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.