Hun

Hun (हुण/हूण) (alsocalled Ephthalites or Hiung-nu) is a Jat Gotra in Rajasthan. James Tod places it in the list of Thirty Six Royal Races. Hun is a Gotra of the Anjana Jats in Gujarat. They fought Mahabharata War in Pandava's side

Mention by Panini

Harahuraka (हारहूरक) is mentioned by Panini in Ashtadhyayi. . Bhim Singh Dahiya wwrites....Arthasastra (Ch. 46) mentions a wine called Harahuraka which is the name of Hunas in India.

History

Ram Sarup Joon writes that ...Abdul Malik Mashirmal, author of Gujar History writes that according to General Sir A Cunningham, the author of Gujar and Rajputs history, the rulers of Kanauj were Gujars (History of Gujars P-213 to 218). Their Gotra was Tomar and they are the Descendants of Hun Chief Torman.

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Tej Ram Sharma writes about Huna clan:

They are mentioned in the Bhitari Stone Pillar inscription of Skandagupta (L. 15: हूणैर्य्यस्य समागतस्य समरे दोर्म्यां धरा कम्पिता भीमावर्त्करस्य- ) in which Skandagupta (A.D. 455-467) is stated to have inflicted a crushing defeat upon the Hunas : "By whose (Skandagupta's) two arms the earth was shaken, when, the creator (of a disturbance like that) of a terrible whirlpool, joined in close conflict with the Hunas....".¹⁰⁷ The defeat inflated upon the Hunas proved so decisive that for near half a century the Gupta empire was immune from their depredations.¹⁰⁸

Hunas, also known as Ephthalites or Hiung-nu were a Central Asian tribe.

Uigur¹⁰⁹ transcribes the name of the tribe in ancient Chinese in two phonetic forms : one of which is 'xunu or xunu', the other 'xunux, xunuo,xunu' The first part (xun) of the last form is not in doubt and neither is the u of the last part, the only question is about the change of the initial i' of ancient Chinese into y in Uigur before u and in Sandhi, and about the pronunciation of the final consonant.¹¹⁰

The first of the above Chinese forms which comes as close to the Hunu as to the Sanskrit Huna is very similar to the

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p 132 Personal and geographical names in the Gupta inscriptions

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Chinese "transcription" Xunu or Xunu, and Avesta Hunu, except the Sanskrit has substituted for the final root vowel V the stem final a characteristic of the names of peoples in that language. "The Puranas have a form Urṇa which together with Epic Skr. Huna suggests Indic Hūrṇa Turk, Xūrnu".¹¹¹

We may note here the Tibetan Hor, which corresponds with the first syllable of the reconstructed form Hūr-ṇa. The difference of vowels may indicate a back dipthong or back vowel between o and u, as Ptolemy's Xoūnoi suggests, since the Greeks wrote u (y) for Indic w.¹¹²

Though all the above forms go back to one primitive form, we cannot say the same for the people to whom they were applied. The general opinion is that the Hsiung-nus, Huns, Hunas etc., were Turks. Some scholars consider them to have been a mixture of many tribes, Iranians, Mongols, and Paleosibirians (ancestors of the Yenissei-ostyaks). Whatever may have been the dominant race or speech was, it can be seen that there must have been several subject people and subject armies in such far-flung empires, necessitating some mixture and mutual influence ethnic, linguistic and cultural. ¹¹³ Otto Maenchen-Helfen has discussed the whole question on the is of the evidence of language, history, ethnology, archaeology¹¹⁴ and has pointed out that the greater part the Hsiung-nu vocabulary pointed to Mongol ¹¹⁵ Later Peliot considered the same vocabulary and established that the Hsiung-nu and Huns were Turks. ¹¹⁶

Louis Bazin¹¹⁷ and Von Gabain¹¹⁸ also reached the conclusion that in language of the Hsiung-nu there was a high percentage of Turkish words.¹¹⁹

In the second century B.C. the Hiung-nu (Huns) started a movement near the Chinese frontier and succeeded in destroying the Greco-Bactrian empire, in strongly menacing the existence of the house of Arsakes, and in landing crowds of Central Asian invaders within the borders of India. In the latter half of the fourth century A.D., a branch of them, the White Huns, or Ephthalites, flooded the South of Asia; and 'about the time when the last legions of Rome shattered on the plains of Chalons, the motley hordes of Attila, the White Huns had begun to tread Sassanian Persia under the hoofs of their

