Last name "Khan": Question

[Saifullah]

u know wen i saw this topic i thought it was about that film my name is Khan...

[کیش]

Shah rukh khans father belonged to Peshawar and aamir khan belongs to Afghanistan...

They are not pashto speakers but they could be ethnic pashtuns like Dr A.Q khan/Ayub khan/Imran khan.

What grinds my gear is that if you don't speak Pashto that means your not Pashtun. Even though you have a Pashtun parent and family.

This means if your any Joe who learns Pashto, that will automatically make you a Pashtun.

[afghan]

khan was used for king, ruler in Bulgaria in the 7th century. i dont think it has anything to do with mngolians, its a title, one is awarded for his service. some times pashtuns traibal names when added to their names makes the name very long and harder. non-pashtuns have adopted the last name khan for an identity not to associate themselves with their hindo past. in indian culture last name khan is seen a brave fearless person. in afghanistan there are bunch of last names khan. daud khan ismail khan, and many more.

[BarakzaiAbdali]

Not necessarily... here is an article about Maitiullah Khan of Afghanistan:
http://www.greenleft.org.au/node/46016

The same misconception remains about the usage of Dorani (as a synonym for Abdali):
http://www.pajhwok.com/en/2010/09/09...s-2-boys-balkh

It may be less common simply because of population comparisons.

Here are a bunch of Afghan folks surnamed Khan:

http://kabulpress.org/my/spip.php?article4438

[fzpz]

esapxai...chowdhry/butt/sheikh are clans, like bhutto. With chowdhry/sheikh sometimes used as a title, but it's mostly about clan descendants and their occupations (all are/were 'high' class land owners or businessmen). Continuing with the title theme, whole villages/tribes assumed the identities of 'khans' when they were converted to islam in south asia. This is even true of tribal names. A durrani or afridi in south asia (outside of afghanistan and pakhtunwa) does not necessarily denote durrani or afridi ethnic tribal affiliation. Pakis and especially indic muslims love trying to associate themselves with the romantic orientalist view of pashtuns which is prevalent amongst them.

Shahrukh khan/amir khan are not pashtuns. SRK is definitely a hindkowan (there are lots of hindkowans in peshawar, especially in the old city where his fathers' side 'originated' from - i'd trust his cousins who still live there more than him). Again being from peshawar doesn't mean pashtun. Amir khan's actual last name is hussein, and he's a shia.

[کیش]

^^^Where's your evidence of Aamir Khan not being Pashtun.


Shahrukh Khan's father was from Qissa Khwani Bazaar.

Why lie to say your Pashtun?

[Ikramii]

I don't know any Pashtuns with the name khan, but I know loooaddsss of Indians that do.

[Wrayun]

what is the word khan got to do with being a pashtoon. khan word is a farsi word which means a person of high rank or wealth.

Not really, Khan is the title passed down from Mongols to Mughuls, then to Afghans, and then to Desi's. You can either be made a Khan, or you are usually born into a family of Khans. Some people have adopted the Khan name, others are descendants of various Khans from their multiple wives at various different places (that explains Khan's all over).

I think the Persian substitute is Shah, Agha, or Pacha. And the Arabic is Malak/Malik.

[afghan]

I don't know any Pashtuns with the name khan, but I know loooaddsss of Indians that do.

before you go some where else look all afghan kings, most of them were khans. Mirwais khan, Ahmad khan(abdali), amir abdurrahman khan, habibullah khan, amir sher ali khan, nader khan(shah) and so on...

