Word of the Day

: February 1, 2010

raj

noun RAHJ

What It Means

1 : rule; especially often capitalized : the former British rule of the Indian subcontinent

2 : the period of British rule in India

raj in Context

In 1930, Mahatma Gandhi launched a spectacular and highly successful campaign against the Raj, but despite all such efforts, India did not gain independence from British rule until 1947.

Did You Know?

When British trading posts were established in the Indian subcontinent in the 17th century, English speakers were immersed in the rich languages of the region, and Europeans quickly began adopting local words into their own vocabularies. By the end of the 1700s, Hindi contributions to our language ran from "ayah" (a term for a nurse or maid) to "zamindar" (a collector of land taxes or revenues). When English speakers borrowed "raj" around 1800, they used exactly the same spelling and meaning as its Hindi parent (the Hindi word in turn traces to an older term that is related to the Sanskrit word for "king"). Other words of Hindi descent that are now common in English include "chintz," "pundit," "bungalow," "veranda," "seersucker," and "bandanna."