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What is a tribal rug?

トライバルラグ

"Tribal rugs" refer to carpets woven by tribes.

"Tribal rug" is written as "Tribal rug" in English. "Tribal" means tribe.

Tribal rugs have been woven for thousands of years in Central Asia and the Middle East. Many tribal rugs are handwoven by tribes living in Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkey, etc.

Each tribe has different patterns and colors. The name of each carpet comes from the tribe or place of origin.

Bharuch

Baluchi carpets are made by the Baluchi people.

In particular, these carpets are woven in villages in the Balochistan province of Pakistan and near the border with Afghanistan.

The designs are in shades of red, brown and blue and feature ethnic designs incorporating geometric patterns and traditional motifs.

The pile is usually made from wool, sometimes with silk added for added luxury.

Bharuch

Baluchistan (red) Map source: Google Maps, Google Earth

Gabbeh

These carpets were first woven by nomadic people living in the Zagros Mountains of Iran (including areas of Kurdistan, Luristan, and Fars in the southwest).

They started making thick, piled carpets to travel in cold regions. They wove them freely in a freestyle without preparing a design. The weavers wove cute patterns of animals and wishes familiar to their lives.

Gabbeh means "unfinished" in Persian, expressing the simplicity of Gabbeh carpets.

Gabbeh

Zakros Mountains (red) Kurdistan, Lorestan, Fars (blue)
Map source: Google "Google Maps, Google Earth"

Turkmen

Turkmen carpets are woven by the ethnic Turkmen people of Turkmenistan. They are used for a variety of purposes, including as tent covers, door hangings, and bags of various sizes.

Turkmen carpets are characterized by their octagonal gul motif and geometric patterns in strong shades of red and brown. The basic octagonal gul motif varies in color scheme and design depending on the weaver. Early Turkmen carpets were woven with single knots, while later ones are woven with double knots.

Turkmen traditional carpet-making techniques were included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2019.

Bakhtiari

Named after the Bakhtiari tribe who lived in Chahar-Mahal Bakhtiari in the Sagros Mountains near the city of Isfahan, Bakhtiari carpets are strong and sturdy wool carpets. They are among the strongest Persian carpets and are woven from thick wool, so they do not deteriorate easily.

Bakhtiari

Bakhtiari (red) Map source: Google Maps, Google Earth

Bukhara

Bukhara rugs are hand-woven carpets originating from the city of Bukhara in Uzbekistan.

The octagonal motif is also called the elephant's foot. The original Bukharan designs were influenced by the carpets of the Teke people, one of the major tribes in Turkmenistan. Therefore, there are similarities between Bukharan and Turkmen carpets, especially the use of the "Gul" motif and the preference for a deep red color.

Unlike Persian, Pakistani and Afghan carpets, whose namesake cities are carpets, Bukhara was not originally a manufacturing centre, but due to its favourable location near the borders of Afghanistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan, Bukhara established itself as an important commercial city in the region. Carpets soon made their way to the West, where they began to adorn Western homes and public spaces.

Bukhara carpets

Bukhara (red pin) Map source: Google Maps, Google Earth

Mashwani

The Mashwani are a tribe that resides mainly in different parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Mashwani rugs are the perfect addition to any interior. They feature design patterns filled with geometric shapes and lines. There is very little white space in the designs of Mashwani rugs.

The combination of pile and flat weave carpeting gives it a three-dimensional look and a geometrical design, with diamond-shaped motifs running throughout the carpet.

Mashwani carpets date back centuries and were originally woven as tribal wedding gifts.