What is "-abad"

-abad is a suffix that forms part of many city names in Iran, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, amongst others. It is derived from the Persian word , meaning "cultivated place" (village, city), and commonly attached to the name of the city's founder or patron. The root of this word is from the Persian word āb meaning 'Water'. In India, -abads are generally legacies of Persianized Muslim rulers such as the Mughals.

The suffix is most common in Iran, which contains thousands of -abads, most of them small villages. , its Markazi Province alone contained 44 Hoseynabads, 31 Aliabads, 23 Hajjiabads, 22 Hasanabads, and so on.