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Sar-e-Pol (Pashto[a], Dari[b]: سر پل; lit. ‘bridge head’), also written as Sar-i-Pul, and historically known as Anbar (Pashto[c], Dari[d]: انبر), is a city in northern Afghanistan, serving as the capital of Sar-e-Pol Province.[2] The city is within the jurisdiction of Sar-e-Pol District and has an estimated population of 134,809 people (2025).[1] Qari Abdul Vakil Moaz serves as the mayor of the city.[3]

Sar-e-Pol sits at an elevation of about 2,155 ft (657 m) above sea level.[4] It is connected by a road network with Sheberghan to the north, Tukzar to the southeast, and Maimana to the southwest. Its distance from Kabul is about 349 km (217 mi).[5] Security is provided by the Afghan National Police.

Sar-e-Pol is home to the historic Imam Yahya Shrine, which is located in the eastern part of the city.[6] There are also a number of bazaars, business centers, public parks, stadiums, banks, hotels, restaurants, mosques, hospitals, universities, and places to relax.

Demographics

Sar-e-Pol has an estimated population of 134,809 people.[1] In 2015, the city of Sar-e Pol had an estimated population of 115,000 people.[7] There were 5,675 total number of dwellings in a total land area of 2,990 hectares.[8]

A 1983 estimate put the population of the jurisdiction of Sar-e-Pol[e] at around 150,000 people, consisting of approximately 40% Uzbeks, 25% Pashtuns (10% Durrani, 5% eastern Pashtuns and 10% non-Durrani Pashtuns), 20% Aimaqs and Tajiks, 10% Hazaras, 5% Arabs, and a small number of Turkmens.[9]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Pashto pronunciation: [sa’ri.pul]
  2. ^ Dari pronunciation: [sä.ɾɪ.pʰʊl]
  3. ^ Pashto pronunciation: [ʔan.bar]
  4. ^ Dari pronunciation: [ʔäm.bǽɾ]
  5. ^ It is unclear whether jurisdiction in this context refers to the city itself or to the Sar-e-Pol woleswali (sub-governorate).

References

  1. ^ a b c “Estimated Population of Afghanistan 2025-26” (PDF). National Statistics and Information Authority. September 2025. p. 79. Retrieved 3 January 2026.
  2. ^ “12 years on, Sar-i-Pul City residents yet to get their plots”. Pajhwok Afghan News. 19 May 2022. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
  3. ^ “57 million revenues of Sar-e-pul province municipality in the past year”. Afghan Voice Agency. 23 March 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
  4. ^ Cohen, Saul Bernard; Cohen, Saul (2008). The Columbia Gazetteer of the World: A to G. ISBN 9780231145541.
  5. ^ “Sar-e Pul Distances Afghanistan”. www.distancecalculator.net. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  6. ^ “Cultural Figures Urge Completion of Imam Yahya Shrine Restoration”. TOLOnews. 26 February 2025. Retrieved 26 February 2025.
  7. ^ “State of Afghan Cities report 2015 (Volume-I English)”. UN-Habitat. p. 12. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
  8. ^ “State of Afghan Cities report 2015 (Volume-II)”. UN-Habitat. p. 114. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
  9. ^ Tapper, Nancy (February 1983). “Acculturation in Afghan Turkistan: Pashtun and Uzbek women”. Asian Affairs. 14 (1): 35–44. doi:10.1080/03068378308730096. ISSN 0306-8374.