The Ancient Geography of India. I. The Buddhist Period, including the Campaigns of Alexander, and the Travels of Hwen-Thsang c5.s1.t3.9

c5.s1.t3.9

M. Vivien de St. Martin has objected* to the name of *Urddhasthána* that it is a “conjectural etymology without object.” I am, however, quite satisfied that this reading is the correct one, for the following reasons:—1st. The name of Ortospana is not confined to the Paropamisadæ; but is found also in Karmania and in Persis. It could not, therefore, have had any reference to the Wardak tribe, but must be a generic name descriptive of its situation, a requirement that is most satisfactorily fulfilled by *Urddhasthána*, which means literally the “high place,” and was most probably employed to designate any hill fortress. 2nd. The variation in the reading of the name to *Portospana* confirms the descriptive meaning which I have given to it, as *porta* signifies “high” in Pushtu, and was, no doubt, generally adopted by the common people instead of the Sanskrit *urdha*.