 2 }}
| 233
| {{Percentage | 233 | 68462 | 2 }}
| 206
| {{Percentage | 206 | 86651 | 2 }}
|-
! [[Christianity]] [[File:Christian cross.svg|15px]]
| 40
| {{Percentage | 40 | 71942 | 2 }}
| 11
| {{Percentage | 11 | 71860 | 2 }}
| 11
| {{Percentage | 11 | 68462 | 2 }}
| 20
| {{Percentage | 20 | 86651 | 2 }}
|-
! [[Sikhism]] [[File:Khanda.svg|15px]]
| 2
| {{Percentage | 2 | 71942 | 2 }}
| 8
| {{Percentage | 8 | 71860 | 2 }}
| 3
| {{Percentage | 3 | 68462 | 2 }}
| 17
| {{Percentage | 17 | 86651 | 2 }}
|-
! Others
| 5{{efn|name=1901Others|Including 4 [[Parsis]] ([[Zoroastrianism|Zoroastrians]]) and 1 [[Buddhism|Buddhist]].}}
| {{Percentage | 5 | 71942 | 2 }}
| 0
| {{Percentage | 0 | 71860 | 2 }}
| 2{{efn|name=1931Others|Including 2 [[Jews]].}}
| {{Percentage | 2 | 68462 | 2 }}
| 2{{efn|name=1941Others|Including 1 [[Parsis|Parsi]] ([[Zoroastrianism|Zoroastrian]]) and 1 [[Jews|Jew]].}}
| {{Percentage | 2 | 86651 | 2 }}
|-
! Total population
! 71,942
! {{Percentage | 71942 | 71942 | 2 }}
! 71,860
! {{Percentage | 71860 | 71860 | 2 }}
! 68,462
! {{Percentage | 68462 | 68462 | 2 }}
! 86,651
! {{Percentage | 86651 | 86651 | 2 }}
|- class="sortbottom"
|}

==See also==
* [[Chabahar]]
* [[Gwadar]]
* [[Khor Kalmat]]
* [[Lyari Town]]
* [[Makran Coastal Highway]]
* [[Makran Coastal Range]]
* [[Makran Division]]
* [[N'aschi]]
* [[Sokhta Koh]]
* [[State of Makran]]
* [[Wildlife of Pakistan#Western highlands.2C plains and deserts|Wildlife of Pakistan § Western highlands, plains and deserts]]
* [[1945 Balochistan earthquake]]

== Notes ==
<references group="lower-alpha" />

==References==
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
{{Refbegin|40em}}
* Nicolini, Beatrice, [https://www.scribd.com/doc/17031343/The-MakranBaluchAfrican-Network-in-Zanzibar-and-East-Africa-during-the-XIXth-Century The Makran-Baluch-African Network in Zanzibar and East Africa during the XIXth Century]{{Dead link|date=March 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, African and Asian Studies, Volume 5, Numbers 3–4, 2006, pp.&nbsp;347–370(24)
* {{Citation |last=Nicolini |first=Beatrice |title=Chapter Five. The Makran-Baluch-African Network In Zanzibar And East Africa During The XIXth Century |date=2008-01-01 |work=Uncovering the History of Africans in Asia |pages=81–106 |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162914.i-196.48 |access-date=2024-03-13 |publisher=BRILL |doi=10.1163/ej.9789004162914.i-196.48 |isbn=978-90-04-16291-4 |url-access=subscription }}
* {{Cite book |last=Wink |first=André |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g2m7_R5P2oAC&dq=makran+temple&pg=PA134 |title=Al-Hind, the Making of the Indo-Islamic World: Early Medieval India and the Expansion of Islam 7Th-11th Centuries |date=2002 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-0-391-04173-8 |language=en |access-date=2023-03-25 |archive-date=2023-11-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231101173457/https://books.google.com/books?id=g2m7_R5P2oAC&dq=makran+temple&pg=PA134 |url-status=live }}
* Eilers, Wilhelm, Das Volk der Makā vor und nach den Achämeniden, AMI Ergänzungsband 10, 1983, 101–119
* {{cite journal |first1=John |last1=Hansman |year=1973 |title=A Periplus of Magan and Meluhha |journal=Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies |volume=36 |number=3 |pages=553–587 |jstor=613582 |doi=10.1017/S0041977X00119858|s2cid=140709175 }}
* {{Cite book |last=Kosmin |first=Paul J. |author-link=Paul J. Kosmin |title=The Land of the Elephant Kings: Space, Territory, and Ideology in Seleucid Empire |date=2014 |publisher=[[Harvard University Press]] |isbn=978-0-674-72882-0}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090826205958/http://www.transpakistan.com.pk/balochistan.htm Balochistan and Makran, Pakistan]
* [http://cadensa.bl.uk/uhtbin/cgisirsi/XPF0POgBnI/248030005/18/X087/XSERIES/1CD0127170 'Music of Makran: traditional fusion from coastal Balochistan' from the British Library Sound Archive] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211129051055/http://cadensa.bl.uk/uhtbin/cgisirsi/XPF0POgBnI/248030005/18/X087/XSERIES/1CD0127170 |date=2021-11-29 }}
* {{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Makran |volume=17 |page=452 |first=Thomas |last=Holdich |short=1}}

{{GeoSouthAsia}}
{{Authority control}}

{{Coord|25.30541|60.64108|display=title}}

[[Category:Gulf of Oman]]
[[Category:Plains of Iran]]
[[Category:Plains of Pakistan]]
[[Category:Regions of Pakistan]]
[[Category:Historical regions of Iran]]
[[Category:Historical regions of Pakistan]]
[[Category:Sistan and Baluchestan province]]
[[Category:Balochistan, Pakistan]]
[[Category:History of Balochistan]]
[[Category:Landforms of Balochistan (Pakistan)]]
[[Category:Deserts of Pakistan]]