Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (افغانستان), is a country in South Asia. It borders Pakistan in the south and east, Iran in the west, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan in the north, and China in the far northeast. Kabul serves as the country’s capital city.

Afghanistan is currently governed by the Taliban, after the collapse of the internationally recognized Islamic Republic of Afghanistan on 15 August 2021. In early times people passed through it with animals and other goods as it connected China and India with Central Asia and the Middle East. More recently, Afghanistan has been damaged by many years of war.

The country is around 251,826 square miles (652,230 square kilometres) in size. There are 30 million people in Afghanistan. Afghanistan has many mountains. The mountains are called the Hindu Kush and Himalayas. The big mountain in Afghanistan is Mount Nowshak. There are plains (which have soil that is good for growing plants) and foothills. Part is also dry and called the Registan Desert.

Afghanistan has snow and glaciers in the mountains. Amu Darya is the big river.

The country has a lot of a valuable stone called lapis lazuli, which was used to decorate the tomb of the Egyptian king Tutankhamun.

Afghanistan is a largely rural country. This means there are only a few major cities. About one-fifth of the population lives in cities. Kabul, the capital, is the largest city. It is south of the Hindu Kush range and alongside the Kabul River. The rural population is made up of farmers and nomads. The farmers live mainly in small villages along the rivers. The nomads live in tents while moving from place to place with their animals and belongings. Some people live in the high central mountains. Some live in the deserts in the south and southwest.

 

 

Source: Afghanistan Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.