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Kuh-i Belandtarin

Kuh-i Belandtarin (Dari: کوه بلندترین, literally "the highest mountain") is a 6,286 m peak in the Wakhan District of Badakhshan province, in the far northeast of Afghanistan, at coordinates 37.146° N, 73.215° E.1 It is an ultra prominent peak, meaning its topographic prominence exceeds 1,500 m, and it is one of the highest summits in Afghanistan.

Key factDetail
Elevation6,286 m, the eighth highest listed mountain in Afghanistan1
Prominence2,008 m (Peakbagger lists 2,006 m), qualifying it as an ultra prominent peak2
LocationWakhan District, Badakhshan province, Afghanistan; 37.146° N, 73.215° E1
RangePamir, in the western Wakhan region; the peak is also assigned to Kuh-e Vakhan3 • 4
Key col4,278 m, on the route to its parent peak, Pik Karla Marksa (6,723 m, Tajikistan)5
First ascent7 August 1971, by an Italian party5
Alternate nameKoh-e Helal (کوه هلال), listed at 6,281 m in OpenStreetMap-derived data6

Name and location

The name comes from the Dari word belandtarin (بلندترین), the superlative form meaning "highest".7 The mountain stands in the Wakhan District of Badakhshan province, the narrow northeastern corridor of Afghanistan that extends toward China, Pakistan, and Tajikistan.1 Mountain catalogs place it in the western Wakhan section of the Pamir system, and one world-ultra list assigns it to the Kuh-e Vakhan range.3 • 4 A nearby peak, Silsilah-ye Kōh-e Wākhān at 5,726 m, lies about 3.5 km to the east.8

Prominence and rank

Topographic prominence, the vertical drop from a summit to the lowest contour encircling it and no higher peak, measures how independent a summit is. Its key col lies at 4,278 m, and the nearest higher summit on the connected terrain is Pik Karla Marksa in Tajikistan.5 In the Asia-wide ranking of peaks with at least 2,000 m of prominence, it appears at rank 131 of 133.9

Climbing record

The first ascent was made on 7 August 1971 by an Italian team.5 Climbing databases record no logged ascents since, and the summit carries no documented routes in the climbing-history catalog.2 • 10

Data discrepancies

Most gazetteers and peak databases agree on 6,286 m, but values differ in detail. Peakbagger gives the prominence as 2,006 m while other ultra lists give 2,008 m.2 The OpenStreetMap-derived entry for the alternate name Koh-e Helal gives 6,281 m at essentially the same coordinates.6 One database, worldmountains.org, lists a 6,421 m peak of the same name in the Nicholas Range, which conflicts with the 6,286 m consensus and appears to be an outlier.11 The German compiler Eberhard Bielefeldt notes the peak has also been identified as "Koh-e-Pamir".3

References

  1. Afghanistan - Highest Mountains, GeoNames
  2. Ultras of the Pamir/Hindu Kush Region, Peakbagger.com
  3. World's highest mountains, E. Bielefeldt
  4. Anexo:Picos ultraprominentes del mundo, Mexpedia
  5. Systematics and mountain name Hindu Kush system, 8000ers.com
  6. Koh-e Helal Map, Mapcarta
  7. English-Dari dictionary entries, ERIC ED192577
  8. Silsilah-ye Kōh-e Wākhān Map, Mapcarta
  9. The Asia 100 Finest Mountains ranked by primary factor, prominent-mountains.no
  10. Summits in Afghanistan, Climbing History
  11. World Mountains, The Global Mountain Database

Initially written Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 25, 2026

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Kuh-i Belandtarin

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