Londonistan is a sobriquet referring to the British capital of London and the growing Muslim population of late-20th- and early-21st-century London. The word is a portmanteau of the UK's capital and the Persian suffix -stan, meaning "land", used by several countries in South and Central Asia. The term has been used in a number of publications, including The New York Times, Vanity Fair, The Weekly Standard, and in the 2006 book Londonistan: How Britain is Creating a Terror State Within. With the election of Sadiq Khan as Mayor of London, Richard Seymour wrote an essay in Al Jazeera headlined "Sadiq Khan's victory and free Londonistan", claiming that the term Londonistan was being "joyfully, ironically appropriated by those who are glad to see a racist campaign defeated. Welcome to the 21st century. Welcome to free Londonistan."