سلطان

Arabic

Suleiman I of the Ottoman Empire

Etymology

From Aramaic שׁוּלְטָנָא‎ / ܫܘܼܠܛܵܢܵܐ‎ (šulṭānā, “power”); compare the root س ل ط‎ (s-l-ṭ).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sul.tˤaːn/

Noun

سُلْطَان • (sulṭān) m or f (usually uncountable)

1. power, strength
2. rule, dominion
3. authority
   • 609–632 C.E., Qur'an, 53:23:

     ‏إِنْ هِيَ إِلَّا أَسْمَاءٌ سَمَّيْتُمُوهَا أَنْتُمْ وَآبَاؤُكُم مَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ بِهَا مِن سُلْطَانٍ إِن يَتَّبِعُونَ إِلَّا الظَّنَّ وَمَا تَهْوَى الأَنْفُسُ وَلَقَدْ جَاءَهُم مِن رَبِّهِمُ الهُدَى‎

     ʾin hiya ʾillā ʾasmāʾun sammaytumūhā ʾantum wa-ʾābāʾukum mā ʾanzala l-lahu bihā min sulṭānin ʾin yattabiʿūna ʾillā ẓ-ẓanna wa-mā tahwā l-ʾanfusu wa-laqad jāʾahum min rabbihimu l-hudā

     These are but names which you have coined—you and your fathers—for which God has not sent down any authority. They follow nothing but conjectures and the desires of the [lower] soul, while there has already come to them the guidance from their Lord.

4. mandate, authorization
5. proof, evidence, an argument or case against
6. a plea, an allegation, the grounds or basis for one's case being superior
7. justification

Declension

Declension of noun سُلْطَان (sulṭān)

Singular	basic singular triptote
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	سُلْطَان sulṭān	السُّلْطَان‎ as-sulṭān	سُلْطَان sulṭān
Nominative	سُلْطَانٌ sulṭānun	السُّلْطَانُ‎ as-sulṭānu	سُلْطَانُ sulṭānu
Accusative	سُلْطَانًا‎ sulṭānan	السُّلْطَانَ‎ as-sulṭāna	سُلْطَانَ sulṭāna
Genitive	سُلْطَانٍ sulṭānin	السُّلْطَانِ‎ as-sulṭāni	سُلْطَانِ sulṭāni

Noun

سُلْطَان • (sulṭān) m (plural سَلَاطِين‎ (salāṭīn))

1. sultan

Declension

Declension of noun سُلْطَان (sulṭān)

Singular	basic singular triptote
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	سُلْطَان sulṭān	السُّلْطَان‎ as-sulṭān	سُلْطَان sulṭān
Nominative	سُلْطَانٌ sulṭānun	السُّلْطَانُ‎ as-sulṭānu	سُلْطَانُ sulṭānu
Accusative	سُلْطَانًا‎ sulṭānan	السُّلْطَانَ‎ as-sulṭāna	سُلْطَانَ sulṭāna
Genitive	سُلْطَانٍ sulṭānin	السُّلْطَانِ‎ as-sulṭāni	سُلْطَانِ sulṭāni
Dual	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	سُلْطَانَيْن‎ sulṭānayn	السُّلْطَانَيْن‎ as-sulṭānayn	سُلْطَانَيْ‎ sulṭānay
Nominative	سُلْطَانَانِ‎ sulṭānāni	السُّلْطَانَانِ‎ as-sulṭānāni	سُلْطَانَا‎ sulṭānā
Accusative	سُلْطَانَيْنِ‎ sulṭānayni	السُّلْطَانَيْنِ‎ as-sulṭānayni	سُلْطَانَيْ‎ sulṭānay
Genitive	سُلْطَانَيْنِ‎ sulṭānayni	السُّلْطَانَيْنِ‎ as-sulṭānayni	سُلْطَانَيْ‎ sulṭānay
Plural	basic broken plural diptote
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	سَلَاطِين‎ salāṭīn	السَّلَاطِين‎ as-salāṭīn	سَلَاطِين‎ salāṭīn
Nominative	سَلَاطِينُ‎ salāṭīnu	السَّلَاطِينُ‎ as-salāṭīnu	سَلَاطِينُ‎ salāṭīnu
Accusative	سَلَاطِينَ‎ salāṭīna	السَّلَاطِينَ‎ as-salāṭīna	سَلَاطِينَ‎ salāṭīna
Genitive	سَلَاطِينَ‎ salāṭīna	السَّلَاطِينِ‎ as-salāṭīni	سَلَاطِينِ‎ salāṭīni

Descendants

• Maltese: sultan
• → Georgian: სულთანი (sultani)
• → Hebrew: סוּלְטָן‎
• → Icelandic: soldán
• → Italian: sultano
• → Northern Kurdish: sultan
• → Kyrgyz: султан (sultan)
• → Malay: سلطان‎ (sultan)
  • → Indonesian: sultan
  • → Tagalog: sultan
• → Maranao: solutan
• → Medieval Latin: sultānus
  • Old French: soudan, souldan
    • → Middle English: soudan, soldan
      • English: soldan
    • → Catalan: soldà
• → Middle Armenian: սուլթան (sultʿan)
  • Armenian: սուլթան (sultʿan)
• → Persian: سلطان‎ (soltân)
  • → Assamese: চুলতান (sultan)
  • → Bengali: সুলতান (śultan)
  • → Gujarati: સુલતાન (sultān)
  • → Hindustani:
    • Hindi: सुल्तान (sultān)
    • Urdu: سلطان‎ (sultān)
  • → Kazakh: сұлтан (sultan)
  • → Marathi: सुलतान (sultān)
  • → Old Gujarati: सुरताण (suratāṇa)
    • Gujarati: સરતાણ (sartāṇ)
  • Tajik: султон (sulton)
  • → Tatar: солтан (soltan)
  • → Turkmen: soltan
  • → Uyghur: سۇلتان‎ (sultan)
  • → Uzbek: sulton
• → Russian: султан (sultan)
• → Ottoman Turkish: سلطان‎ (sultan)
  • Turkish: sultan
  • → Catalan: sultà
  • → Byzantine Greek: σουλτᾶνος (soultânos)
    • Greek: σουλτάνος (soultános)
  • → Hungarian: szultán
  • → Middle French: sultan
    • French: sultan
      • → Faroese: sultánur
      • → Portuguese: sultão
    • → English: sultan
  • → Polish: sułtan
  • → Romanian: sultan
  • → Serbo-Croatian: sùltān, су̀лта̄н
  • → Spanish: sultán

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Malay

Alternative forms

• sultan

Etymology

From Arabic سلطان‎.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sul.taːn/

Noun

سلطان (plural سلطان٢‎, informal 1st possessive سلطانکو‎, impolite 2nd possessive سلطانمو‎, 3rd possessive سلطانڽ‎)

1. sultan

Further reading

• “سلطان” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.

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Ottoman Turkish

Etymology

From Arabic سُلْطَان‎ (sulṭān).

Noun

سلطان • (sultan)

1. sultan

Descendants

• Turkish: sultan
• → Catalan: sultà
• → Byzantine Greek: σουλτᾶνος (soultânos)
  • Greek: σουλτάνος (soultános)
• → Hungarian: szultán
• → Middle French: sultan
  • French: sultan
    • → Faroese: sultánur
    • → Portuguese: sultão
  • → English: sultan
• → Polish: sułtan
• → Romanian: sultan
• → Serbo-Croatian: sùltān, су̀лта̄н
• → Spanish: sultán

Related terms

• سلطانی‎ (santanî)
• سلطانلق‎ (saltanlık)
• سلطنت‎ (saltanat)

References

• Kélékian, Diran (1911), “سلطان”, in Dictionnaire turc-français, Constantinople: Mihran, page 689
• Redhouse, James W. (1890), “سلطان”, in A Turkish and English Lexicon, Constantinople: A. H. Boyajian, page 1072

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Persian

Etymology

From Arabic سُلْطَان‎ (sulṭān).

Noun

سلطان • (soltân)

1. sultan
2. king

Synonyms

• پادشاه‎ (pâdešâh)

Descendants

• → Assamese: চুলতান (sultan)
• → Bengali: সুলতান (śultan)
• → Gujarati: સુલતાન (sultān)
• → Hindustani:
  • Hindi: सुल्तान (sultān)
  • Urdu: سلطان‎ (sultān)
• → Kazakh: сұлтан (sultan)
• → Marathi: सुलतान (sultān)
• → Old Gujarati: सुरताण (suratāṇa)
  • Gujarati: સરતાણ (sartāṇ)
• Tajik: султон (sulton)
• → Tatar: солтан (soltan)
• → Turkmen: soltan
• → Uyghur: سۇلتان‎ (sultan)
• → Uzbek: sulton

Related terms

• سلطانه‎ (soltâne)

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Urdu

Etymology

From Classical Persian سلطان‎ (sultān), from Arabic سُلْطَان‎ (sulṭān).

Noun

سلطان • (sultān) m (Hindi spelling सुल्तान)

1. sultan
2. king