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Personal and geographical names in the Gupta inscriptions p-133

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horses, and were soon to smash the Indian empire of the Guptas into pieces'.¹²⁰

In A.D. 484 the Hunas killed the Sassanian ruler of Persia. Towards the close of the fifth century A.D. they ruled over a vast empire with their principal capital at Balkh.¹²¹ We know of a Huna-desa placed to the South of the Kama-giri and to the North of Maru-desa, i.e., the desert called the land of heroes. The Harshacharita places the Huna country in the Punjab region practically suggesting the same area. ¹²²

In the middle of the sixth century A.D., the Sassanian king of Persia made an alliance with Western Turks against the Hunas and smashed their rule from the Oxus by killing their king sometime between A.D. 563 and 567. ¹²³

We know of Toramana from his Eran Boar Inscription ¹²⁴ and of Mihirakula from his Gwalior Inscription. ¹²⁵ These two are generally taken to have been Huna chiefs. There is another inscription found at Kura (Salt range in the Punjab) referring to Rajadhiraja Maharaja Toramana-Sahi-Jau (bla), whom some scholars identify with king Toramana mentioned in the Eran Inscription,¹²⁶ but others regard the two as quite different.¹²⁷ Here it must be pointed out, none of these inscriptions describes any of these kings as Hunas nor contains any reference to the Hunas.

We find an interesting account of Toramana in the Jain work, Kuvalayamala, composed to 700 Saka (A.D.778).¹²⁸ Here Toramana is stated to have lived on the bank of the Chandrabhaga (Chenab river). His guru Hari-gupta, who himself was a scion of the Gupta family, also lived there.¹²⁹

Both Toramana and Mihirakula are referred to in the Rajatarangini, but there is no mention of their being the Hunas.

It is doubtful whether Toramana and Mihirakula were Hunas or Kushanas. Sir Aurel Stein, Jayaswal ¹³⁰ and Fleet ¹³¹ held that Toramana was a Kushana. But Sten Konow ¹³² holds that Tora- mana was, in all probability, a Huna, as is generally assumed, and not a Kushana. It is not unlikely that the Hunas and the Kushanas were ethnically allied and were later merged into a new nation, which came to be known as Huna in India.¹³³

There are several stray references to the Hunas in Indian literature. D.C. Sircar ¹³⁴ opines that the Indian names Huna,

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134 Personal and geographical names in the Gupta inscriptions

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Harahuna (हारहूण) or Hārahūra, supposed to be associated with the Chinese name Hiung-nu and 'the White Hun' of the European writers, are mentioned in a few late passages of the Mahabharata and in the geographical sections of the early Puranas, can be roughly assigned to the 4th century A.D. A sūtra-vṛtti in the Chandra Vyakarana has the sentence ajayad-gupta (or Japto or Jarto) Hunan (अजयद जर्तो हूणान) as an illustration of the use of the imperfect to express an event which occurred within the life-time of the author.¹³⁵

In the Mandasor inscription of Yasodharman ¹³⁶ a reference is made to the chiefs of the Hunas, but they are not named. The inscription simply says that Yasodharman possessed countries which not even the Guptas and the chiefs of the Hunas could subdue.¹³⁷

The inscription also refers to Mihirakula "who had earlier bowed only to the god Sthanu (Siva) and whose forehead was pained through being bent low down by the strength of the arm of Yasodharman in the act of compelling obeisance".¹³⁸

With the fall of Yasodharman, which probably took place not long after, Mihirakula again came to the forefront. In the early part of the sixth century A.D. Sakala become his capital.¹³⁹ The Gupta king who then occupied the imperial throne was probably Narasimha-Gupta Baladitya. He was temporarily over-whelmed by the victorious raids of Yasodharman, and Mihirakula evidently took advantage of this imperial crisis to extend his power. Narasimhagupta, according to Hiuen Tsang, was forced to the humiliating position of paying tribute to Mihirakula but finally triumphed over his rival.¹⁴⁰

