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TERMS IN MEDIEVAL HISTORY
| Amils | Revenue officers |
| Amir-i-akhu | Amir or officer commanding the horse |
| Amir-i-haji | Officer-in-charge of the royal court |
| Amirul Mominin | Commander of the Faithful; the Caliph |
| Arz-i-mamalik | Minister in charge of the army of the whole country |
| Abwa | Miscellaneous cesses and imposts and charges levied by zamindars and public officials |
| Adl | Justice |
| Afaqis | Foreigners (in the Deccan) |
| Ahadi | Gentleman troopers |
| Ahl-i-qalam | A scribe |
| Amil/amalguza | Revenue collecto |
| Amu Darya | The River Oxus |
| Arraba | A wagon or a cart |
| Ashraf | A person of noble birth; a gentleman |
| Ataliq | Guardian |
| Aurang | Persian term for warehouse |
| Avangas | Dohas popularised by Marathi Bhakti saints |
| Ayagara System | Village servants or functionaries |
| Banduqchi | Musketee |
| Bania/Baniya/Baniyan | Merchant; in some areas also refers to money-changer or banker; a caste traditionally engaged in the above activities |
| Banja | Waste or fallow-land and is unfit for cultivation |
| Banjara | Grain and cattle merchant; name of an itinerant tribe |
| Baqqal | Trader or a grain-deale |
| Barawardi | A recruit on ad-hoc pay |
| Bargi or bargirl | An auxiliary soldier/ a plundere |
| Batai | Division of the crop between the cultivator and the landlord or the government; payments may be in kind or cash |
| Bayutat | House-hold expenses; especially royal karkhanas |
| Beg | Noble |
| Bidat | Innovations in matters of religion |
| Balaha | The lowest grade of the agricultural peasant |
| Banjara | A corn merchant |
| Barawardi | Under Akbar, advanced paid to the Mansabdars |
| Barid | Intelligence officer appointed by the state to collect information |
| Bhandarawada village | Crown village- income from these went to maintenance of forts in the Vijayanagara empire |
| Bharood | New form of Marathi religious song introduced by Saint Eknath |
| Cartaz | A permit given by the Portuguese to traders |
| Chacha | Land out of cultivation for 3-4 years |
| Chauth or chauthai | One-fourth of the land-revenue; originally a zamindari charge in Gujarat was demanded by Shivaji as war expense. |
| Chetti/Chettia | Merchant caste of South India |
| Charai | A tax on cattle |
| Chat | Royal umbrella |
| Dadni | Giving of advances (dadan) to artisans by merchants |
| Dalvay | Commande |
| Dagh | System of branding of horses and animals |
| Dahsala | Revenue settlement based on assessment of ten (dah) years revenue Dalai |
| Dallal | Broke |
| Dam | A copper coin; considered 1/40 of a silver rupee for official purposes |
| Darogha | A minor officer in charge of a local office |
| Dar-ul-ha | Land not owing allegiance to Muslim rule; enemy land |
| Dastu | Rule/assessment circle |
| Dastur-al-amal | Rule book |
| Dasavananda or Kattu-Kodage | Income from agricultural investments; share in the increased productivity of the land earned by the person who undertook such development work |
| Dhimmi | A non-Muslim client or subject |
| Diwan | Chief financial minister/a department/a book of verses |
| Doa | The land between the Yamuna and the Ganges |
| Duaspa / sihaspa | A technical term meaning twice the number of sawars entertained otherwise |
| Dagh | Mark of branding |
| Darul Adl | The market of Delhi or cloth and other commodities; literally, a place of justice |
| Farman | A royal orde |
| Farr-i-izadi | Divine Light communicated to ideal rulers |
| Gandaberunda | A double eagle on the coins of the Vijayanagara Empire |
| Gazz-i-Sikandari | The yard of Sultan Sikandar Lodi Gumashta |
| Gajnal | A swivel gun born by an elephant (gaj) |
| Garhi | A hill fort/mud fort made of thick clay |
| Ghalla-bakshi | One mode of batai |
| Ghari | Foreigners (in the Deccan) |
| Ghazi | A hero or a soldier fighting against infidels |
| Ghusal-Khana | Private audience hall near the bathroom |
| Gumashta | An agent or representative Gunj; ganj Mart |
| Habshi | Abyssinian or East African |
| Hadis | Acts or words of the Arabian prophet |
| Hakim | A governor or a commande |
