Hindustan
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{{otheruses2|Hindustan}}
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'''Hindustan''' ({{lang-hi|हिन्दुस्तान}} [''Hindustān''], {{lang-ur|ہندوستان}} [''Hindustān''], {{IPA|[ɦɪn̪d̪ʊst̪aːn]}}) is one of the popular [[names of India]]. Though the meaning of Hindustan has evolved over the years, today it refers primarily to [[India]].<ref>[http://www.usindh.edu.pk/shaikh_ayaz_conf_07/sindh.html Sindh: An Introduction]</ref>
==Etymology==
Hindustan is derived from the ([[Persian language|Persian]]) word ''[[Hindu (disambiguation)|Hindu]]'', which is itself is derived from [[Sindhu]], [[Sanskrit]] for the [[Indus River]] <ref>[http://www.geocities.com/lamberdar/hindu_hinduism.html Significance of Hindu and Hindu dharma (Hinduism)] Sindhu is a river in Sanskrit, in Persian it becomes Hindu. </ref><ref name=Hindu>{{Harvnb|Lipner|1998|pp=7–8}}</ref> and together with a popular suffix ''[[-stan|-stān]]'', which is also derived from [[Sanskrit]] (''Sthana'')<ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/notesandqueries/query/0,5753,-21211,00.html Guardian Unlimited: What does -istan" mean as in Pakistan, Uzbekistan or Afghanistan?]</ref><ref>[http://www.lankalibrary.com/books/sanskritic.htm Sri Lanka: Sanskritic loans in modern Sinhala]</ref>, gave birth to the word, 'Hindustan', which was rendered as, ''Hindusthan'' <ref name=brit/>.
==Uses of the word, 'Hindustan'==
Ther term Hindustan retains its importance as it gives culture identity to India and the [[Indian Subcontinent]] ethos, amidst the varied [[Culture of India]]; along with another word that evolved from it - the [[adjective]], ''[[Hindustani]]'', used to define the people of Hindustan, their language, [[Hindustani language]], and also their music, [[Hindustani classical music]].
===Ethnicity===
The adjective ''Hindustani'' is a term applied to the syncretic [[Hindu]] culture of South Asia. ''Hindustani'' is sometimes also used as an [[ethnic group|ethnic]] term applied to [[South Asia]]. (''e.g.'', A [[Caribbean|West Indian]] man with roots in South Asia might describe his ethnicity by saying he is ''Hindustani''. For example, [[Hindoestanen]], a [[Dutch]] word used to describe people of [[South Asian]] origin, in [[Netherlands]] and [[Suriname]].
===Geographical areas===
Throughout history, Hindustan was often used to represent the people of [[India]] or the [[Indian Subcontinent]]. <ref name=brit>{{cite web
|title = Hindustan
|url = http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9040520/Hindustan
|accessdate = 2007-05-02
|publisher = [[Encyclopædia Britannica]], Inc.
|date= 2007}}</ref>.
Further, it may relate to various aspects belonging to three [[Geography|geographical]] areas, namely the modern '[[India|Republic of India]]'. Historically, the '[[Indian subcontinent]]' during the medieval times. Or, a region in [[northern India]], east and south of [[Yamuna]] river, between the [[Vindhya]] mountains and the [[Himalayas]], where [[Hindi]]/[[Urdu]]/[[Hindustani language]] is spoken.
==See also==
* [[India (disambiguation)]]
==Further reading==
* ''A Sketch of the History of Hindustan from the First Muslim Conquest to the Fall of the Mughol Empire'' by H. G. Keene <ref>[http://www.jstor.org/pss/546854 Hindustan] The English Historical Review, Vol. 2, No. 5 (Jan., 1887), pp. 180-181. </ref>
* ''STORY OF INDIA THROUGH THE AGES; An Entertaining History of Hindustan, to the Suppression of the Mutiny'', by Flora Annie Steel, [[1909]] E.P. Dutton and Co., New York <ref>[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9D00E5D91439E733A25753C2A9649C946897D6CF Flora Annie Steel] Book Review, [[February 20]], [[1909]], [[New York Times]].</ref>.
* ''The History of Hindustan: Post Classical and Modern'', Ed. B.S. Danniya and Alexander Dow. 2003, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 8120819934. <ref>.[http://www.amazon.co.uk/History-Hindustan-Post-Classical-Modern/dp/8120819934 History of Hindustan] (First published: 1770-1772). Dow had succeeded his father as the private secretary of [[Mughal Emperor]] [[Aurangzeb]].</ref>.
==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Demographic history of India]]
[[Category:Cultural history of India]]
[[cv:Индостан]]
[[de:Hindustan]]
[[hi:हिन्दुस्तान]]
[[ky:Индустан]]
[[nl:Hindoestan]]
[[ru:Индостан]]
[[simple:Hindustan]]
[[ur:ہندوستان]]