Hindustan
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The term Hindustan (Hindi: हिन्दुस्तान [Hindustān], Template:Lang-ur [Hindostān], from the (Persian) Hindū + -stān, often formerly rendered Hindoostan) and the adjective Hindustani may relate to various aspects of four geographic areas:
- Hindustan: "Land of the Hindus." Persians called Indian civilization as recognized with the Indus Valley "Hind" and its inhabitants "Hindu;" later when the area was conquered by Turkic-Afghan kings, they called it Hindustan, adding the suffix "stan" (meaning "land"). Hindustan is considered one of the earliest historical names for the nation of Bharat (India).
- A historical region encompassing present day Northern India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and neighboring areas. The Mughal Empire and its predecessor sultanate were also referred to as Hindustan, or Saltanat-e-Hind (سلتنت-ائے ہِند). Hindustani music is a genre of classical music from this region that combines traditional Hindu musical concepts and Persian performance practice.
- The country of India. Hindustani denotes a connection to India and Hindustan is another name for India. Several Indian political parties use the term including the Hindustan Janata Party and the Akhand Hindustan Morcha. This usage, however, is controversial and not exactly accurate, considering the implication that Indians are necessarily Hindus, which they are not; colloquially, however, it remains popular.
- The area populated by native Hindustani speaking peoples, particularly the modern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, formerly a part of the United Provinces. During British rule in South Asia, people in this region were identified as "Hindustanis."
- South Asia or the Indian subcontinent. Hindustan is specifically a term for the Syncretic Islamic and Hindu culture of South Asia. Hindustani is sometimes used as a cultural, ethnic, or genetic term for South Asia. (e.g., A West Indian with such roots might describe his ethnicity by saying he is Hindustani.)
Hindustan can also refer to the following:
- HMS Hindustan, one of the eight ships of the King Edward VII class battleships.
- "Hindustan" (1918), a popular published song written and composed by Oliver G. Wallace and Harold Weeks.
- Hindustan Times, a major Northern Indian English language daily newspaper.
- Hindustan Airport, the major airport of Bangalore, Karnataka, India.
- Hindustani (1996), also called Indian or Bharateeyudu, a film dubbed in Hindi from the Tamil original Indian film, directed by S. Shankar and starring Kamal Haasan.
For a list of Indian companies starting with Hindustan, see List of Indian companies.
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