What is "khan"

Cham \Cham\ (k[a^]m), n. [See Khan.] The sovereign prince of Tartary; -- now usually written khan.
--Shak.

c.1400, from Turkic, literally "lord, prince," contraction of khaqan "ruler, sovereign." Known in Europe since 13c.; compare Medieval Latin chanis, Greek kanes, Old French chan.

Etymology 1 n. 1 After Genghis Khan, a ruler over various Turkish, Tatar and Mongol peoples in the Middle Ages. 2 An Ottoman sultan. 3 A noble or man of rank in various Muslim countries of Central Asia, including Afghanistan. Etymology 2

n. A caravanserai; a resting-place for a travelling caravan.

1. n. a title given to rulers or other important people in Asian countries

2. an inn in some Eastern countries with a large courtyard that provides accommodation for caravans [syn: caravansary, caravanserai, caravan inn]

Khan, Kahn (; ; Azerbaijani: xan; Ottoman: han; Old Turkic: , kaɣan; Chinese: 可汗, kèhán; Goguryeo : 皆, key; Silla: 干, kan; Baekje: 瑕, ke; Manchu: , Pashto: خان , Balochi: خان Hindi: ख़ान; Nepali: खाँ Bengali: খ়ান; Bulgarian: хан, Chuvash: хун, hun) is originally a title for a sovereign or a military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Mongolic and later Turkic tribes living to the north of China. "Khan" also occurs as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289. The Rourans were the first people who used the titles khagan and khan for their emperors. Subsequently the Ashina adopted the title and brought it to the rest of Asia. In the middle of the sixth century the Iranians knew of a "Kagan – King of the Turks".

Khan now has many equivalent meanings such as "commander", "leader", or "ruler" "king" "chief". khans exist in South Asia, Middle East, Central Asia, Eastern Europe and Turkey. The female alternatives are Khatun and Khanum. These titles or names are sometimes written as Han, Kan, Hakan, Hanum, or Hatun (in Turkey) and as "xan", "xanım" (in Azerbaijan). Various Mongolic and Turkic peoples from Central Asia gave the title new prominence after period of the Mongol Empire (1206–1368) in the Old World and later brought the title "khan" into Northern Asia, where locals later adopted it. Khagan is rendered as Khan of Khans. It was the title of Chinese Emperor Emperor Taizong of Tang ( Heavenly Khagan, reigned 626 to 649), and also the title of Genghis Khan and of the persons selected to rule the Mongol Empire. For instance Möngke Khan (reigned 1251-1259) and Ogedei Khan (reigned 1229-1241) would be "Khagans" but not Chagatai Khan, who was not proclaimed ruler of the Mongol Empire by the kurultai.

Khan or KHAN may refer to:

• Khan (title), a title for a ruler in Turkic and Mongolian languages and used by various ethnicities
  • Genghis Khan, founder and emperor of the Mongol Empire
• Khan (surname), a family name
• Khagan, the royal title of the ruler of the Mongol Empire

Khan ( Pashto: خان , Persian: خان, Bengali: খাঁন, Balochi: ) is a surname and title of Mongolian origin.

KHAN (99.5 FM) was a radio station licensed to Chugwater, Wyoming, USA. The station was owned by Victor Michael, Jr. and Van Michael through licensee Michael Radio Group.

Khan were an English progressive rock band of the Canterbury Scene during 1971-1972.

Formed by Steve Hillage from Uriel, the initial line-up was Steve Hillage (guitar), Nick Greenwood (bass guitar, from The Crazy World of Arthur Brown), Dick Heninghem (organ) and Pip Pyle (percussion). Pyle quickly moved on to Gong and by the time the band played its first gig in June 1971 he had been replaced by Eric Peachey (from Dr. K’s Blues Band). In October 1971 Dick Heninghem left as well, replaced by Dave Stewart for the duration of the album sessions.

The album Space Shanty was released in June 1972, followed by a UK tour supporting Caravan, for which Canadian organist Val Stevens joined. The songs on Space Shanty have some of the most emotion-filled and gloriously picturesque lyrics and compositions out of the whole Canterbury scene/sound. Songs like "Stranded" and "Driving To Amsterdam" attempt atmospheres reminiscent of Uriah Heep's epic ballads (something not often done in a direct and dedicated way in the Canterbury scene - while Kevin Ayers may be comparable, a key difference is that Hillage's lyrics and compositions aren't detached or ironic).

In the summer of 1972, Hillage put together a new version of the band, retaining Peachey but adding Dave Stewart on keyboards and Nigel Griggs on bass. New material was written and rehearsed, and a few live performances took place in September–October 1972, but Decca's refusal to commit to the release of a second album led Hillage to break up the band and join Kevin Ayers's band, then Gong. Some material on Steve Hillage's first solo album, Fish Rising, was originally planned for Khan's aborted second album.

While in Gong, Hillage continued to write riffs but the larger musical dimension drew more from Daevid Allen's psychedelic lyrics and story concepts. Hillage's solo work also mostly sees him playing within the more typical Canterbury jazz/prog ( Caravan etc.), leaving the emotional record Space Shanty to be a fairly unusual 'one-off' type of recording.