Pashtun name

Pashtun given names are derived from the Pashto language. When Islam was introduced officially in Afghanistan, Pashtuns adopted other names from Arabic, albeit with some adaptations to the phonology of Pashto, e.g. the Arabic "Zulaikha", a woman's name, can become "Zlaikha" due to the consonant cluster nature of Pashto. Other names come directly from Pashto and display pronunciation differences germane to the two main accents of Pashto. For example, the girls' name "Zarlakht", as pronounced in the Northern Pashto dialect of Peshawar and Kabul, will be pronounced as "Zarlasht" in the Southern Pashto of Kandahar and Quetta.

Surnames can either come from being borrowed from other languages or from the Pashto language or used from given names. Many different types of surnames are used among Pashtuns.

Many Pashtuns from developing regions are known by a mononym due to a lack of a legal identification system. They may also have multiple mononyms (i.e. may be called by multiple personal names). However, they will know the name of their tribe even prior to registering a legal identity.

Understanding Pashtun tribal systems makes it easier to understand Pashtun surnames based on tribal lineage. Many Pashto last names come from the name of the tribe or the subdivisions of a specific tribe: in this case their name would end in -zai (son) or khel (group), (e.g. a Ghilzai Pashtun would likely have Ghilzai as their last name and a Pashtun from the Adamkhel subtribe may use Adamkhel as their last name). Some tribal names have no suffix (e.g. Afridi, Sarbanri, Abdali). Many Pashtun tribes are composed of super tribes and subtribes, in other words, there are several tribes within tribes branching off and ranked in different tiers. For example, an Omarkhel Yusufzai Pashtun would have the option to use the name of their super tribe name "Sarbanri", their tribe Yusufzai, or Omarkhel, a subdivision of Yusufzai. Tribal names are usually patrilineal. The ancestral line of females generally is not included as part of the identity.

Some modernizing Pashtun families pick a random name, typically derived from Persian or Arabic, and continue it as a family name down the lineage. That name may have little to no relation to their tribal standings. For others, the first name of the father may become the last name of the child, and so on.

Surnames based on location are not common. Due to the rural transhumance semi-nomadic nature of Pashtuns for most their history, there are not surnames tied to a cities or locations. Rarely some tribes identify with locations, such as the Khostwal and Khost, the Bannuchis and Bannu, and the Bunerwal and Buner. This is why Pashtuns are identified with groups of people moving around. On the other hand, locations are given a name based on the people that occupy them.

Few Pashtun communities use the name "Pashtun" as their last name, in the way that Gujjars use "Gujjar" or Baloch people use "Baloch". These are names of the undivided ethnic groups. "Pathan" is used as a surname in Pashtun communities living in the Indian subcontinent, because they are known as Pathans or Pashtuns to their neighbouring communities, so they simplify it as a surname rather than their tribal name (it is important to mention one's tribal surname among Pashtuns, but in lands where they are a minority, Afghans or Pathans will often be used instead). Afghan is an archaic name, and has been used among Pashtuns in Iran to signify their Pashtun ancestry to other Iranians because they are known as Afghans to Iranians and the Arab world.

"Khan" is a common name among Pashtuns, though it is not native to the Pashtun language and was adopted by Pashtuns via cross cultural exchanges between Turko-Mongol peoples and the Pashtuns when the Pashtun lands were ruled by Mongol peoples and the Turk people. "Khan" means king or leader or strong or royal etc., which could be another reason for its adoption. Mostly "Khan" is used by Pashtuns who have served Turko-Mongol rulers over central Asia and south Asia.

Pashtun names are found primarily among the Pashtun population. Some Tajiks and South Asians have Pashtun names, a sign of Pashtun ancestry, or at least patrilineal ancestry. The dardic Pashayis and Indo-Aryan Hindkowans do not speak Pashto, but 30-60% of their people live in a Pashtun culture. The assimilated communities may have traces of people with given names derived exclusively from Pashto.

• Arabic name
• Pakistani name