Loya Paktia (, lit. "Great Paktia") is a historical and cultural region of
Afghanistan, comprising the modern
Afghan provinces of
Paktia,
Paktika,
Khost, and also parts of
Logar and
Ghazni. The
Kurram Agency in
Pakistan may be included too. Loya Paktia is vaguely defined by a common culture and history that is connected to the local indigenous tribes that reside in the region. Particular styles of clothing, articles of clothing, turban styles, turban cloth colors, dialects of
Pashto language, etc. may sometimes be associated with specific tribes indigenous to Loya Paktia and thus integrate themselves into regional culture. For instance, a Pashtun tribesman from
Loy Kandahar may quickly recognize a Pashtun from Loya Paktia based upon his turban (or lungee) style and color. Likewise, a Pashtun from Loya Paktia may recognize someone from
Loy Kandahar based upon his unique style of collarless
kameez (shirt) with specific embroidered patterns on the front. There are many subtle and intricate cultural indicators of this type that are not recorded in any known
written history but simply known and observed by the tribesmen of the various Pashtun regions of
Afghanistan and
Pakistan.