List of Pashtuns
The following is an incomplete list of notable Pashtuns.[1] The list includes those born to parents who are both Pashtuns and those who have mixed Pashtun ancestry. Pashtun people are usually defined by speaking the East Iranian dialects of Pashto and related dialects (i.e. Waneci, Wazirwola) as their mother tongue, and/or Practice Pashtunwali (culture); however, there exist many Pashtun communities that assimilated and/or shifted to speaking another language but trace their ancestral roots to Pashtun tribes. In several cases, patrilineal lineage is counted for Pashtun ancestry according to Pashtun culture regardless of the mother's line or mixed descent. Pashtuns most likely originated as a tribal confederation of people or peoples of proto-Indo-European origin somewhere in Central Asia from which other Indo-Aryan and Iranian peoples may also originate.
A
- Ahmad Shah Durrani - founding father of Afghanistan
- Ahmad Yusuf Nuristani - politician in Afghanistan
- Ahmad Zahir - Afghan musician
- Anwar Kamal Khan - politician in Pakistan
- Abbas Khattak - retired general of Pakistan
- Alauddin Khilji
- Abdul Majid Khan Tarin, OBE - British-Indian magistrate, politician and philanthropist
- Abdul Ahad Mohmand - the first Afghan cosmonaut
- Abdul Aziz Hotak - the second ruler of the Afghan Hotaki dynasty
- Abdul Ghani Khan - Pashtun poet from Pakistan
- Abdul Hai Habibi - historian and politician in Afghanistan
- Abdul Haq - political figure in Afghanistan who was killed by the Taliban in late 2001
- Abdul Jabbar Naeemi - politician in Afghanistan
- Abdul Wahid Durrani - former Pakistani soccer player
- Abdur Rab Nishtar - Pakistan movement activist
- Abdul Rasul Sayyaf - politician in Afghanistan
- Abdul Wahid Khan
- Abdur Rahman Khan - monarch of Afghanistan in the late 19th century
- Abdul Rahman Pazhwak
- Abdul Salam Azimi - Chief Justice of Afghanistan
- Abdul Qadir - politician in Afghanistan until his death in 2002
- Abdul Qadeer Khan - nuclear scientist, Pakistan
- Abdul Waheed Kakar - former Pakistan Chief of Army Staff
- Abid Ullah Jan
- Abdul Rahim Wardak - Defense Minister of Afghanistan
- Abdul Zahir - politician in Afghanistan during the 1970s
- Afrasiab Khattak - politician in Pakistan
- Aftab Ahmad Sherpao - politician in Pakistan
- Afzal Khan Lala - Pashtun politician from Swat Pakhtunkhwa
- Ajmal Khattak - Pashtun politician and poet from Akora Khatak Pakhtunkhwa
- Afzal Bangash - Pashtun Marxist political activist from Pakistan
- Ahmad Faraz - Urdu poet from Kohat Pakhtunkhwa
- Akhtar Mohammad Osmani
- Akram Khan Durrani - politician in Pakistan
- Ali Mohammed Khan
- Ali Ahmad Jalali - politician in Afghanistan
- Amanullah Khan - Ghazi of the Third Anglo-Afghan War and King of Afghanistan from 1919 to 1929
- Amanullah Khan Jadoon - politician in Pakistan
- Amirzai Sangin - politician in Afghanistan
- Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi - former Lieutenant General in Pakistan Army
- Amir Kror Suri - 8th-century folk hero and a king from the Ghor region in Afghanistan
- Amjad Khan - Bollywood actor
- Anwar Saifullah Khan - politician in Pakistan
- Anwar ul-Haq Ahadi
- Anwar Kamal Khan (Marwat-Mina Khel) - politician in Pakistan
- Arbab Jehangir Khan - politician in Pakistan
- Asadullah Khan - member of the Afghanistan national cricket team
- Asadullah Khalid - politician in Afghanistan
- Assadullah Wafa - politician in Afghanistan
- Asfandyar Wali Khan - politician in Pakistan
- Ashraf Hotaki - Shah of Persia from 1725 to 1729 and the fourth ruler of the Hotaki dynasty
- Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai - President of Afghanistan; former Finance Minister of Afghanistan
- Ashraf Jehangir Qazi - former Pakistani ambassador to the US
