Definition: Sultan
Etymology
From French sultan, from Ottoman Turkish سلطان or sultan, from Arabic سÙلْطَان or sulá¹Än (strength, authority, ruler). Compare Hebrew שִ×לְטוֹן or shiltón and Hebrew סוּלְטָן or sultán.
Noun
sultan (countable and uncountable, plural sultans)
- (historical) The holder of a secular office, formally subordinate to, but de facto the power behind the throne of, the caliph.
- A hereditary ruler in various Muslim states (sultanate), varying from petty principalities (as in Yemen), often vassal of a greater ruler, to independent realms, such as Oman, Brunei, Morocco (until 1956), or an empire such as the Turkish Ottoman Empire.
- (card games) A variant of solitaire, played with two decks of cards.
- A breed of chicken originating in Turkey, kept primarily in gardens for ornamental reasons.
Derived terms
- sultana
- sultanate
Credits
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