Akhtar

A1K5H4T1A1R1

proper noun

A unisex given name from Persian.

OriginHindi अख़्तर ← Urdu اَخْتَر ← Classical Persian اَخْتَر →
Less commonScrabble 13
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Meanings

proper nounAkhtar (plural Akhtars)

plural Akhtars · alternative Akhter · alternative Aktar · alternative Akter

  1. A unisex given name from Persian.
  2. A surname from Persian.

Origin

  1. Middle Persian𐭠𐭧𐭲𐭫
  2. Classical Persianاَخْتَر“star”
  3. Urduاَخْتَر
  4. Hindiअख़्तर
  5. EnglishAkhtar

Borrowed from Hindustani (through Hindi अख़्तर (axtar) / Urdu اَخْتَر (axtar)) and/or directly from Classical Persian اَخْتَر (axtar, “star”), in turn from Middle Persian 𐭠𐭧𐭲𐭫 (ʾhtl /⁠axtar⁠/), an ancient backformation from 𐭠𐭯𐭠𐭧𐭲𐭫 (ʾpʾhtl /⁠abāxtar⁠/, “planet”), due to a mistaken folk etymology that the first element ab- was a negative suffix, since Zoroastrianism considers the planets to be nefarious "un-stars" due to their astronomically odd behavior. Doublet of Tara and sitara.

More words from Hindi, Urdu, Classical Persian

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Takhar
Cite this entry
APA

Akhtar. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Akhtar

MLA

“Akhtar.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Akhtar. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Akhtar,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Akhtar.

Source: Akhtar on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.