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Arachosia
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Arachosia (Old Persian ''harahuvati'', corresponding to Sanskrit ''sarasvati'' 'rich in rivers') was an ancient province of the Achaemenid , Seleucid and Parthian empires and corresponds to the southern part of today's Afghanistan . The Helmand River runs through Arachosia and provides the most fertile lands in southern Afghanistan. Its major city since the time of Alexander The Great , who is said to have founded it, has been Kandahar .

Arachosia was directly to the south of Bactria , but separated from it by the Hindu Kush . The main inhabitants of Arachosia were the ''Pactyans'', an ancient Iranian tribe. They were probably the ancestors of today's Pashtuns .


ETYMOLOGY

''Arachosia'' is derived from '' Arachotos '', a hellenized form of '' Harachuwati '', the Achaemenid Persian name for the Arghandab River , the chief tributary of the Helmand River .


REFERENCES

  • Frye, Richard N. (1963). ''The Heritage of Persia''. World Publishing company, Cleveland, Ohio. Mentor Book edition, 1966.

  • Toynbee, Arnold J. (1961). ''Between Oxus and Jumna''. London. Oxford University Press.

  • Vogelsang, W. (1985). "Early historical Arachosia in South-east Afghanistan; Meeting-place between East and West." ''Iranica antiqua'', 20 (1985), pp. 55-99.