khan

Dictionary: khan¹ (kän, kăn) pronunciation

A ruler, an official, or an important person in India and some central Asian countries.
A medieval ruler of a Mongol, Tartar, or Turkish tribe.

[Middle English chan, from Old French can, from Turkish khān (from Old Turkic qaghan) and from Mongolian qā'ān, ruler.]

khan² (kän, kăn) pronunciation

n.
A caravansary in certain Asian countries.

[Arabic ḫān, inn, from Persian khān, house, from Middle Persian.]

Search unanswered questions...

Browse: Unanswered questions | Most-recent questions | Reference library

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: khan

Top

Historically, the ruler or monarch of a Mongol tribe. Early on a distinction was made between the title of khan and that of khakan, or "great khan." Later the term khan was adopted by the Seljuq and Khwarezm-Shah dynasties as a title for the highest nobility. Gradually it became an affix to the name of any Muslim property owner. Today it is often used as a surname.

For more information on khan, visit Britannica.com.

Architecture and Landscaping: khan

Top

Unfurnished building for the accommodation of travellers in the Middle East, etc. A caravanserai.

Archaeology Dictionary: Khan

Top

[Ge]

Turkish title for a prince or ruler.

Mideast & N. Africa Encyclopedia: Khan

Top

Highway inn for travelers, or a warehouse for merchandise. Khans were built as rest stops for travelers and caravans. A khan was also an urban complex for storing merchandise and hosting merchants.

Islamic Dictionary: khan

Top

(From Turkish khan and Mongolian qa'an "ruler.") A ruler of a Mongol or Turkic people. The Mongols and Turkic peoples (from which modern day Turks are descendent) are distantly related. The Turks began migrating from Central Asia toward the Middle East after accepting the Sunni faith in the 7th century.

Word Tutor: khan

Top

IN BRIEF: A ruler, an official, or an important person in India and some central Asian countries.

In Xanadu did Kubla Khan A stately pleasure-dome decree: Where Alph, the sacred river, ran Through caverns measureless to man Down to a sunless sea. — Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834), English romantic poet and critic, from Kubla Khan.

Wikipedia: Khan

Top

Look up khan in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Not to be confused with Kahn.

Khan may refer to:

Khan (title), a title for a ruler in Turkish and Mongolian languages
Khan (name), a Muslim family name (and list of people with the name)
Khan (band), an English progressive rock band in the 70s
Khan (comics), a Marvel Comics character
Khan!, a 1975 US television series
Khan (Cambodia), a municipal subdivision of the administrative divisions of Cambodia
Khan River, an ephemeral river in Namibia
Caravanserai or Khan, a medieval Central Asian roadside inn
Khan Noonien Singh or Khan, a villain character in the Star Trek universe
Roy Khan or Khan, Norwegian singer

Tian Kehan, title addressed to emperors of China's Tang Dynasty
Aga Khan, the hereditary title of the Imam of the Nizārī Muslims
Khanum, the female form of the title Khan
Khanzada or Khan Zadeh, son of Khan, a title and surname used in Pakistan
Khan Bahadur, a title of honour issued by British India to Muslims who performed a deed of great service to the nation
Kan (disambiguation)
Kaan (disambiguation)
Caan (disambiguation)
[Raza Ahmed Khan grand son of Khan Bahadur and son of Abdul Rehman Khan

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Donate to Wikimedia

Translations: Khan

Top

Dansk (Danish)
1.
n. - kan

2.
n. - karavanserai

Nederlands (Dutch)
khan, Aziatische vorstentitel, karavanserai

Français (French)
1.
n. - khan

2.
n. - auberge

Deutsch (German)
1.
n. - Khan

2.
n. - Karawanserei

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - χαν, ηγέτης

Italiano (Italian)
can, capo

Português (Portuguese)
n. - governador (m), oficial (m) (f) ou pessoa (f) importante na Índia

Русский (Russian)
хан, караван-сарай

Español (Spanish)
1.
n. - kan, título nobiliario en la India

2.
n. - posada

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - khan

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
1. 汗, 可汗

2. 小客栈, 商队客店

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
1.
n. - 小客棧, 商隊客店

2.
n. - 汗, 可汗

한국어 (Korean)
1.
n. - 중세의 타타르, 몽고 등 여러 부족의 지배자, 귀족, 고관의 존칭

2.
n. - 여인숙, 숙박소

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 汗, 隊商の宿舎

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) لقب خليفه جنكيز خان‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮שליט תורכי או מונגולי, חאן‬
n. - ‮פונדק, חאן‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.

Learn More

	Khanābād
	khanate
	Jenghis Khan

Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:

Copyrights:

		Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more
		Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
		Architecture and Landscaping. A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. Copyright © 1999, 2006 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. Read more
		Archaeology Dictionary. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology. Copyright © 2002, 2003 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. Read more
		Mideast & N. Africa Encyclopedia. Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. Copyright © 2004 by The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
		Islamic Dictionary. Copyright © 2002 yourDictionary.com. All rights reserved. Read more
		Word Tutor. Copyright © 2004-present by eSpindle Learning, a 501(c) nonprofit organization. All rights reserved. eSpindle provides personalized spelling and vocabulary tutoring online; free trial. Read more
		Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Khan". Read more
		Translations. Copyright © 2007, WizCom Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved. Read more

khan

See also