- Aslam Khattak - politician in Pakistan
- Ayub Khan - former Pakistani President
- Ayub Shah
- Abdul Samad Khan Achakzai
D
- Dadullah
- Daud Shah Saba - politician in Afghanistan
- Daud Khan Rohilla
- Daulat Khan Lodhi
- Dil Jan Khan - former President of International Narcotics Control Board in Pakistan
- Din Mohammad - politician in Afghanistan
- Delbar Jan Arman - politician in Afghanistan
- Yousuf Khan aka Dilip Kumar
- Dost Mohammad Khan - monarch of Afghanistan in the 19th century
E
- Ehsan Aman - Afghan musician
F
- Faqir of Ipi - former freedom fighter in Pakistan
- Fardeen Khan
- Farhad Darya - Afghan musician
- Farhatullah Babar - politician in Pakistan
- Faryadi Sarwar Zardad
- Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman - politician in Pakistan
- Feroz Khan - Indian actor
G
- Gul Agha Sherzai - politician in Afghanistan
- Ghulam Farooq Wardak - politician in Afghanistan
- Ghulam Ishaq Khan (Bangash) - former President of Pakistan
- Ghulam Muhammad - politician in Pakistan
- Gohar Ayub Khan - politician in Pakistan; son of former President Ayub Khan
- Gul Hassan Khan - former Lieutenant General of Pakistan Army
- Gulbuddin Hekmatyar - politician and warlord from Afghanistan
H
- Habibullah Khan
- Haibat Khan Niazi - Commander of Niazi contingent of Sher Shah Suri's army and Governor of Punjab
- Hayat Sherpao - politician in Pakistan
- Khan Habibullah Khan (Marwat) (Former Chairman of the Senate, Pakistan)
- Hayatullah Khan Durrani - Sports Secretary of Pakistan Customs Sports Board
- Hafiz Rahmat Khan
- Hafizullah Amin
- Hakim Taniwal - politician in Afghanistan
- Hamid Karzai - President of Afghanistan since 2001
- Hamid Khan Lodhi - founder of Lodhi dynasty of Multan after end of Arab rule in 961 A.D
- Hamidullah Qalandarzai - politician in Afghanistan
- Hashim Khan - former squash player from Pakistan
- Hedayat Amin Arsala - politician in Afghanistan who previously worked for World Bank
- Hiddy Jahan - squash player from Pakistan
- Hussain Hotaki - the last ruler of the Hotaki dynasty at Kandahar
- Hamid Gul - Lieutenant-General - Director General of the Inter-Services Intelligence
I
- Ibrahim Lodhi
- Imran Khan Niazi - politician and former cricket player of Pakistan
- Imran Ullah Khan - retired Lieutenant General of Pakistan Army
- Inayatullah Khan
- Muhammad Iqbal Khan Jadoon - former Chief Minister NWFP
- Iqbal Khan Jadoon - retired general of Pakistan Army
- Ishaq Khan Khakwani (Khugyani) - politician in Pakistan
- Irfan Khan Pathan
- Isa Khan Niazi - Masnad-e-Aali in reign of Sher Shah Suri
J
- Jalaluddin Haqqani - militant commander in Waziristan region of Pakistan
- Jamal Shah - Pakistani actor
- Jan Mohammad Khan - politician in Afghanistan until his death in 2011
- Juma Khan Hamdard - politician in Afghanistan
K
- Karnal Sher Khan Shaheed - Pakistan Army Officer
- Karzais
- Kader Khan - Indian actor and screenwriter
- Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan - politician in Pakistan
- Khan Muhammad Sarwar Khan Kakar - politician in Pakistan
- Khan Abdul Wali Khan - politician in Pakistan
- Khan Habibullah Khan (Marwat) - politician in Pakistan
- Khatir Afridi - Pashtun poet from Pakistan
- Khawas Khan Marwat - general of Sher Shah Suri
- Khushal Khan Khattak
- Kabir Stori - President of Pashtoon Social Democratic Party
L
- Lutfullah Mashal - politician in Afghanistan
M
- Mahmud Hotaki - Shah of Persia from 1722 to 1725 and the third ruler of the Hotaki dynasty
- Mahmud Tarzi - politician and pioneer of journalism in Afghanistan in the early 20th century
- Mahmud Shah Durrani - monarch of Afghanistan in the 18th century
- Mahmood Khan Achakzai - politician in Pakistan
- Malala Yousafzai - Nobel Peace Prize winner
- Malik Saad (Bangash) - IG Police (KPK) Pakistan
