khagan
noun/kɑˈɡɑn/ · /ˈkɑɡɑn/
Etymology Ultimately from Old Turkic 𐰴𐰍𐰣 (qaɣan). Doublet of khan.
1
Historical A khan of khans, a ruler of a khaganate; (the holder of) an imperial rank used among certain Turkic and Mongolian peoples, equal in status to an emperor.
- As early as the year 740 A.D., one of the Khazar kaghans had turned to Constantinople for a missionary versed in Christian law.1988, Milorad Pavić, translated by Christina Pribićević-Zorić, Dictionary of the Khazars, Vintage, published 1989, page 69:
- "A kagan is the father, the mother and the lover of all his people. Nobody would lift a hand against him," said Hanukkah.2007, Michael Chabon, Gentlemen of the Road, Sceptre, published 2008, page 52:
- Derived terms
- khaganate