South and Central Asia PAKISTAN

Pakistan was born as an independent nation in 1947 as part of British decolonization when "British India" split in two. Pakistan actually began as a nation in two parts itself, consisting of the current land of Pakistan, which is west of India, and a nation east of India that's now Bangladesh (which became independent in 1971). Pakistan was always meant to be a Muslim-majority nation (95% are Muslim), a foil to the primarily Hindu India. When Pakistan and India separated, millions of Muslims moved to Pakistan and millions of Hindus and Sikhs moved to India. A difficult time.

Pakistan has continued to be a tricky place, politically speaking; since independence it has alternated between periods of military domination and occasionally-unstable civilian rule. Today the country still faces challenges like ongoing conflicts with Taliban insurgents and the occasional cricket scandal.  

In class we play (SORT OF!) kabaddi, a sport that’s popular in India, Pakistan, Iran and Bangladesh. In kabaddi two teams compete to prove which is more agile, physically adept and clever. “Kabaddi” comes from a TAMIL world meaning “Let’s hold hands,” which refers to the fact that “defenders” hold onto each other to defeat a “raider.” Playing kabaddi is generally serious business…though in our classes nothing is too serious.