Pukhtunwali: Ostracism and Honor Among the Pathan Hill Tribes

Abstract The Pathan Hill tribes provide an example of the functional role of ostracism in a face- to-face, kin-based society. “Pukhtunwali,” the Code of the Pathans, regulates the uses of ostracism, as a response to the conflict between an individual's desire for freedom and the necessity of tribal unity. The most striking use of ostracism among the Pathans is the rejection by the tribe or clan of one of its own members whose behavior might lead to feud. If a member of a group has committed an act likely to provoke a reprisal, which may be directed against any individual of that group, the guilty person may be expelled. By ostracizing the person, the group is both punishing him, and withdrawing its support. In Pathan society ostracism functions simultaneously to deter behavior that violates customary legal norms, to punish specific acts that are culturally defined as improper, and to unify the primary reference group on which individuals depend for protection and economic support.