The Hunza Tribe

Apricots

The Hunza, Hunzakut or Burusho people, live in the Hunza Valley in Gilgit-Baltistan (Pakistan), a mountainous area on the south side of a large ravine, up to about 2300 meters in height. Since the construction of the Karakoram Highway in 1979, it has been possible to plant crops in their area. The apricot tree is a popular tree, and when the fruits are harvested, the apricots are dried and cooked. The cores are used to produce an oil, and the peels are used on the stove.

Longevity

The Hunza people live in the Hunza Valley, where they have lived for centuries in their very own isolated area. They became world famous for their longevity in 1984. In that year, Said Abdul Mobudu visited the immigration service, and showed his passport, which said that he was 160 years old. Everyone was stunned, since Said Abdul didn’t look that old. Back in his village, they met with other Hunza people, who all claimed to have an old age. Ever since, the Hunza have been associated with lots of myth and ‘fairy tales’.

Accomplishments

Today, we know that their ages have nothing to do with the calendar. The Hunza developed the practice of equating age with wisdom, experience and achievements. A wise farmer of 50 years of age, who had accomplished much more than the average farmer, could rightly claim to be 120 years of age instead of his truly 50 calendar years. How competent a Hunza is, and how much he or she has already performed, can be read from the age: the higher the age, the more accomplished.