افغان

See also: أفغان

Ottoman Turkish

Noun

افغان • (Afgan)

Afghan

Adjective

افغان • (Afgan)

Afghan

Pashto

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian (afğān).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /afɣɑn/

Noun

افغان • (afǧān) m

Afghan

Declension

declension of افغان

	singular	plural
direct	افغان (afǧān)	افغانان (afǧānân)
oblique	افغان (afǧān)	افغانانو (afǧānâno)
vocative	افغانه (afǧāna)	افغانانو (afǧānâno)

Related terms

افغانستان (afǧānistān)

Persian

Pronunciation

(Classical Persian) IPA^(key): [ʔaf.ˈɣɑːn]

(Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [ʔäf.ɣɑ́ːn]
- (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [ʔäv.ɣɑ́ːn]
- (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [ʔäv.ɣɔ́ːn]

(Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [ʔæf.ɢɒ́ːn]

(Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [ʔäf.ʁɔ́n]

Readings
Classical reading^?	afğān
Dari reading^?	afğān
Iranian reading^?	afğân
Tajik reading^?	afġon

Etymology 1

Derived from Bactrian αβαγανο (abagano), first attested in the fourth century CE, most likely a compound of *apāka- (“distant, faraway”) + [script needed] (-āna, “ethnic group”): "people from a distant land". The /b/ > /f/ shift represents a phonetic peculiarity of the Early New Persian dialect of Khorasan.^[1]

Noun


Iranian Persian	افغان
Dari	افغان
Tajik	афғон

افغان • (afğân) (plural افغان‌ها (afğân-hâ) or افاغنه (afâğene))

Afghan (a person from Afghanistan)
(historical) Pashtun (a person of Pashtun ethnicity)

Derived terms

افغانستان (afğânestân)
افغانی (afğâni)

Etymology 2

Derived from Sogdian [script needed] (ʾβγʾn /⁠əfɣaːn⁠/). Cognate with Middle Persian ʾbxwʾn- (abxwān-, “to call, cry”).

Alternative forms

فغان (fağân)

Interjection


Iranian Persian	افغان
Dari	افغان
Tajik	афғон

افغان • (afğân)

alas
oh

Noun

افغان • (afğân)

lamentation, cry
Synonyms: زاری (zâri), فریاد (faryâd)

Derived terms

افغان برآوردن (afğân bar-âvardan)
افغان برداشتن (afğân bar-dâštan)
افغان برکشیدن (afğân bar-kešidan)
افغان کردن (afğân kardan)

References

^ Johnny Cheung (2017) “On the Origin of the Terms "Afghan" & "Pashtun" (Again)”, in Enrico Morano, Elio Provasi & Adriano V. Rossi, editors, Studia Philologica Iranica: Gherardo Gnoli Memorial Volume, Rome, Italy: Scienze e Lettere, →ISBN, pages 31—51

Urdu

Urdu Wikipedia has an article on:

افغان

Wikipedia ^ur

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian (afğān).

Pronunciation

(Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /əf.ɣɑːn/
Rhymes: -ɑːn
Hyphenation: اَف‧غان

Noun

اَفْغان • (afġān) m (Hindi spelling अफ़्ग़ान)

Afghan (a person from Afghanistan)
(historical) Pashtun (a person of Pashtun ethnicity)
Synonym: پَٹھان (paṭhān)

Related terms

افغانستان (afġānistān)
افغانی (afġānī)

References

“افغان”, in اُردُو لُغَت (urdū luġat) (in Urdu), Ministry of Education: Government of Pakistan, 2017.
“افغان”, in ریخْتَہ لُغَت (rexta luġat) - Rekhta Dictionary [Urdu dictionary with meanings in Hindi & English], Noida, India: Rekhta Foundation, 2024.

[1] Johnny Cheung (2017) “On the Origin of the Terms "Afghan" & "Pashtun" (Again)”, in Enrico Morano, Elio Provasi & Adriano V. Rossi, editors, Studia Philologica Iranica: Gherardo Gnoli Memorial Volume, Rome, Italy: Scienze e Lettere, →ISBN, pages 31—51

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