Kandahar[pronunciation?] or Qandahar (Pashto: کندهار Kandahār, Persian: قندهار, Qandahār, known in older literature as Candahar) is the second-largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 491,500 as of 2012.[1] Formerly called Alexandria Arachosia, the city is named after Alexander the Great, who founded it in 329 BC around a small ancient Arachosian town.Kandahar is the capital of Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at an altitude of 1,010 m above sea level. The Arghandab River runs along the west of the city.Kandahar is one of the most culturally significant cities of the Pashtuns and has been their traditional seat of power for more than 200 years. It is a major trading center for sheep, wool, cotton, silk, felt, food grains, fresh and dried fruit, and tobacco. The region produces fine fruits, especially pomegranates and grapes, and the city has plants for canning, drying, and packing fruit, and is a major source of marijuana and hashish. The area is believed to be the birthplace of cannabis indica.[citation needed]
Kandahar has an international airport and extensive road links with Lashkar Gah and Herat to the west, Ghazni and Kabul to the northeast, Tarinkot to the north, and Quetta in neighboring Balochistan to the south.
