World’s largest “abad” suffix cities

Hyderabad, India – Source: en.wikipedia.org

-abad is a suffix that forms part of many west, central and south Asian city names originally derived from the Persian language term ābād (آباد), meaning “cultivated place” (village, city, region), and commonly attached to the name of the city’s founder or patron.

The most common version of an “abad” city is Jalalabad which is apparently named for the Saint, Pir Jalala. A minimum population of 10,000 was required for inclusion. Just over half of the cities on the list (34) are located in India.  One surprise was discovering Fyzabad in Trinidad & Tobago. As far as known is, it’s the only “abad” city situated outside of Asia.

Gorgeous nighttime view of Faisalabad, Pakistan – Source: pinterest.com

While conducting background research for this post it was noted that detailed population data was not available for all cities/towns in this region. As a result, there may be some places that exceed the 10,000 resident minimum that are not included.

Any additions, corrections, or suggestions to this list are most welcome. Enjoy!

1. Hyderabad, India = 6,809,970 (2011)
2. Ahmedabad, India = 5,633,927 (2011)
3. Faisalabad, Pakistan = 3,203,846 (2017)
4. Ghaziabad, India = 2,658,525 (2011)
5. Hyderabad, Pakistan = 1,734,309 (2017)
6. Faridabad, India = 1,404,653 (2011)
7. Aurangabad, India = 1,175,116 (2011)
8. Allahabad, India = 1,117,094 (2011)
9. Islamabad, Pakistan = 1,014,825 (2017)
10. Moradabad, India = 889,810 (2010)
11. Firozabad, India = 603,797 (2011)
12. Faizabad, India = 557,875 (2011)
13. Khorpramabad, Iran = 373,416 (2016)
14. Jalalabad, Afghanistan = 356,275 (2014)
15. Nizamabad, Telangana, India = 311,152 (2011)
16. Wazirabad, Pakistan = 299,751 (date unknown)
17. Sikandrabad, India = 294,898 (2011)
18. Hafizabad, Pakistan = 245,784 (2017)
19. Sadiqabad, Pakistan = 239,677 (2017)
20. Najafabad, Iran = 235,281 (2016)
21. Secunderabad, India = 213,698 (2011)
22. Abbottabad, Pakistan = 208,491 (2017)
23. Jacobābād, Pakistan = 191,076 (2017)
24. Leninabad (known as Khujand since 1991), Tajikistan = 181,600 (2015)
25. Mahabad, Iran = 168,393 (2016)
26. Wazīrābād, Pakistan = 128,090 (2017)
27. Nazrabad, Iran = 119,512 (2016)
28. Hoshangabad, India = 117,988 (2011)
29. Adilabad, India = 117,167 (2011)
30. Jalal-Abad, Kyrgyzstan = 109,200 (2009)
31. Hārūnābād,Pakistan = 107,898 (2017)
32. Jehanabad, India = 103,28 (2011)
33. Aurangabad, Bihar, India = 102,244 (2011)
34. Shahabad, Gulbarga, India = 96,583 (2011)
35. Muzaffarabad, Pakistan = 96,000 (2010)
36. Parsabad, Iran = 93,387 (2016)
37. Eslamabad-e Garb, Iran = 90,559 (2016)
38. Najibabad, India = 88,535 (2011)
39. Humnabad, India = 84,561 (2011)
40. Shahabad, Hardoi, India = 80,226 (2011)
41. Zahirabad, India = 71,166 (2011)
42. Vikarabad, India = 53,143 (2011)
43. Aliabad-e Kabul, Iran = 52,838 (2016)
44. Mustabad, India = 49,879 (date unknown)
45. Asadabad, Afghanistan = 48,400 (date unknown)
46. Koda Jahanabad, India = 45,410 (2011)
47. Fayzabad, Afghanistan = 44,421 (2006)
48. Shahabad Markanda, India = 42,607 (2011)
49. Dowlatabad, Isfahan, Iran = 40,945 (2016)
50. Jalalabad, India = 39,525 (2011)
51. Aurangabad, West Bengal, India = 39,261 (2011)
52. Allah Abad, Rahim Yar Khan, Pakistan = 37,500 (1998)
53. Shamsabad, India = 33, 144 (2011)
54. Shahabad, Rampur, India = 32,015 (2011)
55. Sadabad, India = 31,737 (2001)
56. Sabirabad, Azerbaijan = 30,612 (2018)
57. Hajjiabad, Hormozgan, Iran = 28,977 (2016)
58. Mahmudabad, Iran = 27,561 (2006)
59. Jafrabad, India = 25,081 (2001)
60. Shabad, India = 25,000 (2011)
61. Fazelabad, Golestan, Iran = 19,461 (2016)
62. Feyzabad, Razavi Khorasan, Iran = 18,120 (2016)
63. Jalalabad, Bijnor, India = 16,113 (2001)
64. Karimabad, India = 16,000 (1996)
65. Fyzabad, Trinidad & Tobago = 13,099 (2011)
66. Nizamabad, Uttar Pradesh, India = 12,096 (2011)
67. Khorpramabad, Maznaran, Iran = 11,542 (2016)
68. Ordubad, Azerbaijan = 10,372 (date unknown)

SOURCES:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/-abad
• http://www.citypopulation.de/Pakistan-100T.html
• en.wikipedia.org
• maps.google.com
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_cities_of_Iran
• https://books.google.com/books?id=_4VRAcRIkvAC&pg=PA352&lpg=PA352&dq=Pir+Jalala&source=bl&ots=ov4hBFEsy2&sig=ACfU3U0xIUJ-OA4dLS-IXqEobgPbLAQbgQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwirm4_-45XmAhVBRqwKHRNrBT4Q6AEwCXoECAoQAQ#v=onepage&q=Pir%20Jalala&f=false