And at this point im afraid to ask. Maybe this is really really dumb but I thought it was one thing but now ive heard another and the “afgan” patterns ive seen only show the stitch pattern and not the shape of the whole object. Google has me confused as well because it just talks about the traditional color work originating from Afghanistan but I see tons of “afghan” stitch patterns that arent like that for example they are only 2 colors look like flowers, or cats etc. im so confused lol
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This gets further confused if you learn that Tunisian crochet hooks are often called “afghan hooks!” As far as I know an afghan is a crocheted blanket, probably not including granny square blankets, but I could be wrong! I’ve honestly not put as much thought or energy into it as you have, so kudos to your curiosity and for asking!! It’s often hardest to ask something that seems like a “simple” question!
It also appears there isn’t a consensus for this term on Reddit from a post a couple of months ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/crochet/comments/fvmd4q/whats_the_difference_between_an_afghan_and_a/
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Thank you for this thought out answer, I think ill come to the conclusion that this is an evolving term that can broadly describe an umbrella of similar blanket-like creations defined by whoever creates it. 
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