Bey is a Turkish^[1][2][3] title for "chieftain," traditionally applied to the leaders of small tribal groups. Turkish ( tr Türkçe IPA) is a language spoken by over 63 million people worldwide making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. In historical accounts, many Turkish, other Turkic and Persian leaders are titled Bey, Beg or Beigh. Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches The Turkic peoples are Eurasian peoples residing in northern central and western Eurasia who speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics. They are all the same word with the simple meaning of "lord. " The regions or provinces where Beys (the equivalent of duke in Europe) ruled or which they administered were called Beylik, roughly meaning "emirate" or "principality" in the first case, "province" or "governorate" in the second (the equivalent of duchy in Europe). A duke is a member of the Nobility, historically of highest rank below the Sovereign, and historically controlled a Duchy or a Dukedom A duchy is a territory fief, or domain ruled by a Duke or Duchess. Today, the word is used as a social title for men (like the English word "mister").

Contents 1 Turkish beys 2 Beys elsewhere 3 Etymology 4 See also 5 Notes 6 References

Turkish beys

The first three rulers of the Ottoman realm were titled Bey. The chief sovereign of the Ottoman Empire only came to be called sultan starting in 1383 when Murad I was granted this title by the shadow caliph in Cairo. The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish Sultan (سلطان is an Islamic title with several historical meanings Murad I (nick-named Hüdavendigâr - from Khodāvandgār - "the God-like One" (I The Caliph is the Head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the leader of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah Cairo () which means "the Vanquisher" or "the Triumphant" is the capital and largest city of Egypt.

The Ottoman state had started out as one of a dozen Turkish Ghazi Beyliks, roughly comparable to western European duchies, into which Anatolia (i. thumb|350px|Anatolian Turkish Beyliks map Anatolian Beyliks or Turkmen Beyliks ( Turkish: Anadolu Beylikleri, Ottoman Turkish: Anatolia (Anadolu Ανατολία Anatolía) or Asia minor, comprising most of modern Turkey, is the geographic region bounded by the Black e. , Asian Turkey, or Asia Minor) had been divided after the break-up of the Seljuk Sultanate of Ikonion (Konya) and the military demise of the Byzantine Empire. Anatolia (Anadolu Ανατολία Anatolía) or Asia minor, comprising most of modern Turkey, is the geographic region bounded by the Black The Seljuq (also Seljuq Turks, Seldjuks, Seldjuqs, Seljuks; in Turkish Selçuklular; in Ṣaljūqīyān; in Konya ( قونیه; also Koniah, Konieh, Konia, and Qunia; historically also known as Iconium ( Latin Its capital was Bursa. Bursa (historically also known as Prussa, Greek: Προύσα and later as Brusa) is a city in northwestern Turkey and the seat By 1336 it had annexed only the Beylik of Karasy, its western neighbour on the coast of the Sea of Marmara, but it began to expand quite rapidly thereafter. thumb|350px|Anatolian Turkish Beyliks map Anatolian Beyliks or Turkmen Beyliks ( Turkish: Anadolu Beylikleri, Ottoman Turkish: The Sea of Marmara ( Turkish: Marmara Denizi, Greek: Θάλασσα του Μαρμαρά or Προποντίς, Bulgarian

As the Ottoman realm grew from a Beylik into an imperial sultanate, the title "Bey" came to be applied to subordinate military and administrative officers, such as a district administrator and lower-level minor military governors. The latter were usually titled sanjakbey (after the term "Sanjak", denoting a military horsetail banner). Sanjak-bey Sanjaq-bey or -beg was the Turkish title of the Bey (high officer but usually not a Pasha) in military and administrative command of a Beys were lower in rank than pashas and provincial governors (walis, usually holding the title of pasha), who governed most of the Ottoman vilayets (provinces), but higher than effendis. Pasha or pacha, formerly bashaw, (paşa پاشا ( Persian: پاشا ( Armenian: Փաշա was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire Wali (Arabic ولي, plural Awliya ' أولياء) is an Arabic word meaning trusted one or friend generally denoting A wilāyah (ولاية or vilâyet (in Persian and Ottoman Turkish) is an administrative division usually

