Akhshunwar

Akhshunwar was a ruling title used by the Hephthalite kings in the 5th and 6th-centuries.
The title is of Eastern [Iranian languages|Eastern Iranian] origin; according W.B. Henning, its original form was ʾxšʾwndʾr, meaning "king", "ruler." G. Widengren, however, suggests that the original form was the Sogdian ʾxšʾwnwʾr, "power bearer." In the New Persian epic Shahnameh of the medieval Persian poet Ferdowsi, it was transformed into Khushnawaz, and was used as a name instead. Some scholars support the theory that the name of the Kidarite king Kunkhas shared the same origin as Akhshunwar, which has in turn led to the suggestion that Akhshunwar was initially a title used by Kidarites, later to be adopted by Hephthalites when they supplanted them.