The defeat of Mihirakula appears to have finally crushed the political supremacy of the Hunas in India who ceased to be even a disturbing element in Indian History.¹⁴¹ The Puranas place the Hunas in the extreme west, with the Sauviras, Saindhavas, Sakalas and Madras.¹⁴²

In the Raghuvamsa, Kalidasa mentions Raghu defeating the Hunas on the banks of the Vanksu or the Oxus ¹⁴³ ,the (pale) faces of whose wives spoke of the bravery of their husbands (who died in the battle).¹⁴⁴

Varahamihira¹⁴⁵ mentions them under the jurisdiction of Ketu and places them in the North.¹⁴⁶ Dr. Upendra Thakur ¹⁴⁷

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Personal and geographical names in the Gupta inscriptions 135

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remarks that about the sixth century A.D., the Hunas almost lost their original name of Hiong-nou or Huns. Later the powerful Turks give its name to the entire Huna nation by which they were further known in the neighbouring nations. After wards they were submerged in the Mongols under the influence of the powerful Mongol Chief Chengiz Khan. Thus, the Hiong-nou or Huns received different names in different periods beginning with their origin to their advancement in other countries. In spite of the copious references to the Ephthalites in the accounts of the different countries, it is very difficult to determine their exact origin and ethnic affinities.

We can partly agree with Dr. Thakur as regards their merger in the area later dominated by the Turks and Mongols but the Hunas find their mention in the Harshacharita of Bana (a seventh century work) and they remained a potent force in the social and political life of the Punjab-Rajasthan-Malwa-Gujarat region during the early medieval period as evidenced by a large number of epigraphical and literary records, and also proved themselves as a source of danger to the Pala kings of Bengal.¹⁴⁸

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107. Bhitari Stone Pillar Inscription of Skandagupta (=A.D. 455-67). L. 15 : हूणैर्य्यस्य समागतस्य समरे दोर्म्यां धरा कम्पिता भीमावर्त्करस्य-

108. R.B. Pandey, Historical and Literary Inscriptions by R. B. Pandeya. p. 101, f.n. 3.

109. Uigur transcriptions of Chinese, Chinese terms from J.J.M.De Groot 'Die Hunnen der vorchristlichen Zeit' (Berlin, Leipzig, 1921), Vol. I, pp. Iff.

110. Robert Shafer, Ethnography of Ancient India by Robert Shafer. p. 155, f.n.l.

111. Ibid., pp. 155-56

112. Ibid., p. 156.

113. Ibid.

114. "Huns and Hsiung-nu", Byzantion 17 (1944-45), pp. 222-243

115. Ibid., p. 224.

116. La haute Asie (1931), p. 6.

117. Oriens 1 (1948), pp, 208-219.

118. In Der Islam 29 (1949), pp. 244-246.

119. See Robert Shafer, Ethnography of Ancient India by Robert Shafer. pp. 156-57.

120. Jarl Charpentier, "The original Home of the Indo-Europeans", Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, London. Vol. IV, 1926-28, p. 165.

121. R.C. Majumdar, The Vakatka-Gupta Age by R. C. Majumdar and A.S. Altekar. p. 194.

122. D.C. Sircar, Oz. p. 101.

123. R.C. Majumdar, The Vakatka-Gupta Age by R. C. Majumdar and A.S. Altekar. p.194.

124. Corpus Inscripionum Indicarum, Vol. III by John Faithful Fleet , p. 158.

125. Ibid., p. 161.

126. Journal and Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, Calcutta. LXIII. 186; JJ. XII, 531.

127. The Periplus of the Erythraen Sea by W. H. Schoff I. 239.

128. Journal of Bihar and Orissa Research Society, Patna. XIV, 28ff.

129. R.C. Majumdar, The Vakatka-Gupta Age by R. C. Majumdar and A.S. Altekar. p. 136.

130. Journal of Bihar and Orissa Research Society, Patna. XVIII, 203.

131. Indian Antiquary, Bombay. XV, 245.

132. Journal of the Numismatic Society of India, Varanasi. XII, 532.

133. The Classical Age. p. 59.

134. Upendra Thakur, The Hunas in India by Upendra Thakur. Foreword, p.v.

135. R.C. Majumdar, The Vakatka-Gupta Age by R. C. Majumdar and A.S. Altekar . p. 197; l.Systems of Sanskrit Grammar by S. K. Belvalkar. p. 58.