Eventually the chiefs of the former Ottoman capitals Bursa and Edirne (formerly the Byzantine Adrianople) in Turkish Thrace both were designated "Bey. Bursa (historically also known as Prussa, Greek: Προύσα and later as Brusa) is a city in northwestern Turkey and the seat Edirne (anc Hadrianopolis; Greek Adrianople; Slavic/Bulgarian Одрин, see also its other names) is a city in Thrace, the westernmost Edirne (anc Hadrianopolis; Greek Adrianople; Slavic/Bulgarian Одрин, see also its other names) is a city in Thrace, the westernmost Thrace (Тракия Trakiya or "Trakija" or Trakia, Θράκη Thráki, Trakya is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe "

Over time the title became somewhat devalued, as Bey was even used a courtesy title (alongside Pashazade) for a pasha's son. Pasha or pacha, formerly bashaw, (paşa پاشا ( Persian: پاشا ( Armenian: Փաշա was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire It also came to be attached to officers and dignitaries below those entitled to be pashas, notably the following military officer ranks (still lower ranks were styled efendi):

• Miralai (army colonel or navy captain)
• Kaimakam (army lieutenant-colonel or navy commander)

Oddly, the compound Beyefendi was part of the title of the husband (full style Damad-i-Shahyari (given name) Beyefendi) and sons (full style Sultanzade (given name) Beyefendi) of an Imperial Princess, and their sons in turn were entitled to the courtesy title Beyzade (literally "Son of a Bey". A kaymakam (also spelled kaimakam and caimacam) is the title used for the Governor of a provincial District in the Republic of Sultan (سلطان is an Islamic title with several historical meanings For the grandsons of an imperial princess, the official style was simply Bey after the name. ).

By the late 19th century, "Bey" had been reduced in Ottoman Turkey to an honorary equivalent of the English-speaking address (not the British courtesy title) "Sir", somewhat akin to the contemporary Cockney usage of "guv'nor. The term Cockney has both geographical and linguistic associations " While in Qazaq and other Central Asian Turkic languages, бай [baj] remains a rather honorific title, in modern Turkish, and in Azerbaijan, the word "bey" (or "bay") simply means "mister" (compare efendi) or "sir" and is used in the meaning of "chieftain" only in historical context. Kazakh (also Qazaq and variants natively kk Qazaq tili, kk Қазақ тілі; pronounced tˈlə is a Turkic language closely related to The Turkic languages constitute a Language family of some thirty languages spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Azerbaijan ( English; Azərbaycan officially the Republic of Azerbaijan (Azərbaycan Respublikası is the largest and most populous country in the South Bay is also used in Turkish in combined form for certain military ranks, e. g. albay, meaning colonel, from alay "regiment" and -bay, and yarbay, meaning lieutenant colonel, from yardim "assistance" and -bay (thus an "assistant albay"). Colonel ( RP ˈkɜnəl GA ˈkɜrnəl is a Military rank of a Commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every country Lieutenant Colonel ( Lieutenant-Colonel in English from the French grade 's spelling is a rank of Commissioned officer in the armies

As with most Turkish titles, it follows the name rather than precedes it as in western languages, e. g. "Ahmet Bey" for "Mr. Ahmet". Its uses are as follows — when you speak of Mr. Ahmet, the title has to be written with a capital (Ahmet Bey), but when you address him directly it is simply written without capital: Ahmet bey. Bey may combine with efendi to give a common form of address, to which the possessive suffix -(i)m is usually added: beyefendim, efendim.

Beyefendi has its feminine counterpart: hanımefendi [haˈnɯmefendi], used alone, to address a woman without her first name. And with the first name: Ayşe Hanım or Ayşe hanım, for example, according to the rule given above about the use of the capital letter.

