Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
noun
- a king or prince in India.
- a minor chief or dignitary.
- an honorary title conferred on Hindus in India.
- a title of rulers, princes, or chiefs in Java, Borneo, etc.
noun
- (in India, formerly) a ruler or landlord: sometimes used as a form of address or as a title preceding a name
- a Malayan or Javanese prince or chieftain
also raja, “king or prince in India,” 1550s, from Hindi, from Sanskrit rajan “king,” related to raj “kingdom, kingship,” rajati “he rules,” and cognate with Latin rex, Old Irish rig “king” (see regal). Related: Rajput, “member of the ruling caste in northern India” (1590s), from Sanskrit rajaputrah “prince,” literally “king’s son,” from putrah “son, boy” (cf. puerile).