Bamyan

Bamyan, also spelled as Bamiyan or Bamian (Dari, Pashto: بامیان), is a city in central Afghanistan, serving as the capital of Bamyan Province. It is within the jurisdiction of Bamyan District and has an estimated population of 103,909 people. This makes Bamyan the largest municipality in Hazarajat. The Bamyan Airport is located in the middle of the city. It is surrounded by houses, businesses, schools and public parks. The Bamyan University is also near there. Band-e-Amir National Park is located around 2-hour drive to the west from the city's center. The driving distance between Bamyan and Kabul is approximately 180 km (110 mi). There is another road from Bamyan that leads east to Bagram in Parwan Province.

Bamyan sits at an altitude of about 8,366 ft (2,550 m) above sea level. The municipality is divided into four districts and has a total land area of 35 km² (14 sq mi). There are about 4,435 dwelling units in the city. Bamyan marked the most westerly point of Buddhist expansion and was a crucial hub of trade for much of the second millennium CE. It was a place where East met West and its archaeology reveals a blend of Greek, Turkic, Persian, Chinese, and Indian influences. The city has been one of Afghanistan's most touristic places.

Bamyan is referred to by some as the "Shining Light" and "Valley of Gods". In 2008 the world's oldest oil paintings were found in Bamyan Valley caves. There are several tourist attractions near the city, including the destroyed Buddhas of Bamyan, which were carved into cliffs on the north side of Bamyan city in the 3rd to 5th centuries CE, dating them to the pre-Islamic Hephthalite rule. They were part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site and were tragically destroyed by the Taliban in 2001. Other tourist attractions close to the city include Shahr-e-Gholghola and Zuhak. At the end of the 10th century, there was a Buddhist culture in which several thousand Buddhist monks lived in caves carved into the mountain. The 53 meters known as the Salsal and 35 meters known as Shahmama were the high-standing Buddha statues and best-known monuments left by the Buddhists. Furthermore, there are several cultural sites left from both the Buddhist and the later Islamic era of the valley.

Bamyan joined the UNESCO Creative Cities Network as City of Crafts and Folk Arts in 2017. "UNESCO noted the Bamiyan Valley is the most monumental expression of western Buddhism". Bamyan is now listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in Danger. On 15 August 2021, it was seized again by Taliban fighters, becoming the twenty-ninth provincial capital to be captured as part of the wider 2021 Taliban offensive.