Baig

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Baig or Beg or Begg (Turkic: Beg, Persian: بیگ) is a Turkic family name. The wife of Baig was known as Begum or Baigum.

[edit] History

The Baig were a Turkic clan. They played a pivotal role in Turkic empires in Central Asia, Middle East and South Asia. It was also used as a military rank in the Ottoman Empire. The members of the Mughal Dynasty belonged to the Baig clan. They occupied the upper echelons of society in the conquered parts of the South Asia.

The diaspora of Baig's can also be found in Pakistan,India, Afghanistan, Iran, Central Asia, Former Yugoslav and the Balkans.

Baig comes from the Turkic word Beg or Bey, which means military commander. In most cases the honorific title Mirza (Persian: مرزا) was added before the given name and Baig (Persian: بیگ) was added as a family name.

Historically Mirza-The Given Name-Baig was the formula for the Mirza Baig ( مرزا بیگ ) name. This formula is still common in Mughal South Asia.

The title Mirza, is derived from Persian Amīrzādeh, and Arabic Amirzada, which literally means "son of the emir" or "prince", i.e. Prince of the blood. The title Mirza was commonly used by Turks and Mongols and other Muslim cultures under Persian influence, such as in Mughal South Asia. The last name Baig would have been the title of a leading general of noble blood. It would translate to "prince commander" of an army.