Many of us have heard the word effendi. What this expression means, we hardly know. Meanwhile, this term of foreign origin, several centuries ago, it denoted belonging to a high military rank. Moreover, the so-called people of high social class.
What was this rank and what was the country of origin of the expression? Let's try to figure this out.
Interpretation of the expression
Philologists argue which language is the creator of the word. There are versions that this word is ancient Persian. There are hypotheses that this is an ancient Arabic word. There is an idea that this expression refers to the pra-Turkish language. In any case, it is clear: this term is of eastern origin and means "overlord or lord."
Who is called effendi, what does this title mean ?
So in the 15th century in the countries of the East they called rich military leaders, spiritual leaders, rulers, members of the Sultan's family and more. It was a peculiar expression of respect for a high face. Usually this word was put immediately after the name, for example, Akhmat-effendi.
The meaning of expression in the Ottoman Empire
In the Ottoman Empire, this expression gradually began to acquire national features. Who was called effendi in Turkey, what does this word mean from the 17th century?
So, in Turkey, such a title could be called officers, as well as everyone who owned the diploma. Moreover, it was possible to refer to both men and women (however, it should be remembered that women with high social status could be called this expression).
Literacy itself was seen as a great virtue that a man possessed, so he could call himself effendi, which means "literate man." This can be found in ancient Turkish manuscripts.
Modern reading of the term
In the last hundred years, life in Turkey has changed significantly. In this regard, back in 1934, the military rank of effendi was abolished, but this expression did not lose its meaning.
If we ask ourselves what “effendi” means in Turkish today, we can find out that now it is a form of polite appeal to strangers. It is a kind of analogue of similar polite forms of treatment that have developed in other languages, for example, in English - sir, in Polish - pan and pani, in Italian - seigneur, seigneur and so on.
There is such an expression in the language of the peoples of the North Caucasus. However, here effendi is an appeal to a Muslim priest.