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nabob

Etymology and origin of the English word nabob

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈneɪbɒb/ (UK); /ˈneɪbɑb/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is Anglo-Indian,[2][3] borrowed from Hindi नवाब (navāb, “governor”) or Urdu nawāb,[4][2][3][5][6] from Arabic نُوَّاب (nuwwāb), the honorific plural of nāʼib “deputy, governor”.[4][2][3][5] It is the same word as nawab.[6][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

A deputy governor of a province under the Mogul Empire (1612).[7][2][3][5]

Semantic evolution

The word was applied colloquially to Europeans who came home from India with a large fortune,[3][7][6] and from 1764 to any very rich or prominent person.[3][7]

Timeline

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A very wealthy, influential or prominent person.
  2. (history) A provincial governor in India under the Mogul Empire.
  3. (historical) A European who made a fortune in India.
  • nawab

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  5. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Nabob.” Etymologically, 11 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/nabob. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·