Boy · Arabic (Urdu usage) · Muslim

Nawab

نواب

Say it na-WAAB

Meaning today: Ruler, nobleman, deputy
Original meaning: "a governor or viceroy; a lord or prince" Platts, p. 1157
Say it: na-WAAB
Written: نواب
Other spellings: Nawaab, Nawwab

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Nawab

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Nawab meaning

Nawab (نواب) is a Muslim boy's name of Arabic origin (Urdu usage).

A governor or viceroy; a lord or prince

Also used to mean: ruler, nobleman, deputy

Nawab (نواب) comes from Arabic nuwwāb, the plural of nāʾib, "a deputy", from the root n-w-b, "to take the place of another". In Mughal India the word was used as a singular title for provincial governors who ruled on the emperor's behalf. Platts's Urdu dictionary gives nawwāb as a governor of a town or district, a viceroy, and a lord or prince; English borrowed it as "nabob". Name lists give Nawab as "ruler" or "nobleman". It is used as a given name as well as a title, as by the Maharashtra politician Nawab Malik.

Source: Platts, A Dictionary of Urdu, Classical Hindi, and English (1884), p. 1157 · entry nawwāb (نواب) · See the entry · checked 25 Oct 2026

References: Platts, Dictionary of Urdu, nawwāb, nuwwāb, p. 1157 · Lane, Arabic–English Lexicon, root n-w-b, pp. 2862–2863 · Wikipedia, Nawab · Wikipedia, Nawab Malik