The first documented Pashtun poet was Amir Karor , born in 761 in Ghor, which Afghan scholars consider the original Pashtun homeland. The following lines are typical of his remarkable poetry:
These lines show the principal characteristics of Pashto poetry: martial in spirit, dealing with topics such as struggle, conquest, and bravery—and hardly lacking in self-confidence. (The Pashto poetry cited here and elsewhere in this article has been published in rare and currently unavailable volumes...