English 'India' comes via Latin and Greek from Old Persian Hinduš, itself from Sanskrit Sindhu (the Indus River) meaning simply 'river' — a single waterway named a civilization, a religion, and a subcontinent.
A country in South Asia, the most populous nation in the world as of 2023 and the site of one of the world's oldest civilizations.
English 'India' derives via Latin 'India' and Greek 'Indía' (Ἰνδία) from Old Persian 'Hinduš', which in turn comes from Sanskrit 'Sindhu' (सिन्धु), the name of the Indus River. 'Sindhu' means 'river' or 'ocean' in Sanskrit, from PIE *sindʰu- (river). The Old Persian form dropped the initial 's' (a regular sound change), giving 'Hindu' → Greek 'Indos' → Latin 'India'. The river
A single river name gave rise to an entire constellation of English words: India, Indian, Indus, Hindu, Hinduism, and Hindustan — all from Sanskrit 'Sindhu' meaning 'river'. The initial 's' was dropped in Old Persian, and the modified form traveled westward. Even 'Sind' (a province in Pakistan) preserves the original Sanskrit form.