Kushan
/ˈkuːʃən/noun
Relating to the Kushan Empire, a powerful Central and South Asian state that flourished chiefly from the first to third centuries CE.
Did you know?The name ultimately comes through Chinese Guishuang, a transcription of one Yuezhi tribal group, while the Kushans themselves issued coins using Greek, Bactrian, Indian, and Iranian religious imagery.
Etymological Timeline
2nd–1st Century BCE
Chinese
Guishuang (貴霜)
“Chinese transcription of one of the five major Yuezhi divisions in Central Asia; its original native meaning is uncertain.”
1st Century BCE–1st Century CE
Bactrian
Kushan / Košano
“Forms associated with the Kushan ruling house and polity in Bactria; the exact internal etymology remains disputed.”
1st Century CE
Sanskrit
Kuṣāṇa
“The Sanskrit form used for the Kushan dynasty and empire.”
1st–3rd Century CE
Bactrian
Kušān
“The name appearing in Bactrian administrative and royal contexts for the Kushan realm and dynasty.”
Modern English
English
Kushan
“Relating to the Kushan Empire, its rulers, culture, art, or period.”
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