[fzpz]

rediff.com: Peshawar: The Shah Rukh Connection

"There is a strong misperception about Shah Rukh's identity who is widely considered as a Pathan. In fact, his entire family speaks hindko language. His ancestors came from Kashmir and settled in Peshawar centuries back, revealed Maqsood. This may disappoint many of Shah Rukh's Pashto speaking fans who consider him a pathan by origin. Shah Rukh's family also contradicted the claim that his grandfather Jan Muhammad was from Afghanistan."
SRK's ancestral home traced to Pakistan - The Times of India

story on srk's family. see for yourself. I'd take the word of people that live there currently and are more connected with their 'past' than a confused hindu 'muslim' who has been removed from his background. Doesn't mean he isn't a good actor or celebrity. Just saying that it's common for removed persons in the subcontinent to try to associate themselves with an imagined past to look and seem more 'exotic'. It's true for some in my family too, though anyone with eyes and a brain can tell they're converted hindus (rajputs). Certainly nothing wrong with that.

Aamir's father's name is tahir hussain.
"Aamir was born in Mumbai into a Shia Muslim family that has been actively involved in the Indian film-industry." Aamir khan - a knol by Sreeraj Unni

[Michin Khel]

one more thing... i have yet to see someone in afghanistan... a female with a last name khan... like "shaista khan"... Khan name definitely exists in afghanistan but is given to those individual (first of all only to male), who are head of a tribe or woleswali, or are zameendaar, or are very rich....

i wonder why is it so widespread in KP.

every kid running on the street without a partog, and a runny nose is named khan. lol... its cute though. but i still wonder the historical background

Pashtuns in KP have usually three names first name, middle name is khan and last name is tribal name e.g shahid khan Afridi, Khushal khan khattak, saleem khan mohamand ect
And females in PK dont use surname of khan........the pathan females of Karachi use khan e.g Nadia khan

[Master Khan]

I have seen some punjabies and indians changing their last name to Khan aswell lol, to be honest its a joke now...I rather use my tribe name.

[torkham]

khan means king ,prince in afghanistan one dosn't need it next to the name as people know who the true khans are,like my own family automatically as soon we enter qandahar they know who we are ,and automatic response will be the khanans are here ,khan name in other area is used to due to genghis khan, its used in germany too kahn or caan, turkic qaan, china kehan ,sometimes its spelt as xan but is used commonly so the original meaning has gone where it was used for a prince or cheif or king or for high class familys before.

Having lived in Germany, I know the German name KAHN (not Khan) has two origins:

name meaning small boat. it is a family name of indiginous germans, like footballer Oliver Kahn,

it is also name of german jews, the COHEN jewish name holders wanted to become more German, so COHEN jews started spelling it as KAHN. Jewish inferiority complex. In America, the cohens hid their obvious jewish name by spelling it as Caan, as in James Caan.

Interestingly I knew one pakistan kashmir girl whose name was N Khan, typical pakistani name, however she changed her name to KAHN, thinking it would sound more european, another inferiority complex. this has her now confused with German Jewry.

[Lemar]

Well I dont like using Khan I am more than glad to use my clan name as my surname!
cause that identifies me! and I like my identity!

Aamir Khan ancestors are actually from Herat, Afghanistan and I dont know if he is Pashtun or Tajik.

[waterbear_waterbear]

salam everyone

I have always wondered... why is that more than half of the pakhtoonkhwa have last name "khan"... men, women, children, elderly... while it is so rare to find someone named khan in Afghanistan.

what is the word khan got to do with being a pashtoon. khan word is a farsi word which means a person of high rank or wealth.

Pashtoons have specific last names that come from their tribes... like in afghanistan u rarely ever find someone named "filanki khan"... its usually, Filanki momand, filanki wardag, filanki barakzai. when and how did the word "khan" get associated with pakhtoonkhwa pakhtoons?

sorry if it is a repeated thread.

and please no political BULLL $hiTTTT here...... i am just curious. and if such a thread already exists... please direct me there . thanks.

Brainwashed by Pakistanis..... first Urdu speaking Mohajirs of Pashtun descent had the name Khan to declare their ancestry, and many thought they had Turkic heritage when they were in India, so it was Khan like Ghengis Khan. The Persian Khan, not sure but there were Persians that ruled India, like Nawabs of Awadh.