kotwal

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

Borrowed from Hindi कोतवाल (kotvāl); see there for more.

Noun

kotwal (plural kotwals)

  1. (historical) The leader of a kot or fort in medieval India.
  2. The local police chief or magistrate of a town or city in India or the East Indies.
    • 1997, Kiran Nagarkar, Cuckold, HarperCollins, published 2013, page 437:
      Why do people pay taxes, offer their wrists for manacling when the kotwal or even an ordinary policeman shows up at the door to arrest a man who is accused of committing a theft or murder?
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