| Hakim | A physician or a sage |
| Hammam | Room for Bath of hot and cold wate |
| Haram | Forbidden |
| Harmandi | The Sikh golden Temple at Amritsa |
| Hasil | Actual realization (of land revenue) |
| Havalda | Head of the unit with 25 horse mounted men |
| Hun | A gold coin |
| Hundi | A bill of exchange |
| Ijara | Revenue-farming for the highest bidde |
| Ijarada | Farmer of any item of public revenue; mainly land |
| Imam | Supreme commander or leader; also the person leading the congregation Muslim prayers |
| Inam | Gift; benefaction; land held free of revenue or at low rates of revenue |
| Jagi | Income from a piece of land assigned to officers by the rule |
| Jagirda | Holder of a jagi |
| Jama | Total sum; total land revenue levied from an estate or division of country |
| Jamabandi | Settlement of the amount of revenue assessed upon an estate; a village or district |
| Jama-dami | Assessed income in terms of dams |
| Jama-i-kamil | Maximum assessment |
| Jamiat | A military following |
| Jari | A system of land measurement or survey |
| Jharoka Darshan | Showing of the Emperor to the Public from the Palace |
| Jihad | Holy wa |
| Jihat | Extra cesses |
| Jins-i-Kamil | Perfect crops; crops par excellence |
| Jizya | It has two meanings: (a) in the literature of the Delhi Sultanat- any tax which is not kharaj or land tax; (b) in the shari’at- a personal and yearly tax on non- Muslims |
| Junglah | Horses of mixed breed |
| Kafi | Non-Muslim (literally; one who is un grateful to God) |
| Kankut | Estimation of land revenue |
| Karinda | Agent |
| Karkhanas | Royal factories or enterprises for producing or collecting commodities required by the state |
| Karori | A revenue official |
| Khalifa | Caliph/ Commander of the Faithful; or successor of a sufi |
| Khalisa land | Land held and managed directly by the state |
| Khalsa | The Sikh order set up by Guru Govind |
| Khanazad | One born in the house; old (Turkish) employees |
| Khanqahs | A house of mystics but more commodious than the jama’at khana |
| Kharif | Winter crop |
| Khassakhel | Large number of bodyguards employed by the Bahmani rulers |
| Khil’at | Robe of honou |
| Khilafat Caliphate | Commander of the faithful |
| Khiraj | Kharaj tax; especially land revenue |
| Khud-kasht | Owner of land who cultivates with his own ploughs and bullock and some hired labour, Also a resident cultivato |
| Kiapila or Mohte | Lift Irrigation Devices |
| Kuf | Disbelief |
| Kulkarni | Village accountant |
| Kulah Daran | ‘Kulah’ meaning cap; Sayyids were known as Kulah Daran |
| Kunbi | Caste of cultivators in Maharashtra |
| Liwan | Ante chambe |
| Madad- i-ma’ash | Assignment of revenue by the government for the support of learned or religious persons or benevolent institutions. |
| Madrasa | An educational institution |
| Mahajan | Merchant or a banke |
| Mahal | A group of lands regarded as a unit for land revenue purposes |
| Mahawara-un-Nahart | Transoxiana |
| Mahza | A declaration signed by ulama |
| Malik | Owne |
| Malikana | Special allowance assigned to zamindar or landowne |
| Malikut-Tujja | Literally means chief of merchants; a title given to one of the highest officer of the state |
| Mansa | Military rank conferred by the Mughal Government |
| Mansabda | Holder of a mansa |
| Manya village | Tax free villages in the Vijayanagara empire |
| Mapillah | Muslim community in Kerala |
| Mast Kalanda | Besharas were also called as Mast Kalandars. They were the wandering monks |
| Math | Monastery |
| Mauza | Revenue term for a village |
| Mawas | Rebellious areas, where land revenue was often extracted with the use of force |
| Mewras | Postal runners who passed letters and other important items |
| Mihra | High alters from which the priest prays. |
| Miras | Hereditary right |
| Mirasda | Holder of miras lands; payers of revenue to the state |
| Mokasa | Grant of land for military service or a rent-free land. |
| Muhtasi | An officer appointed to maintain regulations in a municipality |
| Mujannas | Mixed breed of Arabi and Iraqi horses. |
| Mujtahid | One entitled to interpret holy laws |
