Mahmud Raqi

Mahmud Raqi
محمود راقی
Mahmud Raqi
Location in Afghanistan
Coordinates: 35°1′14″N 69°19′50″E / 35.02056°N 69.33056°E / 35.02056; 69.33056
Country Afghanistan
ProvinceKabul
DistrictMahmud Raqi
Government
 • TypeMunicipality
Area
 • Land15 sq mi (40 km2)
Elevation4,760 ft (1,450 m)
Population
 (2025)[4]
79,313
 • Urban
1,992
 • Rural
77,321
 • Main languages
Dari
Pashto
Pashayi
Time zoneUTC+04:30 (Afghanistan Time)
ISO 3166 codeAF-MMR

Mahmud Raqi[a] is a city in the northeastern part of Afghanistan, serving as the capital of Kapisa Province.[1] It is within the jurisdiction of Mahmud Raqi District and has an estimated population of 79,313 people.[4]

Located to the northeast of Kabul, Mahmud Raqi is classified as an urban village. In 2015 there were about 5,610 dwelling units in the city.

On 15 August 2021, Mahmud Raqi became the thirtieth provincial capital to be recaptured by the Taliban as part of the wider 2021 Taliban offensive.

Geography

Mahmud Raqi is located next to the Panjshir River in the northeastern part of Afghanistan, within the jurisdiction of Mahmud Raqi District. It is administratively divided into 4 municipal districts (nahias), covering a land area of 40 km2 (15 sq mi) or 3,970 ha (9,800 acres).[2][3]

Mahmud Raqi is approximately 16.4 km (10.2 mi) to the northeast of Bagram, 21.3 km (13.2 mi) to the east of Charikar and 74 km (46 mi) north of Kabul City.[3]

Around 72% of the city is considered agricultural land. Dwellings are dispersed throughout the municipality with low density and consisting entirely of irregular houses.[3]

Climate

Mahmude Raqi has a hot-summer humid continental climate (Köppen Dsa). The annual mean temperature is 12.0 °C (53.6 °F). The temperature are highest on average in July at around 25.0 °C (77.0 °F). At −2.3 °C (27.9 °F) on average, January is the coldest month of the year.

Climate data for Mahmude Raqi
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 4.6
(40.3)
5.5
(41.9)
12.2
(54.0)
19.0
(66.2)
25.5
(77.9)
30.2
(86.4)
32.8
(91.0)
31.9
(89.4)
27.8
(82.0)
21.4
(70.5)
13.6
(56.5)
8.1
(46.6)
19.4
(66.9)
Daily mean °C (°F) −2.3
(27.9)
−0.9
(30.4)
5.1
(41.2)
11.4
(52.5)
17.4
(63.3)
22.1
(71.8)
25.0
(77.0)
24.2
(75.6)
20.0
(68.0)
13.8
(56.8)
6.5
(43.7)
1.3
(34.3)
12.0
(53.5)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −9.1
(15.6)
−7.3
(18.9)
−2.0
(28.4)
3.8
(38.8)
9.3
(48.7)
14.0
(57.2)
17.1
(62.8)
16.4
(61.5)
12.2
(54.0)
6.1
(43.0)
−0.6
(30.9)
−5.5
(22.1)
4.5
(40.2)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 50
(2.0)
72
(2.8)
73
(2.9)
51
(2.0)
23
(0.9)
6
(0.2)
2
(0.1)
1
(0.0)
3
(0.1)
9
(0.4)
20
(0.8)
29
(1.1)
339
(13.3)
Average relative humidity (%) 48 55 54 45 34 26 24 24 24 29 38 41 37
Mean daily sunshine hours 7.9 7.9 9.1 10.5 12.1 12.9 12.7 12.0 11.1 10.0 8.5 8.1 10.2
Source: Climate-Data.org[5]

See also

Notes

  1. ^
    • Pashto: محمودراقي, romanizedMahmudrāqi, pronounced [mɐ(h)ˌmudɾɑˈqi]
    • Dari: محمودراقی, romanized: Mahmūdrāqī, cyrillized: Маҳмудроқӣ, pronounced [mɑ(ɦ)ˌmuːdɾɑːˈqiː]

References

  1. ^ a b "Two major development projects worth 100 million Afghanis inaugurated in Kapisa". OMID Radio. September 2, 2025. Retrieved 2026-02-19.
  2. ^ a b "State of Afghan Cities report 2015 (Volume-I English)". pp. 8, 130. Retrieved 2015-10-22.
  3. ^ a b c d "State of Afghan Cities report 2015 (Volume-II)". p. 70. Retrieved 2015-10-22.
  4. ^ a b "Estimated Population of Afghanistan 2025-26" (PDF). National Statistics and Information Authority. September 2025. p. 17. Retrieved 2026-02-19.
  5. ^ "Climate: Mahmude Raqi - Climate-Data.org". Retrieved 5 September 2022.