maulana

M3A1U1L1A1N1A1
/ˈmaʊlənə/

noun

A religious scholar, especially in Central and South Asia.

OriginClassical Persian مَوْلَانَا ← Arabic مَوْلَانَا →
UncommonScrabble 9
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounmaulana (plural maulanas)

plural maulanas

  1. IslamA religious scholar, especially in Central and South Asia.

    At the end of his long and cantankerous life the maulana had gone against all his high principles. He had gone to a Boston hospital to look for health; he had at the very end entrusted himself to the skill and science of the civilization he had tried to shield his followers from.

    1981, V. S. Naipaul, Among the Believers: An Islamic Journey, page 168
  2. IndiaInternetslurIslamA Muslim person in general, especially an extreme conservative.

Origin

  1. Arabicمَوْلَانَا“our lord”
  2. Classical Persianمَوْلَانَا
  3. Englishmaulana

Borrowed from Hindustani मौलाना (maulānā) / مَولَانَا (maulānā), from Classical Persian مَوْلَانَا (mawlānā), ultimately from Arabic مَوْلَانَا (mawlānā, “our lord”). The Indian slang usage of the term for any Muslim person was derived from a stereotype, especially towards Muslims who look stereotypical (beard, robes, and skullcap).

More words from Classical Persian, Arabic

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

maulana. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/maulana

MLA

“maulana.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/maulana. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “maulana,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/maulana.

Source: maulana on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.