Jalalabad

Known at the time by names such as Nagarahara and Adinapur, Jalalabad was a major center of Greco-Buddhist culture during the late 1st millennium BCE, focused on sites such as Ahin Posh. The first surviving references to the city are in early 1st millennium CE accounts by visiting Chinese Buddhist monks. In or about 400 CE, Faxian visited "Nagarahara" and worshiped at sacred Buddhist sites, such as the "Cave of the Buddha's Shadow” (佛影窟). In 630 CE, Xuan Zang, visited "Adinapur" and other locations nearby. The Buddhist era began to end after the region was conquered by Muslim forces during the late 1st millennium. However, complete conversions to Islam evidently did not occur quickly. In Hudud-al-Alam, written in 982 CE, there is reference to a village near Jalalabad where a local ruler had Muslim, Buddhist and Hindu wives. …

Jalalabad is a strategic city in eastern Afghanistan. It connects by a road network with Asadabad to the northeast, Torkham to the southeast, and Kabul to the west. It is at an elevation of 575 m (1,886 ft) above sea level, next to where the Kunar River merges into the Kabul River. The city is administratively divided into 6 city districts (nahias), covering a land area of 122 km2 (47 sq mi) or 12,796 ha (31,620 acres). Agriculture is the predominant land use at 44%, higher density of dwellings is found in Districts 1–5 and vacant plots are largely clustered in District 6. Districts 1–6 all have a grid network of roads. Jalalabad is home to a large number of fruit. Various types of citrus fruits like orange, tangerine, grapefruit, lemon, lime grow in gardens as well as in orchards. …

Jalalabad has a number of industrial parks. There are at least two steel mills in the city. Major industries in the city include poultry farming, processing agricultural products such as nuts and dried fruits, olive products, dates, oranges, sugarcane, and producing household products and various types of snacks. Jalalabad is connected by a road network with Asadabad to the northeast, Torkham to the southeast, and Kabul to west. The Kabul–Jalalabad Road is heavily used day and night, and still remains dangerous due to many accidents and the occasional rock falling from the high mountains. In January 2026 the city banned all auto rickshaw movements on the main roads in the city's center. The Jalalabad Airport (also known as Nangarhar Airport) is located roughly 3 mi (4.8 km) southeast from the city's center. It is a domestic airport for civilian use. …