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Important Note: This post depicts the etymology of Kashmir which is tied to Ancient India, and was only called Kashmir at the time. Thus, Kashmir, Pakistan, Bangladesh, etc. were all part of the Indian Empire and will be recognized as India for this post.
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Jammu and Kashmir, names that have been echoed for years amongst its people and the people of neighbouring countries. Uttered hundreds or thousands of times by people of various races, religions, and whatnot. Yet, there is a historical significance behind the name that has yet to be completely known by the public.
The origin of the name is being debated to this day. While some argue that the name is from the Mughal Empire others believe that it was adopted after the Ancient Greek Empire. Unfortunately, the etymology of such a beautiful region is unbeknownst.
A painting depicting the Seleucid-Mauryan War that was fought in Northwestern India, including Kashmir at the time. The battle was won by India and resulted in the Greek and Indian Empire establishing a better relationship.
Dating back to the influence of the Ancient Greeks in India brings us to Ancient India. It is believed by some that the name Kashmir or some variation of it was given by the Ancient Greeks who used the Sanskrit word Kashmira. This isn’t the only myth about the given name.
The Mughal Empire was notorious for their rule in India, they were predominantly settled in the North, and some settled in the South. Babur was one of the many Kings who ruled over areas of India and was the pillar for the foundation of the Mughal Empire in India. He believed that the land of (what was then just called) Kashmir originated from a group of people who were called the Kas and were of a different race than Indians.
Neither of these could have been. Considering the name of the region existed before the Ancient Greek Empire in India and the theory of the ties to a plausible Kas race are simply untrue.
Domestically, there was a source, written in the ancient language of Sanskrit.
A picture of ancient Sanskrit text
As it was referred to in various ancient Indian texts (such as the Mahabharata), the region of Kashmir was called Kashmira.
This word refers to a place where one should go. Quite fitting when comprehending the sheer charisma of the land. Even then, Kashmir was known for its flowing water and Northern Landscapes.
Some still are tied to the thought that perhaps the Sanskrit word Kashmira refers to desiccated water. This theory is dependent on breaking down the word into separate individual words where Ka is the Sanskrit word for water, and Sheer is the Sanskrit word for desiccated. But this theory falls flat on its face upon the realization that there is no word for desiccated in the Sanskrit language.
The name was still debated upon even during the British Rule, where English Orientalists believed that the name came from Muslim variations of Hindu sages. Horace Hayman Wilson believed so, he thought that the name was originally Kashuf-Mir, which was the Muslim variation of the name Kashyapa, a Hindu sage.
Nonetheless, the confusing etymology of the region Kashmir is dependent on the Sanskrit language. It was never introduced by the Ancient Greek, based on a race as Babur might’ve thought, referred to a deprivation of water, or have ties to Hindu sages. Kashmir is characterized as the place one should go.
Thus, the charm behind the landscape and the culture was shaped by the Sanskrit word, Kashmira.
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