Pashtun

American  

[pash-toon, pahsh-, puhsh-] / ˌpæʃˈtun, ˌpɑʃ-, ˌpʌʃ- /

Sometimes Pukhtun also Pushtun

noun

1. a people of eastern and southern Afghanistan and neighboring regions of northwest Pakistan; the dominant ethnic group in Afghanistan.

2. Also called Pathan.  a member of the Pashtun people.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of the Pashtun people.

Etymology

Origin of Pashtun

First recorded in 1810–20; from Pashto Pəx̌tānə, Pax̌tūn, Pəshtūn

Example Sentences

It also divides Pashtun communities who live on either side -- the ethnic group from which the Taliban, which returned to power in Kabul in 2021, draws much of its support.

From Barron's • Jan. 4, 2026

Born in Afghanistan in 1980, Maiwand Banayee was the youngest son in a Pashtun family.

From BBC • Oct. 10, 2025

One of the leaders in the anti-Soviet resistance was the Pashtun commander Jalaluddin Haqqani.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 4, 2023

Born in 1952, the son of a civil engineer, Khan grew up with four sisters in an affluent urban Pashtun family in Lahore, Pakistan's second-biggest city.

From Reuters • May 9, 2023

So goes a famous Pashtun tapa, a couplet my grandmother taught me.

From "Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Changed the World" by Malala Yousafzai