Kaur ( pa, ਕੌਰ (
Gurmukhi
Gurmukhī ( pa, ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ, , Shahmukhi: ) is an abugida developed from the Laṇḍā scripts, standardized and used by the second Sikh guru, Guru Angad (1504–1552). It is used by Punjabi Sikhs to write the language, commonly ...
), pa, کور (
Shahmukhi
Shahmukhi (, ) is a Perso-Arabic alphabet script used historically by Punjabi Muslims (primarily in present-day Pakistani Punjab) to write the Punjabi language. It is generally written in the Nastaʿlīq calligraphic hand, which is also used ...
) en, crown prince) (sometimes spelled as ''Kour''), is a
surname or a part of a personal name primarily used by the
Sikh and
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
women of
Punjab region
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...
.
"Kaur" is also sometimes translated as "lioness", not because this meaning is
etymologically
Etymology ()The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the form of words an ...
derived from the name, but as a parallel to the Sikh male name "
Singh
Singh (IPA: ) is a title, middle name or surname that means " lion" in various South Asian and Southeast Asian communities. Traditionally used by the Hindu Kshatriya community, it eventually became a common surname adopted by different comm ...
," which means "lion." "Kaur" is recognized as “Princess” or "Spiritual Princess".
It also goes back to Sanskrit word "Kumari" meaning girl or daughter, which was abridged to "Kuar" and then changed into "Kaur" by metathesis.
Etymologically it derived from the Rajput term
Kanwar/Kunwar or prince and was used for persons of status.
History
The tenth
guru
Guru ( sa, गुरु, IAST: ''guru;'' Pali'': garu'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: traditionally, the guru is a reverential ...
of Sikhs,
Guru Gobind Singh, introduced ''Kaur'' and ''
Singh
Singh (IPA: ) is a title, middle name or surname that means " lion" in various South Asian and Southeast Asian communities. Traditionally used by the Hindu Kshatriya community, it eventually became a common surname adopted by different comm ...
'' when he administered
Amrit
Amrit ( ar, عمريت), the classical Marathus ( grc-gre, Μάραθος, ''Marathos''), was a Phoenician port located near present-day Tartus in Syria. Founded in the third millenniumBC, Marat ( phn, 𐤌𐤓𐤕, ) was the northernmost imp ...
to both male and female Sikhs; all female Sikhs were asked to use the name ''Kaur'' after their forename, and male Sikhs were to use the name ''Singh''.
The adoption of ''Kaur'' and ''Singh'' as religious
surnames was also intended to reduce
caste-based prejudice. Because familial last names often signal a person's caste status (or for women who adopted their spouse's surname, the caste of their spouse), substituting ''Kaur'' and ''Singh'' allowed Sikhs to implement the Sikh religion's rejection of the caste system.
See also
*
Women in Sikhism
The principles of Sikhism state that women have the same souls as men and thus possess an equal right to cultivate their spirituality with equal chances of achieving salvation. Women in Sikhism participate in all religious, cultural, social, an ...
*
Singh
Singh (IPA: ) is a title, middle name or surname that means " lion" in various South Asian and Southeast Asian communities. Traditionally used by the Hindu Kshatriya community, it eventually became a common surname adopted by different comm ...
*
Kunwar
Kunwar (also spelt Kanwar or Kaur or Kuar) is an Indian title denoting a prince. It is derived from the Sanskrit term Kumar.
It was traditionally associated with the feudal Rajputs such as the son of a Rana or Thakur
The following are notable ...
References
* Karamjeet kaur, ''History of Sikhs: 1469-1838'', Vol I:
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, 2004, page 80, footnote 14.
{{Sikhism
Sikh names
Indian surnames
Sikhism and women