The suffix -stān (spelled ـستان in the Perso-Arabic script) is Persian for "place of", derived from the Indo-Aryan equivalent, -sthāna (स्थान in the Devanāgarī script), a cognate Sanskrit suffix with a similar meaning. In Indo-Aryan languages, sthāna is also used as a word to mean "place". Those countries, mostly Central Asian, whose names end in -stan are informally called the Stans.
Thus:
- Afghanistan - Afghans
- Kazakhstan - Kazakhs
- Uzbekistan - Uzbeks
- Pakistan - Prince Harry 'Paki' row: 'He has to learn a painful lesson'
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