Under Ottoman rule the title was used also in Albania (Albanian language: bej, be, or beu), in two forms:

• in the Gheg north, as a title given specifically to the officials of the Ottoman Empire. This article is about the country in southern Europe For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Albania topics. Albanian (sq ''Gjuha shqipe'' ˈɟuha ˈʃcipɛ is an Indo-European language spoken by nearly 6 million peoplewhile others claim that it derives from Daco - Gheg (or Geg) is one of the two major dialects of the Albanian language.
• in the Tosk south, it was not only used in a similar fashion, but the main use of the name came to be Bey of the Village. The mayoral "beys" in Tosk villages formed a wealthy but largely illiterate elite, exploiting the peasants who were bound to the land in a status comparable to serfdom, a state of affairs continued in the Tosk districts even after Albanian independence in 1912, as King Zog took power and forbade the "Beys" to mistreat the peasants. Year 1912 ( MCMXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting

The term is not used anymore in Albania except when referring to historical figures and events or for humorous purposes (meaning to joke about someone who does not possess a clear thinking ability). Nevertheless, a select number of families still use the bey-ending in their last names. It is often cited as tribute to past blood lines. However, the name is generally associated with the Çabej line of Albania.

Beys elsewhere

The title Bey could be maintained as a similar office within Arab states that broke away from the High Porte, such as Khedive Mehmet Ali's Egypt, where it was a rank below Pasha (maintained in two rank classes after 1922), and a title of courtesy for a Pasha's son. For the HMS Khedive, see ''USS'' Cordova. Khedive (from Persian for "lord" was a title first Mehmet Ali may refer to Mehmet (Muhammad Ali (1769–1849 viceroy of Egypt Mehemed Emin Aali Pasha (1815–1871 Turkish statesman Pasha or pacha, formerly bashaw, (paşa پاشا ( Persian: پاشا ( Armenian: Փաշա was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire

Even much earlier, the virtual sovereign's title in Barbaresque North African 'regency' states was "Bey" (compare Dey). Dey (Arabic داي from Turkish Dayı) was the title given to the rulers of the Regency of Algiers ( Algeria) and Tunis ( Tunisia) under Notably in Tunis, the Husainid Dynasty used a whole series of title and styles including Bey:

• Just Bey itself was part of the territorial title of the ruler, and also as a title used by all male members of the family (rather like Sultan in the Ottoman dynasty). Tunis ( Arabic: تونس Tūnis) is the Capital of the Tunisian Republic and also the Tunis The Husainid Dynasty is the former ruling dynasty of Tunisia originally of Cretan origin
• Bey al-Kursi 'Bey of the Throne', a term equivalent to reigning prince.
• Bey al-Mahalla 'Bey of the Camp', title used for the next most senior member of the Beylical family after the reigning Bey, the Heir Apparent to the throne.
• Bey al-Taula 'Bey of the Table', the title of the Heir Presumptive, the eldest prince of the Beylical family, who enjoyed precedence immediately after the Bey al-Mahalla.
• Beylerbeyi (or Beglerbegi) 'Lord of Lords', was the administrative rank formally enjoyed by the ruler of Tunis and by rulers of parts of the Balkans in their official capacity of Ottoman Governor-General within the Turkish empire. " Beylerbeyi " redirects here Beylerbey (from Beylerbeyi, Ottoman Turkish for " Bey of Beys" meaning "Commander

Other Beys saw their own Beylik promoted to statehood, e. g. :

• in Qusantina (Constantine in French), an Ottoman district subject to the Algiers regency since 1525 (had its own Beys since 1567), the last incumbent, Ahmed Bey ben Mohamed Chérif (b. Constantine ( Arabic: is the capital of Constantine Province in north-eastern Algeria. At about the time Spain was establishing its Presidios in the Maghreb, the Muslim Privateer brothers Aruj and Khair c. 1784, in office 1826 - 1848, d. 1850), was maintained when in 1826 the local Kabyle population declared independence, and when it was on 13 October 1837 conquered by France, until it was incorporated into Algeria in 1848. Algeria ( ar [[Arabic]] الجزائر, Al Jaza'ir ælʤæˈzæːʔir Amazigh: ⴷⵥⴰⵢⴻⵔ Dzayer) officially the People's

