Bamyan

The name "Bamyan" is derived from Middle Persian Bamikan.

The city of Bamyan was part of the Kushan Empire in the early centuries CE. After the Kushan Empire fell to the Sassanids, Bamyan became part of the Kushansha, vassals to the Sassanids. The Buddhist pilgrim Fa Xian visited Bamyan in the fifth century and recorded that the king summoned the monks of the region for vows and prayers. Fa Xian also records landslides and avalanches in the mountains and the presence of snow during winter and summer. This latter statement suggests climatic change which could have contributed to the historical and economic importance of the area for the years to come. Another Buddhist traveller, Xuanzang, passed through Bamyan in the seventh century. His record shows that the Bamyan Buddhas and cave monastery near it were already built. He also records that Buddhism in the region was in decay with the people being "hard and uncultivated". …

Bamyan is a strategic city in the central part of Afghanistan. Sitting at an altitude of 2,550 m (8,370 ft) above sea level, it connects by a road network with Aybak to the north, Bagram to the east, Kabul to the southeast, and Firozkoh to the west. Bamyan is administratively divided into four city districts (nahias) and surrounded by vast farmlands. Its total land area is 35 km2 (14 sq mi) or (3,539 ha (8,750 acres)). The high valley is about 230 km (140 mi) northwest of Kabul and separates the Hindu Kush mountain range from the Koh-i-Baba mountains. On the north side, there is an approximately 1.5 km (0.93 mi) long, high, almost vertical sandstone cliff that was formed by a glacier. The Buddha statues and most of the caves in the valley were carved into this rock face. In the valley itself and on the slopes, there are numerous ruins from earlier times. …