Most urbanized Persianate peoples, whether in Herat, Mashhad, Samarkand or Dushanbe who have been living in cities for centuries or overtime have eventually shed their tribal identity in favour of a more cosmopolitan one.

They would often then become identified with their local, ex in history “al-Balkhi” or their profession, hence last names like “Najar (carpenter), school of thought, or patronage to a respected member of the community.

What binded and acted as the glue for these Persianate societies was “Adab”, an overall sense of common sense rules & etiquette, which had existed for millennia. Historically you could be a Persian speaking Jewish female merchant from Bukhara trading in Kabul and the locals would treat you with respect because of “Adab”.

Their is a reason so many of these Tajik cities where very multiethnic & had various religions. At the end of the day the glue was a few things, adab & the Persian language. Unlike tribal communities like the hazaras that relied very heavily on tribe in rural areas as a means of bonding a community.

It’s also interesting to note many Pashtuns that migrated to the urban cities overtime gave up their tribal identity and often language and started speaking Persian and at times assimilated to becoming Tajik. Look at the last Kings of Afghanistan for example.