The Shalamar Gardens () or Shalimar Gardens () are a Mughal garden complex besides Baghbanpura, located in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. The gardens date from the period when the Mughal Empire was at its artistic and aesthetic zenith, and are now one of Pakistan's most popular tourist destinations.
The Shalamar Gardens were laid out as a Persian paradise garden intended to create a representation of an earthly utopia in which humans co-exist in perfect harmony with all elements of nature. and was completed in 1642. In 1981 the Shalamar Gardens were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as they embody Mughal garden design at the apogee of its development. It has been suggested that the name is derived from Sanskrit 'shala' (lit. House or abode) and either Turkic 'mar' (lit. Joy) or Kashmiri 'mar' (lit. Stream), thus meaning the 'abode of joy' or the 'abode of streams', respectively. Muhammad Ishtiaq Khan believes that 'Shalamar' is a corruption of 'Shalimar', and suggests its derivation from two Kashmiri words, 'shali' (lit. Rice paddy) and 'mar' (lit. Black loamy soil), giving its meaning as 'black soil for growing rice paddy'.
During a debate in the court of Ranjit Singh, his courtiers told the maharaja that 'shala' was a Turkic word which meant pleasure while 'mar' meant the place to live in. However Ranjit Singh remained unconvinced, believing that the name was derived from the Punjabi words 'shala' (lit. God) and 'mar' (lit. Curse), hence meaning the 'curse of God'. He renamed the gardens as 'Shahla Bagh' (شہلا باغ), from Persian 'shahla' (lit. Sweetheart with black eyes) and 'bagh' (lit. Garden), translating into 'garden of the black-eyed sweetheart'. According to Syad Muhammad Latif: