Hazara

American  

[huh-zahr-uh] / həˈzɑr ə /

noun

• Hazara,
  plural
• Hazaras
  plural

1. an Iranian ethnolinguistic group in central Afghanistan, north Pakistan, and Iran, most of whom are Shiʿite Muslims.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Hazara
  plural
• Hazaras
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Hazara

From Persian hazār “a thousand, a military unit of a thousand soldiers,” from Middle Persian

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Hazara Hazaras

The city grabbed international attention in 2001, when the Sunni Pashtun Taliban authorities destroyed two large Buddha statues cherished by the predominantly Shia Hazara community in the region.

From Barron's ● Feb. 1, 2026

When the Taliban were last in power from 1996-2001, Hazara fighters fought against them.

From BBC ● Dec. 5, 2023

For example, I advocate on behalf of a group of Hazara women who previously worked in the security sector.

From Slate ● Aug. 23, 2023

At least 11 carriages of the train, the Hazara Express, with at least 950 passengers onboard, fell off the tracks near the town of Nawabshah, local news media reported.

From New York Times ● Aug. 6, 2023

Ali told us she was a blue-eyed Hazara woman from Bamiyan, the city of the giant Buddha statues.

From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini

Hazaras are of ethnically Mongolian and Central Asian descent; their features differentiate them from much of Pakistan and Afghanistan's populations.

From BBC ● Dec. 5, 2023

But few Hazaras expect the Taliban to find the perpetrators, or to stop more attacks.

From Washington Post ● Sep. 30, 2022

Mohammad and his family are Hazaras, an ethnic minority that is overwhelmingly Shi'ite Muslim.

From Reuters ● Sep. 8, 2022

During his visit, Bennett held talks with Taliban leaders as well as toured the country, meeting civil society groups, rights activists and minority communities, including the Hazaras.

From Seattle Times ● May 26, 2022

For a lot of Hazaras, Iran repre­sented a sanctuary of sorts—I guess because, like Hazaras, most Iranians were Shi’a Muslims.

From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini