140 kilometers out of Birjand, a southern city near the borderline of Iran and Afghanistan, there is a remote village with small adobe houses. With 120 families which make a population of about 600, inhabitants of the village are almost unfamiliar with today’s civilization.
In this waterless, drought village that is a passage for regular storms, the people lie in a though situation. The children study at traditional schools in which the main course is Koran. The last grade thought in the school is the fifth. They pass their free time in the same way their ancestors did. TV is considered “Mother of Satan” and is forbidden.
After finishing the elementary school, the girls begin their work as rug weavers and the boys take care of sheep folds. Their inter-marriage is more a strategy for escaping from the extreme poverty that overshadows the lives of Makhunik inhabitants.
Recently established Granite mines near the village have provided work opportunities for the men. According to the villagers, their ancestors were Afghan immigrants who founded Makhunik 300 years ago. The name of the village, they believe, comes from the old days’ good weather (Khunik means cool) that had made agriculture in the region possible.
But what makes Makhunik an interesting destination for travelers are the anecdotes about the height of Makhunik inhabitants. Many call the settlers Liliputians. The old people are very short but the sanitary officials have recently tried to increase the average height of the villagers by prescribing iron pills for the pregnant women and iron drops for the babies.
This, certainly, is good news but will inevitably cause the architectural symbol of the village, short adobe ceilings and walls, to be replaced by high iron walls and ceilings.
Makhunik villagers will, however, continue on with their hard lives in tough situations.
The land of lilliputs |
The land of lilliputs |
The land of lilliputs |
The land of lilliputs |
The land of lilliputs |
The land of lilliputs |
The land of lilliputs |
The land of lilliputs |
The land of lilliputs |
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