Khan (Mongolian: хан, khan; Middle Mongolian: ᠬᠠᠭᠠᠨ, qaγan; Turkish: Kağan, Kaan or Hakan; Old Turkic: , kaγan; Chinese: 汗, hán) is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation[1] for their chief between 283 and 289.[2] The Mongolian people Niruns were the first people who used the titles Khagan and Khan for their emperors, replacing the Chanyu of the Xiongnu, whom Grousset and others assume to be Turkic.[3] It was subsequently adopted by the Ashina before the Göktürks (hence the Turkic peoples) and the Mongols brought it to the rest of Asia. In the middle of the sixth century it was known as "Kagan – King of the Turks" to the Persians.[1]
It now has many equivalent meanings such as commander, leader, or ruler. Presently Khans exist in South Asia, Central Asia, Eastern Europe and Turkey. The female alternatives are Khatun and Khanum, These titles or names are sometimes written as Han, Kan, Hakan, Hanum, or Hatun (in Turkey). Various Mongolic and Turkic peoples from Central Asia had given the title new prominence after the Mongol rule throughout the Old World and later brought the title "Khan" into Northern Asia. which later was adopted by locals in the country as a title. Khagan is rendered as Khan of Khans and was the title of Genghis Khan and the persons who are elected to rule the Mongol Empire. For instance Möngke Khan and Ogedei Khan will be "Khagans," but not Chagatai Khan who was not proclaimed ruler of the Mongol Empire by the kurultai.[4]
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A khan controls a khanate (sometimes spelled chanat. Mongolian: хаант, khaant). In the Mongolian language, "khan" is also pronounced with double "a"s like "Khaan". Khaant means "with Khaan," like "Khaant ulus" or "nation with Khan" or khanate. Whenever appropriate as ruler of a monarchy, Khan is also translated as king.
Originally khans only headed relatively minor tribal entities, generally in or near the vast Eurasian steppe, the scene of an almost endless procession of nomadic people riding out into the history of the neighbouring sedentary regions.
Some managed to establish principalities of some importance for a while, as their military might repeatedly proved a serious threat to such empires as China and kingdoms in Central Asia.
One of the earliest notable examples of such principalities in Europe was Danube Bulgaria (presumably also Old Great Bulgaria), ruled by a khan or a kan at least from the 7th to the 9th century. It should be noted that the title "khan" is not attested directly in inscriptions and texts referring to Bulgar rulers – the only similar title found so far, Kanasubigi, has been found solely in the inscriptions of three consecutive Bulgarian rulers, namely Krum, Omurtag and Malamir (a grandfather, son and grandson). Starting from the compound, non-ruler titles that were attested among Bulgarian noble class such as kavkhan (vicekhan), tarkhan, and boritarkhan, scholars derive the title khan or kan for the early Bulgarian leader – if there was a vicekhan (kavkhan) there was probably a "full" khan, too. Compare also the rendition of the name of early Bulgarian ruler Pagan as Καμπαγάνος (Kampaganos), likely resulting from a misinterpretation of "Kan Pagan", in Patriarch Nicephorus's so-called Breviarium[5] In general, however, the inscriptions as well as other sources designate the supreme ruler of Danube Bulgaria with titles that exist in the language in which they are written – archontеs, meaning 'commander or magistrate' in Greek, and knyaze, meaning 'duke' or 'prince' in Slavic. Among the best known Bulgar khans were: Khan Kubrat, founder of Great Bulgaria; Khan Asparukh, founder of Danubian Bulgaria (today's Bulgaria); Khan Tervel, who defeated the Arab invaders in 718 Siege of Constantinople (718), thus "saving Europe"; Khan Krum, "the Terrible". "Khan" was the official title of the ruler until 864 CE, when Kniaz Boris (known also as Tsar Boris I) adopted the Eastern Orthodox faith.
The title Khan became unprecedently prominent when the Mongol Temüjin created the Mongol empire, the greatest land empire the world has ever seen, which he ruled as Genghis Khan. His title was khagan 'Khan of Khans', see below, but is often 'shortened' to Khan (rather like the Persian Shahanshah -also meaning 'King of Kings'- is usually called Shah, equally incorrect, in most Western languages) or described as 'Great Khan' (like the Ottoman Padishah being called 'Great Sultan'). The great leader was regarded as a khan in the middle east and Asia.
Ming Dynasty Chinese Emperors also used the term Xan to denote brave warriors and rulers.
The title Khan was also used to designate the greatest rulers of the Jurchens, who, later when known as the Manchus, founded the Mongolian-Manchu Qing dynasty of China. The Mongolian title of the Qing emperors, Bogd Khan, would later be used by the eighth Jebtsundamba Khutuktu after Mongolia's declaration of independence in 1911.
Once more, there would be numerous khanates in the steppe in and around Central Asia, often more of a people than a territorial state, e.g.:
While most Afghan principalities were styled emirate, there was a khanate of ethnic Uzbeks in Badakhshan since 1697.
