Khan: A ‘Title’ of Different Meanings
The surname ‘Khan’, contracted form of Khagan , from the Turkish Khan meaning ”commander,” “leader”, “king” “chief” or “ruler,” is equated with power and health. With its origin as a hereditary title born by early Mongol leader, Genghis Khan, ‘Khan’ title remains to be one of the most widely used surname throughout the world (Powell, 2017).
The surname was firstly used in the Rourans, and later more widely by Islamic chieftains in what is now India, Pakistan & Bangladesh. The surname is used in different regions of the world like Turkey, South Asia, Middle East, Central Asia, Eastern Europe and East Africa. It’s 12th most common surname in United Kingdom with some more than 1 Lakh British-Asian people (Forebears, 2019). A good number of people in Jammu & Kashmir also use this surname. Further, Khan (earlier used for men) nowadays though it used to have feminine endings making it ‘Khanam’ (Rahman, 2015).
Khan is considered to be a prestigious title which has also been used as name. Surprisingly, in different parts of the world, this title has been used differently. For example; In Kashmir, ‘Khan’ has a different meaning which is totally opposite to the rest part of the world. Meanwhile, it has been attached to different meaning in United States and other Europeans countries. In India and Pakistan, particularly among Muslims, ‘Khans’ have a different connotation.
This surname has been gaining a significant importance in defining a particular sect of Muslims or Muslims as whole. Media, particularly, films media have been trying to create entirely a different meaning of the word ‘Khan’. The surname has been used in the films to create a new class of people sharing some similarities globally. A review of the literature reveals that, not the ‘chiefs’, but Khans have been assigned controversial roles in Bollywood films and other TV shows in and outside India.