A cantonment (, , or ) is a military or police quarters. The word cantonment is derived from the French word canton meaning corner or district, as is the name of the Cantons of Switzerland. In South Asia, the term cantonment also describes permanent military stations. Cantonments can be found in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, South Africa, Singapore, Malaysia, Ghana, Sri Lanka and Nepal. In United States military parlance, a cantonment is an essentially permanent residential (i.e. barracks) section of a fort or other military installation such as Fort Hood.