خاتون

See also: حاتون

Arabic

Etymology

From Classical Persian خاتون (xātūn, “lady, noblewoman”).

Noun

خَاتُون • (ḵātūn) f (plural خَوَاتِين (ḵawātīn))

1. khatun, noblewoman

Declension

Declension of noun خَاتُون (ḵātūn)

singular	basic singular triptote
	indefinite	definite	construct
informal	خَاتُون ḵātūn	الْخَاتُون al-ḵātūn	خَاتُون ḵātūn
nominative	خَاتُونٌ ḵātūnun	الْخَاتُونُ al-ḵātūnu	خَاتُونُ ḵātūnu
accusative	خَاتُونًا ḵātūnan	الْخَاتُونَ al-ḵātūna	خَاتُونَ ḵātūna
genitive	خَاتُونٍ ḵātūnin	الْخَاتُونِ al-ḵātūni	خَاتُونِ ḵātūni
dual	indefinite	definite	construct
informal	خَاتُونَيْن ḵātūnayn	الْخَاتُونَيْن al-ḵātūnayn	خَاتُونَيْ ḵātūnay
nominative	خَاتُونَانِ ḵātūnāni	الْخَاتُونَانِ al-ḵātūnāni	خَاتُونَا ḵātūnā
accusative	خَاتُونَيْنِ ḵātūnayni	الْخَاتُونَيْنِ al-ḵātūnayni	خَاتُونَيْ ḵātūnay
genitive	خَاتُونَيْنِ ḵātūnayni	الْخَاتُونَيْنِ al-ḵātūnayni	خَاتُونَيْ ḵātūnay
plural	basic broken plural diptote
	indefinite	definite	construct
informal	خَوَاتِين ḵawātīn	الْخَوَاتِين al-ḵawātīn	خَوَاتِين ḵawātīn
nominative	خَوَاتِينُ ḵawātīnu	الْخَوَاتِينُ al-ḵawātīnu	خَوَاتِينُ ḵawātīnu
accusative	خَوَاتِينَ ḵawātīna	الْخَوَاتِينَ al-ḵawātīna	خَوَاتِينَ ḵawātīna
genitive	خَوَاتِينَ ḵawātīna	الْخَوَاتِينِ al-ḵawātīni	خَوَاتِينِ ḵawātīni

Chagatai

Alternative forms

• حاتون (ḥatun)

Etymology

From Proto-Common Turkic *xātun (“queen”), compare Old Turkic 𐰴𐱃𐰆𐰣 (qt¹un¹ /⁠qatun⁠/, “queen”), Karakhanid قاتُونْ (qātūn, “noble woman”), Turkish kadın (“woman”).

Noun

خاتون (ḫatun) (plural خاتونلار)

1. woman

Old Anatolian Turkish

Etymology

Borrowed from Persian خاتون (xâtun). Doublet of قادین (qadın).

Noun

خَاتُونْ • (ḫātūn)

1. noblewoman, lady, dame, queen

   Synonym: قادین (qadın)

Descendants

• Azerbaijani: xatın
• Ottoman Turkish: خاتون (hatun)
  • Turkish: hatun
  • → Georgian: ხათუნა (xatuna)

Ottoman Turkish

Etymology

From Old Anatolian Turkish خاتون (ḫātūn), Persian خاتون (xâtun). Doublet of قادین (kadın).

Noun

خاتون • (hatun)

1. lady, dame
2. woman

Derived terms

• گوزل خاتون (güzel hatun)

Descendants

• Turkish: hatun
• → Georgian: ხათუნა (xatuna)

References

• Redhouse, James W. (1890) “خاتون”, in A Turkish and English Lexicon‎^[1], Constantinople: A. H. Boyajian, page 818b
• Kélékian, Diran (1911) “خاتون”, in Dictionnaire turc-français‎^[2], Constantinople: Mihran, page 525a

Persian

Etymology

Most likely directly from Sogdian 𐼶𐼴𐽂𐼰𐼷𐼻𐼳 (γwtʾynh /⁠xwatēn, xutēn⁠/, “queen”), or perhaps entered Persian via Manichaean Middle Persian 𐫑𐫀𐫎𐫇𐫗 (xʾṯwn /⁠xātūn⁠/, “lady, a Sogdian female title”). Ultimately from Proto-Iranian *hwatā́wniH, a feminine form of Proto-Iranian *hwatā́wā. Related to خدا (xodâ), which was inherited, and to خدیو (xadiv), which was borrowed from Bactrian χοαδηο (khoadēo, “lord”).

Compare Old Turkic 𐰴𐱃𐰆𐰣 (qatun, “queen”), Proto-Common Turkic *xātun, Turkish kadın (“woman”) Turkish hatun (“lady, wife”), Karakhanid قاتُونْ (qātūn, “noble woman”), Iranian borrowings.

Pronunciation

• (Classical Persian) IPA^(key): [xaː.ˈtuːn]

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [xɑː.t̪ʰúːn]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [xɑː.t̪ʰúːn]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [xɑː.t̪ʰúːn]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [xɔː.t̪ʰún]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [xɒː.t̪ʰúːn]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [χɔ.t̪ʰún]

Readings
Classical reading?	xātūn
Dari reading?	xātūn
Iranian reading?	xâtun
Tajik reading?	xotun

Noun

Dari	خاتون
Iranian Persian
Tajik	хотун

خاتون • (xâtun)

1. lady, matron
2. noblewoman

Descendants

• → Arabic: خاتون (ḵātūn)
• → Bengali: খাতুন (khatun)
• → Gujarati: ખાતૂન (khātūn)
• → Gulf Arabic: خاتون (ḵātūn, “female nurse”)
• → Middle Armenian: խաթուն (xatʻun)
  • Armenian: խաթուն (xatʻun)
• → Old Anatolian Turkish: خاتون (ḫātūn)
  • Azerbaijani: xatın
  • Ottoman Turkish: خاتون (hatun)
    • Turkish: hatun
    • → Georgian: ხათუნა (xatuna)
• → Urdu: خاتون (xātūn)

Further reading

• Steingass, Francis Joseph (1892) “خاتون”, in A Comprehensive Persian–English dictionary, London: Routledge & K. Paul

Urdu

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian خاتون (xātūn, “lady; noblewoman”).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /xɑː.t̪uːn/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -uːn
• Hyphenation: خا‧تون

Noun

خاتُون • (xātūn) f (formal plural خَواتِین (xavātīn), Hindi spelling ख़ातून)

1. lady

   خَواتِین و حَضْرات ― xavātīn o hazrāt ― Ladies and gentlemen

2. first lady; khatun
3. noblewoman

References

• “خاتون”, in اُردُو لُغَت (urdū luġat) (in Urdu), Ministry of Education: Government of Pakistan, 2017.
• Qureshi, Bashir Ahmad (1971) “خاتون”, in Kitabistan's 20th Century Standard Dictionary‎, Lahore: Kitabistan Pub. Co.
• Platts, John T. (1884) “خاتون”, in A dictionary of Urdu, classical Hindi, and English, London: W. H. Allen & Co.
• “خاتون”, in ریخْتَہ لُغَت (rexta luġat) - Rekhta Dictionary [Urdu dictionary with meanings in Hindi & English], Noida, India: Rekhta Foundation, 2025.