Where does “Pakistan” come from?
Pakistan derives from Urdu پاکستان, composed of Urdu پاک meaning pure, combined with Middle Persian -stʾn', ultimately from Old Persian 𐎿𐎫𐎠𐎴 and Proto-Iranian stā́nam meaning place or land.
Ancestry of “Pakistan”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Urdu | پاکستان | Land of the Pure |
| 2 | Classical Persian | پَاک | — |
Words derived from “Pakistan”