Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Khan” come from?

Khan derives from Turkish Kağan, from Mongolian хаан, a title for a ruler or sovereign.

Ancestry of “Khan”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Urduخانkhan
2Classical Persianخان—
3Old Turkic𐰴𐰣—
4Old Turkic𐰴𐰍𐰣khagan; king; ruler
5EnglishkaganAlternative spelling of khagan
Every word from English kagan →