Khan was the title of the rulers of various break-away states later reintegrated in Iran, e.g. 1747–1808 Khanate of Ardabil (in northwestern Iran east of Sarab and west of the southwest corner of the Caspian Sea), 1747–1813 Khanate of Khoy (northwestern Iran, north of Lake Urmia, between Tabriz and Lake Van), 1747–1829 Khanate of Maku (in extreme northwestern Iran, northwest of Khoy, and 60 miles south of Yerevan, Armenia), 1747–1790s Khanate of Sarab (northwestern Iran east of Tabriz), 1747 – c.1800 Khanate of Tabriz (capital of Iranian Azerbeidjan).
There were various small khanates in and near Transcaucasia. In present Armenia, there was a khanate of Erivan (sole incumbent 1807–1827 Hosein Quli Khan Qajar). Diverse khanates existed in Azerbaijan, including Baku (present capital), Ganja, Jawad, Quba (Kuba), Salyan, Shakki (Sheki, ruler style Bashchi since 1743) and Shirvan=Shamakha (1748–1786 temporarily split into Khoja Shamakha and Yeni Shamakha), Talysh (1747–1814); Nakhichevan and (Nagorno) Karabakh.
As hinted above, the title Khan was also common in some of the polities of the various – generally Islamic – peoples in the territories of the Mongol Golden Horde and its successor states, which, like the Mongols in general, were commonly called Ta(r)tars[6] by Europeans and Russians, and were all eventually subdued by Muscovia which became the Russian Empire. The most important of these states were:
Further east, in imperial China's western Turkestan flank:
The higher, rather imperial title Khaqan ("Khan of Khans") applies to probably the most famous rulers known as Khan: the Mongol imperial dynasty of Genghis Khan (his name was Temüjin, Genghis Khan a never fully understood unique title), and his successors, especially grandson Kublai Khan: the former founded the Mongol Empire and the latter founded the Yuan Dynasty in China. The ruling descendants of the main branch of Genghis Khan's dynasty are referred to as the Great Khans.
The title Khan of Khans was among numerous titles used by the Sultans of the Ottoman empire as well as the rulers of the Golden Horde and its descendant states. The title Khan was also used in the Seljuk Turk dynasties of the near-east to designate a head of multiple tribes, clans or nations, who was below an Atabeg in rank. Jurchen and Manchu rulers also used the title Khan (Han in Manchu); for example, Nurhaci was called Genggiyen Han. Rulers of the Göktürks, Avars and Khazars used the higher title Kaghan, as rulers of distinct nations.
In imperial Persia, Khan (female form Khanum) was the title of a nobleman, higher than Beg (or bey) and usually used after the given name. At the Qajar court, precedence for those not belonging to the dynasty was mainly structured in eight classes, each being granted an honorary rank title, the fourth of which was Khan, or in this context synonymously Amir, granted to commanders of armed forces, provincial tribal leaders; in descending order, they thus ranked below Nawab (for princes), Shakhs-i-Awwal and Janab (both for high officials), but above 'Ali Jah Muqarrab, 'Ali Jah, 'Ali Sha'an (these three for lower military ranks and civil servants) and finally 'Ali Qadir (masters of guilds, etc.)
The titles Khan (the lowest commonly awarded) and Khan Bahadur (Mongolic root baghatur, related to the Mongolian baatar 'brave, hero'; were also bestowed in feudal India by the Great mughal (whose protocol was largely Persian-inspired) upon Muslims, and later by the British Raj, as an honor akin to the ranks of nobility, often for loyalty to the crown. Khan Sahib was another title of honour, one degree higher than Khan, conferred on Muslims; again like Khan Bahadur, it was also awarded with a decoration during British rule.
In the major South Asian Muslim state of Hyderabad, Khan was the lowest of the aristocratic titles bestowed by the ruling Nizam upon Muslim retainers, ranking under Khan Bahadur, Nawab (homonymous with a high Muslim ruler's title), Jang, Daula, Mulk, Umara, Jah. The equivalent for the courts Hindu retainers was Rai.
In Swat, a Pakistani Frontier State, it was the title of the secular elite, who, together with the Mullahs (Muslim clerics), proceeded to elect a new Amir-i-Shariyat in 1914.
It seems unclear whether the series of titles known from the Bengal sultanate, including Khan, Khan ul Muazzam, Khan-ul-Azam, Khan-ul-Azam-ul-Muazzam etc. and Khaqan, Khaqan-ul-Muazzam, Khaqan-ul-Azam, Khaqan-ul-Azam-ul-Muazzam etc., are merely honorific or perhaps relate to a military hierarchy.
Like many titles, the meaning of the term has also extended downwards, until in Persia and Afghanistan it has become an affix to the name of any Muslim gentleman, like Effendi in Osmanli, Esquire in English.
See jirga for local mediators called Khan.
Khan and its female forms occur in many personal names, generally without any nobiliary of political relevance (although it remains a common part of noble names as well). Notably in South Asia it has become a part of many South Asian Muslim names, especially when Pashtun descent is claimed.
During the Russian Civil War following the Bolshevik takeover of 1917, White general Roman Ungern von Sternberg, who, admittedly was trying to reconstitute the empire of Genghis Khan, was often styled as "Ungern Khan" between 1919 and his death in 1921.
The title khan influenced Iran and the Muslim countries in Central Asia, but in Arab World (the origin of Islam), khan is the word for "inn" (its first use was applied to "inn for the caravans").