The Afghani. Fact Sheet Series #5.

As an introduction to Afghani refugees in the United States, this report discusses various aspects of Afghani life both in the U.S. and Afghanistan. Within the discussion of Afghani cultural background, Afghani history, geography, livelihood, language, ethnicity, religion, art, food and dress, festivities, names, and social structure are reviewed. The section on education reveals that modern education has not yet had a wide-spread impact in Afghanistan. A review of the Afghani languages of Pashto and Dari points to possible problems for the Afghani English as a second language student. Issues covered are: (1) the pronunciation of consonants, (2) the pronunciation of vowels, (3) articles, (4) basic word order, and (5) modification of verbs. Based on this review of Afghani culture and language, implications for refugee orientation are discussed. (JK)