 It may be the translation of the Mongol word "ming" (or "minggan"), a military unit of 1,000 soldiers at the time of Genghis Khan.With time, the term "Hazar" could have been substituted for the Mongol word and now stands for the group of people, while the Hazaras in their native language always call themselves ("āzra" آزره) and ("azra" ازره)"

Evidence from the seventh-century Chinese traveller Xuanzang, in combination with much earlier evidence from the Hindu Itihasa the Mahabharata, attests that Poonch and Hazara District of Kashmir had formed parts of the ancient state of Kamboja, whose rulers followed a republican form of government.Alexander the Great, after conquering parts of the Northern Punjab, established his rule over a large part of Hazara.