136. Corpus Inscripionum Indicarum, Vol. III by John Faithful Fleet pp. 142 if.

137. Ibid : ये भुक्ता गुप्तनाथैर्न्न सकल-वसुधाक्क्रान्ति-दृष्ट-प्रतापैर्नाज्ञा हूणाधिपानां

138. Ibid., pp! 146-147, L. 6.

139. R.C. Majumdar, The Vakatka-Gupta Age by R. C. Majumdar and A.S. Altekar. 196 : V. pp. 549-50; B.C. Law, Tribes in Ancient India by B. C Law. p. 58.

140. Ibid., The Vakatka-Gupta Age by R. C. Majumdar and A.S. Altekar. p. 199.

141. Ibid., pp. 184-85.

142. B.C. Sircar, Studies in the Geography of Ancient and Medieval India by D. C. Sircar. pp. 24, 36-37, 38.

143. Raghuvamsa, IV. 68.

144. Ibid : तत्र हूणावरोधानां भर्तृषु व्यक्तविक्रमम् । कपोलपाटलादेशि बभूव रघुचेष्टितम् ।।

145. Brhatsamhita, XVI. v. 38, p. 136.

146. Ibid., XIV. v. 27, p. 122.

147. Upendra Thakur, The Hunas in India by Upendra Thakur. p.46.

148. Ibid., See Foreword by D.C. Sircar, pp. v-viii.

Huna Jats

The Henga/Hanga are non but the Huns of Europe(and other regions' too but with many different names), simply meant that, the Huns are called Henga Jats in India.

Hunnic Empire

Area ruled by Hunas/Henga Jats under Attila The Hun

No need to say anything about these Hunas, as they are already famous all around the world, in 434AD Under the Command of Attila the Great, they(Huns) ruled over a large part of Europian territory and many provinces of Western Asia too.

Alchon Hephtalites

The Alchon Huns had ruled over a part of South Asia!

For Information about them, you could Visit!

• Wikipedia

Xiong-nu Empire

Xiong-nu(Heng-nu) Empire Under Modu Chanyu

In mangolia and some adjacent regions, the Hunas have ruled under Modu Chanyu in between 209-174BCE, who established the Great Xiong-nu Empire. The empire had produced many emperors like Moudan, Touman etc.

Nezak Hunas

In Hindu Kush area, the Huns established a empire in about 484-665CE, later known as Nezak Shah Huns or simply Nezak Huns

More information at Wikipedia

Kidarites or Kidar Huns

The Kidar Huns or Kidarites had ruled as a dynasty over Bacteria from 320 to 467 CE! For more information visit, Wikipedia

In Puranas

Vishnu Purana gives list of Kings who ruled Magadha. ...After these, various races will reign, as seven Ábhíras, ten Garddhabas, sixteen Śakas, eight Yavanas, fourteen Tusháras, thirteen Mundas, eleven Maunas, altogether seventy-nine princes , who will be sovereigns of the earth for one thousand three hundred and ninety years.

• Ábhíras, 7, M.; 10, V;
• Avabhriti, 7, Bhág.
• Garddabhins, 10, M. V. Bhág.
• Śakas, 18, M. V.;
• Kankas, 16, Bhág.
• Yavanas, 8, M. V. Bhág.
• Tusháras, 14, M. V.;
• Tushkaras, 14, Bhág.
• Marúńdas, 13, V.;
• Purúńd́as, 13, M.;
• Surúńdas, 10, Bhág.
• Maunas, 18, V.;
• Húńas, 19, M.;
• Maulas, 11, Bhág.

Total--85 kings, Váyu; 89, Matsya; 76, and 1399 years, Bhág.

Huns of Hungary have a Rajasthan connection

Ref - Shoeb Khan, Times of India, Jaipur, 22 March2018

A statue of a worrier on a horseback holding a spear in Budapest, the capital of Hungary, has a deep connection with the Chauhan kings of India. So says Kovacs Imre Berne, a historian based in Hungary.

Berne claims that the Chauhans of Rajasthan and the Huns of Hungary share ancestry. He traces his ethnicity to Huns, a warrior tribe mentioned in Mahabharta that ruled several territories of Europe. Berne rolled out similarities between Huns and Chauhans at a session 'Cultural Similarities with Chauhan rulers of India' organised recently by the department of history at Rajasthan University.