| Mulhid | A heretic one who renounces the faith. |
| Mullahs | Persons claiming to be religious leaders of the Musalmans |
| Muqaddam | Village headman; literally the first or senior man |
| Murid | Disciple |
| Mustaufi | An auditor of accounts specially of those collecting land revenue. |
| Mutasaddi | A writer a clerk |
| Munihians | Spies |
| Nabud | Remission of land revenue on account of natural disasters. |
| Nabuwat | Prophethood |
| Nai | Deputy/assistant/agent/ representative |
| Na-Khuda | Commander or captain of a ship |
| Narnal | Swivel gun carried by men |
| Nasaq | A mode of assessment |
| Naukar/Noka | Servant; a term used by Timurid rulers for their nobles |
| Nawa | Viceroy/ governor; title of rank |
| Nazrana | Gift usually from inferior to superior; forced contribution |
| Nilgai | A kind of dee |
| Paha | One-eigth of a day i.e. three hours |
| Pahi | A non-resident cultivator or a temporary cultivato |
| Paibaqi | Land reserved for allotment in jagi |
| Paibos | Kissing the feet; a ceremony generally reserved for God |
| Pata | Mistress/ kept woman/common law wife. |
| Patel | Village headman |
| Patta | Document given by collector of revenue to the revenue payer stating terms on which the land is held and the amount payable |
| Pattamswami | Leader of the trade association |
| Pettai | Commercial Centres in Vijayanagara kingdom |
| Pattadai | People who worked in workshops |
| Patwari | Village accountant |
| Peshka | Agent or the manager of finances |
| Peshkash | Tribute from subordinate rulers |
| Polaj | Land constantly in cultivation |
| Qanungos | Responsible for keeping land records at Paragana |
| Qasba | Small town |
| Qazi-u-Quazat | Chief qazi; head of the judiciary |
| Rabi | The winter crop |
| Rahdari | Protection money paid by travelers |
| Rai | A Hindu chief usually one having his own territory and army |
| Raiyat | Subjects or payers of land-revenue |
| Raiyati | Areas without a zamindar or where cultivation of land-revenue was easy and productive. |
| Ray | A schedule |
| Rekh | Assessed land revenue in Rajasthan |
| Riyayati | Sections assessed at a concessional rate |
| Sair/saye | Taxes other than land revenue; transit duties |
| Sama | Music; sometimes accompanied by dance for the mystics |
| Saranjam | Land allotted in lieu of military service |
| Sardeshmukhi | One-tenth of the assessed income |
| Sarrafs | Money-changers and bankers |
| Sayurghal | Rent-free land |
| Shahbanda | Official in charge of a port |
| Shariat | Muslim religious law |
| Shroff | Banker and moneylender; moneychange |
| Sijdah | Prostration/theoretically before God |
| Sondha | Agricultural loans by Mohammad Bin Tughlaq |
| Sthala, Marga and Manula Dayam | Various transit taxes in the Vijayanagara empire |
| Sufis | Mystics |
| Sumant or Dabi | Foreign Secretary to advise the king |
| Tabinan | Amount received by the Mansabda |
| Tappa | Small estate or a group of villages |
| Taqqavi | Advance of money for sowing or extending cultivation. |
| Taqlid | Religious show without real piety/ hypocrisy |
| Tarafs | Territorial divisions in the Bahmani Kingdom |
| Tasawwuf | Mysticism |
| Tauhid | Unity of God |
| Upari | Temporary occupant; tenant-at-will |
| Usa | Barren land |
| Varaha | Gold coins by Vijayanagara rulers |
| Vatan/watan | Hereditary lands |
| Wafa-i-Farmani | Officially decreed yields; part of ‘reforms’ of Mohammad Bin Tughlaq |
| Wahdat-al-Wajud | Unity of God and the beings |
| Wahdat ash Shuhood | Apparentism; God and his creation are separate; Advocated by Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi |
| Wajh | Money/salary |
| Wajhda | A salaried office |
| Wali | Governor/guardian / Successo |
| Wali-ahad | heir-presumptive |
| Waqia-Navis | News reporters |
| Wazir-i-mutlnq | Wazir with full powers one who could administer without interference by the king |
| Yassa | Regulations or code book of Chingiz |
| Zabt/ zabti | System of assessment based on measurement |
| Zawabit | Secular laws |
| Zimmi/dhintmi | Protected non-Muslim |
| Zor-tala | Areas of turbulence often held by powerful zamindars. |