Pakistan definition | Dictionary.com

Pa⋅ki⋅stan

[pak-uh-stan, pah-kuh-stahn]

–noun

1.	Islamic Republic of, a republic in S Asia, between India and Afghanistan: formerly part of British India; known as West Pakistan from 1947–71 to distinguish it from East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). 132,185,299; 310,403 sq. mi. (803,881 sq. km). Capital: Islamabad.

2.	(before 1947) the predominantly Muslim areas of the peninsula of India as distinguished from Hindustan, the predominantly Hindu areas.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source

Link To Pakistan

Pak·i·stan (pāk'ĭ-stān', pä'kĭ-stän')

(click for larger image in new window)
A country of southern Asia. Occupying land crisscrossed by ancient invasion paths, Pakistan was the home of the prehistoric Indus Valley civilization, which flourished until overrun by Aryans c. 1500 B.C. After being conquered by numerous rulers and powers, it passed to the British as part of India and became a separate Muslim state in 1947. The country originally included the Bengalese territory of East Pakistan, which achieved its separate independence in 1971 as Bangladesh. Pakistan became a republic in 1956. Islamabad is the capital and Karachi the largest city. Population: 165,000,000.
Pak'i·stan'i (-stān'ē, -stä'nē) adj. & n.

Word History: Many central and south Asian states and regions end with the element -stan, such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Baluchistan, Kurdistan, and Turkistan. This -stan is formed from the Iranian root *stā-, "to stand, stay," and means "place (where one stays), home, country." Iranian peoples have been the principal inhabitants of the geographical region occupied by these states for over a thousand years. The names are compounds of -stan and the name of the people living there. Pakistan is a bit of an exception; its name was coined in 1933 using the suffix -istan from Baluchistan preceded by the initial letters of Punjab, Afghanistan, and Kashmir. · Interestingly, a word almost identical in form, etymology, and meaning to the Iranian suffix -stan is found in Polish, which has a word stan meaning "state" (in the senses of both polity and condition). It can be found in the Polish name for the "United States of America," Stany Zjednoczone Ameryki (literally "States United of America").

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Pakistan

Republic in southern Asia, bordered by India to the east, the Arabian Sea (an arm of the Indian Ocean) to the south, Iran to the southwest, and Afghanistan to the west and north.

Note: Pakistan became part of British India in 1857. When India gained its independence in 1947, Muslim leaders demanded a separate Muslim state, and the nation of Pakistan was established. Originally, Pakistan consisted of two regions, West Pakistan (now Pakistan) and East Pakistan (now Bangladesh).

Note: In 1998, Pakistan successfully conducted tests of nuclear weapons.

Note: In 2001, Pakistan's president allowed the United States to use his country as a base to attack Afghanistan for harboring Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda members.

Search another word or see Pakistan on Thesaurus | Reference

About · Privacy Policy · Terms of Use · Advertise with Us · Link to Us · NASCAR® · Contact Us