Badghis Province is located in the north west of the country with a population of 409,200 and a land area of 8,438 square miles of treeless, rolling grassy hills. It was densely populated until Mongol (13th-15th century) and Safavid (17th century) invaders destroyed the cities. Today it is populated largely by nomadic societies with some farming of wheat, barley and pistachio nuts.