- Mansoor Aslam Khan Niazi (Sami Khan)
- Maulana Kausar Niazi - politician in Pakistan
- Maulana Mohammad Ali
- Miangul Jahan Zeb - The last Wali of Swat
- Mirwais Ahmadzai - Afghan-Italian pop musician in Europe
- Mirwais Hotak - founder of the Afghan Hotaki dynasty in Kandahar
- Misbah Ul-Haq Khan Niazi - Pakistani cricketer
- Mohammad Akbar Barakzai - politician in Afghanistan
- Mohammad Akbar Khan
- Mohammad Asef Rahimi (Bangash) - politician in Afghanistan
- Mohammad Ayub Khan - monarch of Afghanistan in the 19th century
- Mohammad Ashraf Naseri - politician in Afghanistan
- Mohammed Daoud Khan - President of Afghanistan from 1973 to 1978
- Mohammad Dawran - Commander of the Afghan Air Force
- Mohammad Gulab Mangal - politician in Afghanistan
- Muhammad Khan Bangash - founder of Farrukhabad state in the early 18th century
- Mohammad Nadir Shah - King of Afghanistan from 1929 to 1933
- Mohammad Yaqub Khan - monarch of Afghanistan in the late 19th century
- Mohammed Najibullah
- Mohammed Omar - the spiritual leader of the Taliban (Quetta Shura)
- Mohammad Yunus
- Mufti Mahmood - Pakistani Islamic scholar and political activist
- Muhammad Muhsin Khan - Pakistani Islamic scholar
- Muhammad Essa - Pakistani soccer player
- Mohammad Ishaq Aloko - Attorney General of Afghanistan
- Mullah Powindah - former freedom fighter in Pakistan
- Muhammad Ali Khan Mohmand - politician in Pakistan
- Mohammed Zahir Shah - the last king of Afghanistan, who reigned for 40 years
- Musa Khan Ahmadzai - politician in Afghanistan
- Muhammad Mahabat Khan III - last ruling Nawab of Junagarh
N
- Naghma - Afghan musician
- Nashenas - Afghan musician
- Farhad Darya Nasher Khan - singer and composer
- Gholam Nabi Nasher Khan - parliamentarian
- Gholam Serwar Nasher Khan - president of Spinzar Cotton Company
- Sher Khan Nasher Loe Khan (Grand Khan) - founder of Spinzar Cotton Company and founding father of Kunduz
- Naim Popal - Afghan musician
- Naseerullah Babar - retired general of Pakistan Army
- Naser Mestarihi - singer of Pakistani descent in Qatar
- Nasrullah Khan
- Natasha Khan - singer of Pakistani descent in UK (Bat for Lashes)
- Najib-ul-Daula - Nawab of Rohilla
- Nazia Iqbal - Pakistani singer
- Noor Mohammad Tarakai - former president of Afghanistan
- Niaz Ali Khan - crown prince of Afghanistan
O
- Omar Ayub Khan- politician in Pakistan
- Omar Zakhilwal - politician in Afghanistan
- Omer Tarin - English poet from Pakistan
P
- Pacha Khan Zadran - politician in Afghanistan
- Palay Khan - former freedom fighter in Pakistan
- Parveen Babi
Q
- Qalandar Momand - member of the Communist Party of Pakistan
- Qazi Hussain Ahmad - politician in Pakistan
- Qamar Zaman - former squash player from Pakistan
R
- Rahim Shah - Pashtun singer from Pakistan
- Rahimuddin Khan - retired general of Pakistan Army
- Rahman Baba - Pashtun poet from Peshawar, Pakistan
- Rasool Sayyaf
- Roedad Khan - politician in Pakistan
- Roohul Amin - politician in Afghanistan
S
- Shahid Afridi- Pakistani cricketer
- Salim Khan - Indian actor and screenwriter
T
- Taj Mohammad Wardak - politician in Afghanistan
- Timur Shah Durrani - monarch of Afghanistan, the second ruler of the Durrani Empire
- Toryalai Wesa - politician in Afghanistan
U
Y
- Younis Khan - Pakistani cricketer
- Yousef Pashtun - politician in Afghanistan
- Y.Misdaq
- Yakub Khan Mehboob Khan
Z
- Zabihullah Mojaddidy - politician in Afghanistan
- Zalmay Khalilzad - United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Iraq and Afghanistan
- Zalmai Rassoul - Foreign Minister of Afghanistan
- Zaman Shah Durrani - monarch of Afghanistan
- Zahira Zahir - Afghan-American hairstylist and cosmetologist
- Zakir Hussain (politician)
- Zubair Ali Zai - Pakistani cleric