Pashto

Pashto[lower-alpha 1] (/ˈpʌʃtoʊ/,[5][3][4]/ˈpæʃtoʊ/;[lower-alpha 2] پښتو, Pəx̌tó, [pəʂˈto, pʊxˈto, pəʃˈto, pəçˈto]), is an Eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family. It is known in historical Persian literature as Afghani (افغانی, Afghāni).[7]

Pashto
پښتو Pax̌tó
The word Pax̌tó written in the Pashto alphabet
Pronunciation	[pəʂˈto], [pʊxˈto], [pəçˈto], [pəʃˈto]
Native to	Afghanistan, Pakistan
Ethnicity	Pashtuns
Native speakers	40–60 million
Language family	Indo-European Indo-Iranian Iranian Eastern Iranian Pashto
Standard forms	Central Pashto Northern Pashto Southern Pashto
Dialects	Pashto dialects
Writing system	Pashto alphabet
Official status
Official language in	Afghanistan[1]
Recognised minority language in	Pakistan[2]  Khyber Pakhtunkhwa  Balochistan
Regulated by	Academy of Sciences of Afghanistan Pashto Academy of Pakistan Pashto Academy Quetta
Language codes
ISO 639-1	ps – Pashto, Pushto
ISO 639-2	pus – Pushto, Pashto
ISO 639-3	pus – inclusive code – Pashto, Pushto Individual codes: pst – Central Pashto pbu – Northern Pashto pbt – Southern Pashto wne – Wanetsi
Glottolog	pash1269  Pashto
Linguasphere	58-ABD-a
Areas in Afghanistan and Pakistan where Pashto is:   the predominant language   spoken alongside other languages
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This article contains Pashto text. Without proper rendering support, you may see unjoined letters or other symbols instead of Pashto script.

Spoken as a native language mostly by ethnic Pashtuns, it is one of the two official languages of Afghanistan alongside Dari,[8][1][9] and it is the second-largest provincial language of Pakistan, spoken mainly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the northern districts of Balochistan.[10] Likewise, it is the primary language of the Pashtun diaspora around the world. The total number of Pashto-speakers is at least 40 million,[11] although some estimates place it as high as 60 million.[12] Pashto is "one of the primary markers of ethnic identity" amongst Pashtuns.[13]