1. Bactria lies on one of the main trade routes between Central Asia and South Asia; the Salang Pass pass goes south from Bactria to Kabul across the Hindu Kush mountain range, and from Kabul the Khyber Pass leads to Pakistan and India.The region is a crossroads and many ethnic groups are represented; the largest group are the Tajiks, and the main local language is the Tajik dialect of Persian.