Aryan (/ˈɛəriən/), or Arya (borrowed from Sanskrit ārya),[1]is a term originating from the ethno-cultural self-designation of the
Indo-Iranians.[2][3] It stood in contrast to nearby outsiders, whom they designated as non-Aryan(*an-āryā).[4] In ancient India, the term was used by the Indo-Aryan peoples of the Vedic period, both as an endonym and in reference to a region called Aryavarta(lit. 'Land of the Aryans'),[a] where their culture emerged.[5]Similarly, according to the Avesta, the Iranian peoples used the term to designate themselves as an ethnic group and to refer to a region called Airyanem Vaejah (lit. 'Expanse of the Arya'),[b] which was their mythical homeland