Nazo Tokhi

Nazo Tokhi
Nazo Tokhi seen in this painting on a white horse helping Afghan warriors during a battle with the Safavid Persians
Born	1651 Kandahar, Afghanistan
Died	1717 (aged 65–66) Kandahar
Other names	Nāzo Anā, Nāzo Nyā
Known for	Poetry, Afghan unity, bravery and Mother of Mirwais Hotak
Spouse(s)	Salim Khan Hotak

Nāzo Tokhī (نازو توخۍ), commonly known as Nāzo Anā (Pashto: نازو انا‎, "Nazo the grandmother"), was a Pashtun female poet and a literary figure of the Pashto language. Mother of the famous early-18th century Afghan King Mirwais Hotak, she grew up in an influential family in the Kandahar region. Nazo Tokhi is remembered as a brave woman warrior in the history of Afghanistan, who eventually became the legendary "Mother of Afghan Nation".

Nazo Tokhi was born in or about 1651 in the village of Spozhmayiz Gul near Thazi, Kandahar Province of Afghanistan, into a powerful and wealthy Pashtun family. Her father, Sultan Malakhai Tokhi, was a prominent head of the Tokhi Pashtun tribe and governor of the Ghazni region. She was married to Salim Khan Hotak, son of Karam Khan. The famous Afghan ruler of the Hotak dynasty, Mirwais Hotak, was her son, and Mahmud Hotak and Hussain Hotak were her grandsons.

Nazo Ana became a learned poet and courteous person, people knew her by her loving and caring. Nazo's father paid close attention to her education and upbringing. He induced training and full education from the learned personalities of the time in Kandahar. She eventually became the legendary "Mother of Afghan Nation", and gained authority through her poetry and upholding of the Pashtunwali code. She called for Pashtunwali to be the law of the confederacy of the Pashtun tribes, and she arbitrated conflicts between Ghilji and Sadozai Pashtun tribes so as to encourage their alliance against the Persian Safavid rulers. Her contribution as a poet is uniquely considered invaluable even today.