The historian from Hungary is in India tracing the connection between the Huns and the Chauhans. He has been to Chauhan rulers' historical sites, including the temple of Shakambari Mata in Sambhar (Jaipur district). "I was astonished by the similarity between Shakambari Mata temple and our temples in Hungary. The image of the goddess at both the places emerged on rocks and were never carved. This discovery will open new vistas in the on-going research in tracking the connection between the Hun clans of India and Hungary and their migration route," says Berne.

Jat People Genetics

The highlighted DNA Study suggests that there has been male DNA into the Jat people from Ukrainian Scythians (Saka, Massagetae) and White Huns.

DNA study on Y-STR Haplogroup Diversity in the Jat Population

David G. Mahal and Ianis G. Matsoukas conducted a scientific study on Y-STR Haplogroup Diversity in the Jat Population of which brief Conclusion is as under:

The Jats represent a large ethnic community that has inhabited the northwest region of India and Pakistan for several thousand years. It is estimated the community has a population of over 123 million people. Many historians and academics have asserted that the Jats are descendants of Aryans, Scythians, or other ancient people that arrived and lived in northern India at one time. Essentially, the specific origin of these people has remained a matter of contention for a long time. This study demonstrated that the origins of Jats can be clarified by identifying their Y-chromosome haplogroups and tracing their genetic markers on the Y-DNA haplogroup tree. A sample of 302 Y-chromosome haplotypes of Jats in India and Pakistan was analyzed. The results showed that the sample population had several different lines of ancestry and emerged from at least nine different geographical regions of the world. It also became evident that the Jats did not have a unique set of genes, but shared an underlying genetic unity with several other ethnic communities in the Indian subcontinent. A startling new assessment of the genetic ancient origins of these people was revealed with DNA science.

The human Y-chromosome provides a powerful molecular tool for analyzing Y-STR haplotypes and determining their haplogroups which lead to the ancient geographic origins of individuals. For this study, the Jats and 38 other ethnic groups in the Indian subcontinent were analyzed, and their haplogroups were compared. Using genetic markers and available descriptions of haplogroups from the Y-DNA phylogenetic tree, the geographic origins and migratory paths of their ancestors were traced.

The study demonstrated that based on their genetic makeup, the Jats belonged to at least nine specific haplogroups, with nine different lines of ancestry and geographic origins. About 90% of the Jats in our sample belonged to only four different lines of ancestry and geographic origins:

1. Haplogroup L (36.8%)- The origins of this haplogroup can be traced to the rugged and mountainous Pamir Knot region in Tajikistan.

2. Haplogroup R (28.5%): From somewhere in Central Asia, some descendants of the man carrying the M207 mutation on the Y chromosome headed south to arrive in India about 10,000 years ago (Wells, 2007). This is one of the largest haplogroups in India and Pakistan. Of its key subclades, R2 is observed especially in India and central Asia.

3. Haplogroup Q (15.6%): With its origins in central Asia, descendants of this group are linked to the Huns, Mongols, and Turkic people. In Europe it is found in southern Sweden, among Ashkenazi Jews, and in central and Eastern Europe such as, the Rhône-Alpes region of France, southern Sicily, southern Croatia, northern Serbia, parts of Poland and Ukraine.

4. Haplogroup J (9.6%): The ancestor of this haplogroup was born in the Middle East area known as the Fertile Crescent, comprising Israel, the West Bank, Jordon, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq. Middle Eastern traders brought this genetic marker to the Indian subcontinent (Kerchner, 2013).

5.-9. Haplogroups E, G, H, I, T (9.5%): The ancestors of the remaining five haplogroups E, G, H, I, and T can be traced to different parts of Africa, Middle East, South Central Asia, and Europe (ISOGG, 2016).

Therefore, attributing the origins of this entire ethnic group to loosely defined ancient populations such as, Indo-Aryans or Indo-Scythians represents very broad generalities and cannot be supported. The study also revealed that even with their different languages, religions, nationalities, customs, cuisines, and physical differences, the Jats shared their haplogroups with several other ethnic groups of the Indian subcontinent, and had the same common ancestors and geographic origins in the distant past. Based on recent developments in DNA science, this study provided new insights into the ancient geographic origins of this major ethnic group in the Indian subcontinent. A larger dataset, particularly with more representation of Muslim Jats, is likely to reveal some additional haplogroups and geographical origins for this ethnic group.

