Pactyan
/ˈpæk.ti.ən/noun
A member of an ancient people called the Pactyans, mentioned by Herodotus as living in the eastern Persian Empire.
Did you know?Herodotus listed the Pactyans among the peoples ruled by the Persian king Darius, but their precise identity and the origin of their name remain uncertain.
Etymological Timeline
5th Century BCE
Ancient Greek
Πακτύες (Paktýes)
“The Pactyans, an eastern people recorded by Herodotus”
5th Century BCE
Ancient Greek
Πακτυϊκή (Paktyïkē)
“The land or region associated with the Pactyans”
Antiquity
Old Persian
Paktyā
“A recorded or reconstructed Iranian form associated with the Pactyan ethnonym; exact interpretation is uncertain”
19th Century
English
Pactyan
“Relating to the Pactyans or their region”
Modern English
English
Pactyan
“A historical ethnonym or adjective referring to the ancient Pactyans”