Subah

As the empire began to dissolve in the early 18th century, many subahs became de facto independent or came under the influence of the Marathas or the suzerainty of the East India Company.

In the modern context, subah (صوبہ) is used in several Pakistani languages (most notably Punjabi, Balochi, and Urdu) to refer to a province of Pakistan.

Initially, after the administrative reforms of Akbar, the Mughal empire was divided into 12 subahs: Kabul, Lahore, Multan, Delhi, Agra, Avadh, Illahabad, Bihar, Bangal, Malwa, Ajmer and Gujarat.

[2] These were Kabul, Kashmir, Lahore, Multan, Delhi, Agra, Avadh, Illahabad, Bihar, Bangalah, Orissa, Malwa, Ajmer, Gujarat, Berar, Khandesh, Aurangabad, Bidar, Thatta, Bijapur, Sira[4] and Haidarabad (Golkonda).

[6] The Sikh Empire (1799–1849), originating in the Punjab region, also used the term Suba for the provinces it administered under its territorial delineation, of which there were five.