Shah

Shah (Šâh or Şah) (/ˈʃɑː/; Persian: شاه‎‎, [ʃɒːh], "king") is a title given to the emperors/kings and lords of Iran (historically also known as Persia). It was also adopted by the kings of Shirvan (a historical Iranian region in Transcaucasia) namely the Shirvanshahs, the rulers and offspring of the Ottoman Empire (termed there as Şeh), the Bengal Sultanate, as well as in Georgia, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. In Iran (Persia and Greater Persia) the title was continuously used; rather than King in the European sense, each Persian ruler regarded himself as the Šâhanšâh (King of Kings) or Emperor of the Persian Empire. The word descends from Old Persian Xšâyathiya "king", which (for reasons of historical phonology) must be a borrowing from Median, and is derived from the same root as Avestan xšaΘra-, "power" and "command", corresponding to Sanskrit (Old Indic) kṣatra- (same meaning), from which kṣatriya-, "warrior", is derived. The full, Old Persian title of the Achaemenid rulers of the First Persian Empire was Xšâyathiya Xšâyathiyânâm or Šâhe Šâhân, "King of Kings" or "Emperor". This word is commonly confused with the unrelated and distinct Indian surname Shah, which is derived from the Sanskrit Sadhu/Sahu (meaning gentleman ).

Ukrainian shah

Shah (Ukrainian: шаг) was the name of several currencies used in Ukraine. The name derives from shilling via shelyag (sheleg; Russian: шеляг, шелег; Polish: szeląg). The forms shahy (шаги, for 2 to 4) and shahiv (шагiв, for five or more) are declensional plurals of the noun used in denominations, for example, 2 shahy, 20 shahiv.

17th-19th centuries

The term "shah" was the Ukrainian name of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth's silver coin of 17th-18th centuries with face value of 3 grosz, coined since 1528, especially during the times of Sigismund III Vasa. Later, the name was transferred to the Russian copper coin of 2 kopecks. Since 1839 when silver money counting was reinstated in the Russian Empire, the term shah was transferred to the silver ½ kopeck. This term for the kopeck was in use until 1917.

Early 20th century

In 1917, banknotes were introduced in the newly independent Ukraine. These were denominated in shah, hryvnia and karbovanets, with 100 shahiv = 1 hryvnia and 2 hryvni = 1 karbovanets.

Shah (surname)

This Indo-Nepalese surname "Shah" is commonly mistaken with the Persian "Shah" meaning "King".

It is derived from Sanskrit Sadhu (meaning gentleman).

The surname like various other Indian surnames was also adopted by various other people. The Shah surname is adopted by the trade communities (The Banias/ Vanias) in Rajasthan and Gujarat states. Banias include the Jains and the Vaishnavas. It was widely used by the Jains even outside of Gujarat and Rajasthan, for example in Delhi/Haryana (see Nattal Sahu), Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh (see Sahu Jain) and Maharashtra.

The Hindi word 'Shahukara' meaning a banker, is derived from Sahu (Sanskrit "Sadhu") and kar (Sanskrit meaning doer). It means different and does not reflect the nature of the surname which means "King".

Shah, a different last name, derived from the Persian word "Shah", is a surname found among the Iranian peoples of Central Asia, Afghanistan and parts of Pakistan.

History

The oldest history dates back to the Shah dynasty of Ancient Nepal. This Indo-Nepalese surname "Shah" is mistakenly is derived from the Persian "Shah" meaning "King".

Shahid

Shahid and Shaheed (Arabic: شهيد‎ šahīd, plural: شُهَدَاء šuhadāʾ ) originates from the Quranic Arabic word meaning "witness" and is also used to denote a "martyr". It is used as a honorific for Muslims who have died fulfilling a religious commandment, especially those who die wielding jihad, or historically in the military expansion of Islam. The act of martyrdom is istishhad.

The word shahid in Arabic means "witness". Its development closely parallels that of Greek martys (Greek: μάρτυς - "witness", in the New Testament also "martyr"), the origin of the term martyr. Shahid occurs frequently in the Quran in the generic sense "witness", but only once in the sense "martyr; one who dies deliberately for his faith"; this latter sense acquires wider use in the hadiths.

Quranic references

A shahid is considered one whose place in Paradise is promised according to these verses in the Quran:

The Quran, chapter 3 (Al Imran), verse 169–170:

The Quran, chapter 9 (At-Tawba), verse 111:

The Quranic passage that follows is the source of the concept of Muslim martyrs being promised Paradise:

Shahid (film)

Shahid is a 2013 Indian Hindi biographical film directed by Hansal Mehta and produced by Anurag Kashyap. It is based on the life of lawyer and human rights activist Shahid Azmi, who was assassinated in 2010 in Mumbai.

The film had its world premiere at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival's 'City to City' programme in September 2012.Shahid was selected for distribution by UTV Motion Pictures and released on 18 October 2013. It received positive reviews from critics, and considering its budget the film had commercial success at the box office. It won the National Film Award for Best Actor and Best Director at the 61st National Film Awards ceremony.

The real life Shahid Azmi had defended the 2004 film Black Friday in the courts while it was languishing with the censor board for its controversial content. Anurag Kashyap, the director of Black Friday, went on to co-produce Shahid.

Plot

The film opens with murder of Shahid Azmi (Rajkummar Rao) and goes into flashback to the violence during the Bombay Riots. There Shahid witnesses cold-blooded murders and in anger runs away to Pakistan-administered Kashmir, where he spends a brief period at a militant training camp. He soon returns. In Mumbai, he is arrested under the TADA, for an alleged conspiracy to assassinate some politicians. He is brutally tortured by police and forced to admit the crime, after which he spends seven years at Tihar Jail in New Delhi. During his stay at Tihar Jail, he's tried to be brainwashed by Omar Sheikh (Prabal Panjabi). But another fellow jail mate War Saab (K K Menon) inspires him to start his college education. Once he is acquitted of the charges, he goes ahead to study law in Mumbai.

Shahid (disambiguation)

Shaheed or Shahid may refer to:

People

Geography

Films