What’s In A Name? The Etymology of South Asia’s Missiles – South Asian Voices

Language not only serves as a means of communication but also exerts a significant psycholinguistic impact on listeners. Specific choices of words can intensify or diminish the importance of any issue and shape perspectives passively. The nomenclature of South Asia’s strategic arsenal presents a unique case. Most non-South Asian nuclear states predominantly name their weapon systems using alphanumeric codes or acronyms based on technical characteristics (e.g., B61, THAAD). The nomenclature of South Asia’s strategic arsenal, however,…