raja
/ˈrɑːdʒɑː
/(also rajah)
noun historical
1An Indian king or prince.As legend has it, an Indian rajah sent a gift of a chess set to a king of kings as a challenge for his wise men to solve. They did, and ever since sets have been exchanged as gifts between world leaders....
- The chauffeur, a Russian Czar from the period of Ivan the Terrible, was a fabulous guide who knew of all the kings and rajahs who had come to the area for several reasons, and brought the names of different towns and places to life.
- For that matter, history books that dwell on stories of rajas and maharajas who met at a tea break might be recalled.
1.1A title extended to minor dignitaries and nobles in India during the British Raj.In the forties the membership was spread among upper middle class officials and professionals, rajas and zamindars....
- The rajas were left untouched despite demands for independence, self-rule and decolonization elsewhere.
- ‘I can drive all the way to Chennai in my Ford jeep,’ the former raja says with a twinkle in his eye.
1.2A title extended by the British to a Malay or Javanese ruler or chief.But Africans and Asians did not restore their chiefs and rajas, or seek otherwise to return to a more authentic way of life....
- The Malay term for government, kerajaan, refers to the raja who ruled from the precolonial courts.
Origin
From Hindi rājā, Sanskrit rājan 'king'.