tarkhan

• Tarkhan

Uncertain; perhaps Iranian or Mongolic. Ligeti (1975) and Doerfer (1985) rejected Turkic etymology, both pointing to tarkhan's obviously non-Turkic plural form tarkhat. See the Wikipedia page for more information.

tarkhan (plural tarkhans)

1. (historical) An ancient Central Asian title used by various Turkic, Mongolic and Indo-European (Scythian and Tokharian) peoples, especially in the medieval era, and prominently among the successors of the Mongol Empire; it generally conferred exemption from taxation.
   • 2007 May 6, Michael Chabon, “‘Gentlemen of the Road’”, in New York Times‎:

     The tarkhan, leader of the Khazar army, meets Amram, Zelikman and a green-eyed young person who claims to be Alp, the brother of Filaq.

   • 1980, Manfred Späth, “Beiträge zur 4. Internationalen Konferenz über Altrussische Geschichte. Begunov, "Weisse Rus".”, in Forschungen zur osteuropaischen Geschichte, Bd. 27, page 164:

     Already by the time of Genghis Khan, tarkhans were exempt from taxes and various economic services; they later became a privileged estate or class. In the Kazanian society, the tarkhans constituted a privileged, landowning, and conditionally hereditary nobility which was exempted from taxes and most other obligations.