Pasha

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Pasha or Paşa (Ottoman Turkish: پاشا‎; Turkish: paşa; Albanian: Pashë; Arabic: باشا‎), in older works sometimes anglicized as bashaw,[1] was a higher rank in the Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitaries, and others. As an honorary title, Pasha, in one of its various ranks, is similar to a British peerage or knighthood, and was also one of the highest titles in the 20th-century Kingdom of Egypt. The title was also used in Morocco in the 20th century, where it denoted a regional official or governor of a district.[2][3]

Etymology[]

According to Online Etymology Dictionary, pasha is derived from the earlier basha, itself from Turkish baş / bash (باش, "head, chief"), itself from Old Persian pati- ("master", from Proto-Indo-European *poti) and the root of the Persian word shah, شاه.[4] According to Oxford Dictionaries, the word has its origins in the mid-17th century, and was formed as a result of the combination of the Pahlavi words pati- "lord", and shah ( WIKI