Bey or a variation has also been used as an aristocratic title in various Turkic states, such as Bäk in the Tatar Khanate of Kazan, in charge of a Beylik called Bäklek. Tatars ( Tatar: Tatarlar/Татарлар sometimes spelled Tartars, are a Turkic -speaking ethnic group or multiple ethnic groups The Kazan Khanate (Казан ханлыгы|Qazan xanlığı|قازان خانليغى Russian: Казанское ханство tr: Kazanskoe khanstvo The Balkar princes in the North Caucasus highlands were known as taubiy (taubey), meaning the "mountainous chief". The Balkars ( Karachay-Balkar: sg малкъар - malqar, pl The North Caucasus, also Ciscaucasus, Ciscaucasia or Forecaucasia, is the northern part of the Caucasus region between Europe

Sometimes a Bey was a territorial vassal within a khanate, as in each of the three zuzes under the Khan of the Kazakhs.

In some Cajun cultures, "Bey" is just a common household name that parents will call their child, a nickname. Example, Sean "Bey" Elliot (the BMW driver).

The variation Beg, Baig or Bai (pronounced as "buy"), is still used as a family name or a part of a name in South and Central Asia as well as the Balkans. Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south In Slavic-influenced names, it can be seen in conjunction with the Slavic -ov/-ović/ev suffixes meaning "son of", such as in Izetbegović, Abai Kunanbaev (Abai Kunanbaiuli). The Slavic languages (also called Slavonic languages) a group of closely related Languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages Alija Izetbegović (8 August 1925 &ndash 19 October 2003 was a Bosniak activist Lawyer, Author, Philosopher and Politician, who Abay Ibrahim Qunanbayuli ( Kazakh: Абай (Ибраһим Құнанбайұлы, Russian Абай Ибрагим Кунанбаев Abay Ibrahim Qunanbayuli ( Kazakh: Абай (Ибраһим Құнанбайұлы, Russian Абай Ибрагим Кунанбаев

The title is also used within the Moorish American community / members of the Moorish Science Temple of America as tribal titles which denotes an Islamic governor along with the title El. The Moorish Science Temple of America is a Religious organization founded in 1913 by Noble Drew Ali For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. A governor is a governing official usually the executive (at least nominally to different degrees also politically and administratively of a non-sovereign level of government

The title is still used in the southwest of England as a term of endearment.

Etymology

The word entered English from Turkish bey,^[1] and the Turkish word has its origins in Old Turkic beg. English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States Turkish ( tr Türkçe IPA) is a language spoken by over 63 million people worldwide making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Old Turkic (also East Old Turkic, Orkhon Turkic, Old Uyghur) is the earliest attested Turkic language, found in inscriptions by the ^[2] There are different theories about the further etymology of the word beg. According to one theory the word may ultimately come from Middle Chinese baak, pak. Middle Chinese ( or Ancient Chinese as used by linguist Bernhard Karlgren, refers to the Chinese language spoken during Southern and Northern ^[4] Another theory states that the word may have its origins in Sogdian baga. The Sogdian language is a Middle Iranian language that was spoken in Sogdiana ( Zarafshan River Valley located in modern day Uzbekistan ^[5] Gerhard Doerfer pointed out the possibility that the word is genuinely Turkic. The Turkic languages constitute a Language family of some thirty languages spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the ^[6]

See also

• Anatolian beyliks
• Atabeg
• Baig
• Begum
• Beylerbey
• Chughtai
• Dey
• Effendi
• Kailar beys
• Moorish Science Temple of America
• Ottoman titles

Notes

References

• Encyclopaedia of the Orient
• RoyalArk on (khedival) Egypt & Tunisia & on Ottoman Turkey
• Westermann Großer Atlas zur Weltgeschichte (German)
• WorldStatesmen - click on each present country

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