Villages founded by Hoon clan

• Hooniya Khera (हुनियाखेडा) - village in Banera tahsil in Bhilwara district in Rajasthan.

हारहूण

विजयेन्द्र कुमार माथुर ने लेख किया है ...हारहूण (पाठांतर 'हारहूर') (AS, p.1019) एक प्राचीन जनपद, जिसका उल्लेख महाभारत सभापर्व में हुआ है। महाभारत सभापर्व 32, 12 के अनुसार इस जनपद को पाण्डव नकुल ने पश्चिम दिशा की दिग्विजय में विजित किया था- 'द्वारपालं च तरसा वशे चक्रे महाद्युतिः, रामठान् हारहूणांश्च प्रतीच्याश्चैव ये नृपाः।'

उपरोक्त उल्लेख में द्वारपाल सम्भवत: 'ख़ैबर' और रमठ 'ग़ज़नी' (अफ़ग़ानिस्तान) है। 'हारहूण' या 'हारहूर' को वासुदेव शरण अग्रवाल ने अफ़ग़ानिस्तान की नदी 'अरगंदाबीन' माना है, जो इस देश के दक्षिण-पश्चिम भाग में बहती है। यदि यह अभिज्ञान ठीक है तो इस प्रसंग में हारहूण को इस नदी का तटवर्ती प्रदेश समझा जा सकता है। (बृहत्संहिता 14, 33) यह भी संभव हो सकता है कि इस स्थान से हूणों का सम्बन्ध हो।

कीर

विजयेन्द्र कुमार माथुर ने लेख किया है ...कीर (AS, p.193) वर्तमान कांगड़ा (पूर्व पंजाब) के आसपास का प्रदेश. कलचुरी नरेश कर्ण देव (1041-1077 ई.) ने इस देश को जीता था जैसा कि अल्हणदेवी के अभिलेख से ज्ञात होता है-- 'कीर: कीरवदासपंजरगृहे हूण: प्रहर्ष जहौ' (एपीग्राफिक इंडिया, जिल्द 2 पृष्ठ-11) अर्थात कर्ण के प्रताप के सामने कीर पंजरगत शुक के समान हो गए तथा हूणों (या हूण नरेश) का सारा सुख समाप्त हो गया.

हाटक

विजयेन्द्र कुमार माथुरने लिखा है .... हाटक (AS, p.1018): महाभारत सभापर्व में उल्लिखित स्थान है, जिसे यक्षों का देश कहा गया है. इस पर उत्तर दिशा की दिग्विजय के प्रसंग में अर्जुन ने विजय प्राप्त की थी- यह स्थान कालिदास के मेघदूत की अलका के निकट ही स्थित होगा. मानसरोवर यहां से समीप ही था- यह तिब्बत में स्थित वर्तमान मानसरोवर और कैलाश का निकटवर्ती प्रदेश था. यहां गुहयकों (यक्षों) तथा गंधर्वों की बस्ती था. श्री बी.सी. ला के मत में हाटक वर्तमान अटक (पाकिस्तान) है. एन.ल. डे के अनुसार यह हूण देश का नाम है.

बेग्राम, अफगानिस्तान

विजयेन्द्र कुमार माथुर ने लेख किया है ...बेग्राम (AS, p.642) प्राचीन कपीशा (अफगानिस्तान) की राजधानी थी। श्वेत हूणों के आक्रमण के पूर्व दूसरी-तीसरी सदी में यह नगर बड़ा समृद्धिशाली था और बौद्ध धर्म का भी यहां काफी प्रचार-प्रसार था किंतु हूणों ने इस नगर को विध्वस्त कर डाला और मिहिरकुल का यहां आधिपत्य हो गया। बेग्राम का अभिज्ञान वर्तमान का कोहदामन से किया गया है। कपीसा के इसी नगर में कनिष्क की ग्रीष्मकालीन राजधानी थी।

Distribution in Rajasthan

Villages in Bhilwara district

Hooniya Khera,

Distribution in Gujarat

Balad, santokpura, vav, thana,

References

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