Afghanistan (region)

The name Afghānistān ( fa, افغانستان, ''Afġānestān'' ; ps, افغانستان ''Afġānistān'' ) means "land of the Afghans", which originates from the ethnonym '' Afghan''. Historically, the name ''Afghan'' mainly designated Pashtuns, the largest ethnic group of Afghanistan. The earliest reference to the name is found in the 10th-century geography book known as '' Hudud al-'Alam''. The last part of the name, ''-stān'' is a Persian suffix for "place".

In the early 19th century, Afghan politicians adopted the name ''Afghanistan'' for the entire Durrani Empire after its English translation had already appeared in various treaties with Qajarid Persia and British India. The first time the word Afghanistan was officially used was during signing of Treaty of Gandamak, after defeat of Afghan Emir Yaqoob Khan during Second Anglo-Afghan War.

In 1857, in his review of J.W. Kaye's ''The Afghan War'', Friedrich Engels describes "Afghanistan" as:

Afghanistan was officially recognized as a sovereign state by the international community after the Anglo-Afghan Treaty of 1919 was signed.

Afghanization

It is widely acknowledged that the terms ''"Pashtun"'' and ''Afghan'' are synonyms, a fact that is mentioned in the 17th-century poetry of Pashtun national poet Khushal Khan Khattak:

Pashtunization (Afghanization) has been going on in the region (modern Afghanistan and West Pakistan) since at least the 8th century. It is a process of a cultural or linguistic change in which something non-Pashtun becomes Pashtun.

Afghan dynasties

According to ''Ta'rikh-i Yamini'' (author being secretary of Mahmud of Ghazni), Afghans enrolled in Sabuktigin's Ghaznavid Empire in the 10th century as well as in the later Ghurid Kingdom (1148–1215). From the beginning of the Turko-Afghan Khalji dynasty of India. The later Lodi dynasty and Sur dynasty of Delhi were both made up of Afghans, whose rule stretched to as far as what is now Bangladesh in the east. Other Afghan dynasties emerged during the 18th century, namely the Hotak dynasty and the Durrani Empire which covered huge swathes of Central and South Asia.

Early references to Afghanistan

The word ''Afghan'' is mentioned in the form of ''Abgan'' in the third century CE by the Sassanians and as ''Avagana'' (''Afghana'') in the 6th century CE by Indian astronomer Varahamihira. A people called the ''Afghans'' are mentioned several times in a 10th-century geography book, Hudud al-'alam, particularly where a reference is made to a village: "Saul, a pleasant village on a mountain. In it live ''Afghans''."

Al-Biruni referred to them in the 11th century as various tribes living on the western frontier mountains of the Indus River. Ibn Battuta, a famous Moroccan scholar visiting the region in 1333, writes: "We travelled on to Kabul, formerly a vast town, the site of which is now occupied by a village inhabited by a tribe of Persians called ''Afghans''. They hold mountains and defiles and possess considerable strength, and are mostly highwaymen. Their principle mountain is called Kuh Sulayman."

The earliest mention of the term "''Afghanistan''" appears in the 13th century in Tarikh nama-i-Herat of Sayf ibn Muhammad ibn Yaqub al-Herawi, mentioning it as a country between Khorasan and Hind, paying tributes to the country of Shamsuddin.

Furthermore the name ''"Afghanistan"'' is mentioned in writing by the 16th century Mughal ruler Babur, referring to a territory south of Kabulistan.

The name "Afghanistan" is also mentioned many times in the writings of the 16th century historian, Muhammad Qasim Hindu Shah (Ferishta), and many others.

Last Afghan empire

Regarding the modern sovereign state of Afghanistan, the '' Encyclopædia Britannica'', '' Encyclopædia Iranica'', and others explain that the political history of Afghanistan begins in 1709 with the rise of the Hotaki dynasty, which was established by Mir Wais Hotak who is regarded as "Mirwais Neeka" ("Mirwais the grandfather").

The ''Encyclopaedia of Islam'' states: M. Longworth Dames, G. Morgenstierne, R. Ghirshman, ''"Afghānistān"'', in ''Encyclopaedia of Islam'', Online Edition
British India eventually became Pakistan, India and Bangladesh.

Modern names

Modern terms for ''Afghanistan'' and ''Afghan'' in relevant modern languages:

See also

*List of country name etymologies
* History of Afghanistan
*Names of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
* Pashtunistan

Notes

References

{{Asia topic, Name of

History of Afghanistan
Afghanistan

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