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Sultan (; Arabic: سلطان sulṭān, ) is a noble title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun سلطة sulṭah, meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who claimed almost full sovereignty in practical terms (i.e., the lack of dependence on any higher ruler), albeit without claiming the overall caliphate, or to refer to a powerful governor of a province within the caliphate.
The dynasty and lands ruled by a sultan are referred to as a sultanate (سلطنة salṭanah).
A feminine form of sultan, used by Westerners, is sultana or sultanah; however, this styling misconstrues the roles of wives of sultans. In a similar usage, the wife of a German field marshal might be styled Frau Feldmarschall (in French, similar constructions of the type madame la maréchale are quite common). The rare female leaders in Muslim history are correctly known as "sultanas". However, in the Sultanate of Sulu, the wife of the sultan is styled as the "panguian".
Among those modern hereditary rulers who wish to emphasize their secular authority under the rule of law, the term is gradually being replaced by king (i.e. malik in Arabic) and Datu in Maranao.
These are generally secondary titles, either lofty 'poetry' or with a message, e.g.:
This was the alternative native style (apparently derived from malik, the Arabic word for "king") of the sultans of the Kilwa Sultanate, in Tanganyika (presently the continental part of Tanzania).
Mfalume is the (Ki)Swahili title of various native Muslim rulers, generally rendered in Arabic and in western languages as Sultan:
This was the native ruler's title in the Tanzanian state of Uhehe a female sultan
In India:
In the Maldives:
In Indonesia (formerly in the Dutch East Indies):
In Malaysia:
In Brunei:
In China:
In the Philippines:
In Thailand:
In some parts of the Middle East and North Africa, there still exist regional sultans or people who are descendants of sultans and who are styled as such.
In the Ottoman dynastic system, male descendants of the ruling padishah (in the West also known as Great Sultan) enjoyed a style including Sultan. This normally monarchic title is thus equivalent in use to the Western prince of the blood: Daulatlu Najabatlu Shahzada Sultan (given name) Efendi Hazretleri. For the Heir Apparent, however, the style was Daulatlu Najabatlu Vali Ahad-i-Sultanat (given name) Efendi Hazretleri; i.e. Crown Prince of the Sultanate.
In certain Muslim polities, Sultan was also an aristocratic title, as in the Tartar Astrakhan Khanate.
The Valide Sultan was the title reserved for the mother of the ruling sultan. In Ottoman Empire, the Haseki Sultan was the title reserved for the mother of the princes.
In a number of post-caliphal states under Mongol or Turkic rule, there was a feudal type of military hierarchy. These administrations were often decimal (mainly in larger empires), using originally princely titles such as khan, malik, amir as mere rank denominations.
In the Persian empire, the rank of sultan was roughly equivalent to that of a modern-day captain in the West; socially in the fifth-rank class, styled 'Ali Jah.
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Mughal Empire, India, Golconda, Hyderabad, India, Sultan
Ottoman Empire, Turkey, Ottoman dynasty, Istanbul, Suleiman the Magnificent
Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Terengganu, Pahang, Selangor
Selangor, Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Perak, Sarawak