Azrah: The Endonym of the Hazara People and Its Avestan Origin

Did you know that the word Azrah – the name the Hazara people of central Afghanistan use for themselves – comes from the oldest layer of the Avestan language? It derives from Arəzahī, one of the seven mythical climes (karshvar) in Zoroastrian cosmology: the eastern land where the sun first rises (Yt. 10.15). After thousands of years, the name lives on in the Hazaragi pronunciation Āzrah, forging an unbroken link between the Hazara people and the ancient Iranian civilization of the East. This study combines linguistic analysis, Y‑chromosome genetic data (haplogroups J2a1 and G2), archaeological evidence (Helmand Civilization, Bamiyan), and historical records (Ptolemy, Xuanzang, Babur) to demonstrate that the Hazara are not a population that appeared only after the Mongol conquests, but rather the indigenous inhabitants of the central highlands of Afghanistan – the very land described in the Avesta as Arəzahī and known in classical sources as Ariana. The Hazara carry the name Azrah as a living testament to this deep heritage.你可知晓，阿富汗中部哈扎拉人（Hazara）对自身的称谓阿兹拉（Azrah），源自阿维斯陀语（Avestan language）最古老的语层？该名称脱胎于阿列扎希（Arəzahī）——琐罗亚斯德教宇宙论（Zoroastrian cosmology）中的七大神话疆域（karshvar）之一，即太阳最初升起的东方之地（Yt. 10.15）。历经数千年，该名称以哈扎拉吉语（Hazaragi）发音Āzrah留存至今，在哈扎拉人与东方古代伊朗文明之间建立了未曾间断的联结。 本研究结合语言学分析、Y染色体（Y-chromosome）遗传数据（单倍群J2a1与G2）、考古证据（赫尔曼德文明、巴米扬）以及历史文献记载（托勒密Ptolemy、玄奘Xuanzang、巴布尔Babur），证实哈扎拉人并非仅在蒙古西征后才形成的族群，而是阿富汗中部高地的原住民——这片在《阿维斯陀经》（Avesta）中被称为阿列扎希、在古典文献中以阿利亚纳（Ariana）之名为人所知的土地。哈扎拉人以阿兹拉这一称谓，作为这份深厚历史传承的鲜活见证。