What is "qalandar"

n. A wandering ascetic Sufi dervish.

Qalandars , are wandering ascetic Sufi dervishes who may or may not be connected to a specific tariqat. They were mostly in Central Asia, India and Pakistan; in the latter "qalandar" is also used as a title. Some famous Qalandars include Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, Bu Ali Shah Qalandar and Shams Ali Qalandar.

The Qalandar are a Muslim ethnic group, found in North India and Pakistan. They are also known as Qalander Faqir. A few Qalandar are also found in the Terai region of Nepal.

The Qalandar are a tribe of Hazara found in Afghanistan. Maitland identifies the Qalandar as falling within a similar area as the Jaghori Hazaras ( Ghazni Province and the upper Arghandab Valley), but "not directly affiliated" and of different origin. The Qalandar are believed to be late-19th century refugees from Day Chopan and Arjestan.

Qalandar may refer to:

• Qalandar, a Sufi mystic order
• Qalandar (clan), a Muslim community found in North India and Pakistan
• Qalandar (tribe), a Hazara tribe found in Afghanistan