© Abhishek Avtans
Mughal emperor Akbar’s eldest daughter was named Shāhzādā Khānum which literally translates as ‘princess (royal) lady’. She was born three months after the birth of her stepbrother Salim who later took the name of emperor Jahangir (1569 – 1627).
khānum ख़ानुम خانم is an interesting word of Persian origin in Urdu/Hindi. In Persian it means a miss, a lady, or a madam, and it is usually attached to personal names of respectable women. One example of its use can be seen in the name of the well known Indian journalist, Arfa Khanum Sherwani. The word khānum ख़ानुम is derived from Turkic- Mongolic origin word khān. Khānum is considered a feminine form of khān.
Khān and its cognates are found in Mongolian χäːn (emperor), ḳaġān in Ottoman Turkish and khagan in Kyrgyz. It began as a word for a ruler or a king and went on to become an aristocratic title. And later a surname for many in the Indian subcontinent.
In Mongolian capital of Ulaanbaatar, there’s even a popular bank named Khan bank.
References
Steingass, Francis Joseph. A Comprehensive Persian-English dictionary, including the Arabic words and phrases to be met with in Persian literature. London: Routledge & K. Paul, 1892.
Oxford University Press. (2023, December). Khan. In Oxford English dictionary.
Smart, E. S. (1981). A Genealogical Table of the Mughal Family. The Journal of the Walters Art Gallery, 39, 33–34. http://www.jstor.org/stable/20168978
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