When Ham, son of Noah with the permission of his holy father, set himself to colonize the south, he girded up his loin for accomplishing this, and deputed his sons - the first of whom was Hind, the second Sind, the third Habash, the fourth Zanaj, the fifth Barbar, and the sixth Nubah - in all directions on colonizing expeditions. And the tract that each of them colonized was called after him. The eldest son, Hind, having come to the country of Hindustan, it was so named after him. And Sind in the company of his elder brother, having set himself to colonize the tract of Sind established Himself there, and that was named after him. But Hind had four sons, the first was Purab, the second was Bang, the third was Dakin, and the fourth was Naharwal. And every tract that was colonized by each, is still called after him. And Dakin, son of Hind, had three sons, and the country of Dakin was parcelled between them. Their names were Marhat, Kanar, and Talang; and Dakhinans are all descended from him, and up to this time all the three tribes dominate there. And Naharwal had three sons namely, Babruj, Kanoj and Malraj. After them cities were also named.

And Purab, who was the eldest son of Hind, had forty-two sons, and, within a short time their descendants multiplied and colonized different countries, and when they became numerous, they raised one of themselves to be the chief and to look after the management of the realm.

And Bang, the son of Hind, getting children born to him, colonized the country of Bengal. The name of Bengal was originally Bang. And the reason why the word al আল was added to it, is this : al আল in the Bengali language means an 'embankment' or raised ground, which is placed round a garden or cultivation, so that floods may not enter it. As in ancient times, the chieftains of Bengal on lowlands which were situated at the foot of hills, used to raise mounds about ten cubits high and twenty cubits broad, and to make homes, cultivations, and buildings within them, people used to call this place Bangalah.

[ Riyazu-s-salatin, a history of Bengal - By Ghulam Husain Salim, Translated from the original Persian By Maulavi Abdus Salim (1902) ]

A measure of land, varying widely; the standard bigha is generally five-eighths of an acre.

Rafa'at wa Awal-i-Martabat Raja Sri Chait Singh's (চৈত সিং) father Balwant Singh, was merely an Amil, or farmer and collector of the revenues, for Shuja-ud-Daulla (সুজা-উদ-দৌল্লা) the nawab Wazir of Oudh (Ayodhya or Varanasi). When, upon the death of his father, Chait Singh was confirmed in the office of collector for the Wazir, he paid 200,000 pounds as a gift or Nuzzeranah, and an additional rent of 30,000 pounds per annum. As his father was no more than an Amil, Chait Singh succeeded only to his rights and pretensions. But by a Sanad granted to him by the Nawab Shuja-ud-Daulla in September 1773 AD, through the influence of Warren Hastings, he acquired a legal title to property in the land, and was raised from the office of Amil to the rank of Zamindar. The Kjng of Oudh, Suja-ud-Daula died in 1775 AD, and Warren Hastings, then Governor-General, took advantage of the death of the old ally of the British to extend British dominion and power. In May 1775 a new treaty was ratified between his son and successor, Asaf-ud-Daula, by which Benares was ceded to the East India Company, and Raja Chait Sing became a vassal of the British. Thus five years after the death of Balwant Singh, the Governor General and Council of Bengal obtained the sovereignty paramount of the province of Benares. On the transfer of this sovereignty, the Governor and Council proposed a new grant to Chait Singh, confirming his former privileges, and conferring upon him the addition of the sovereign rights of the Mint, and the powers of criminal justice with regard to life and death. He was then recognized by the Company as one of their Zamindars of the British empire in India.

In 1778, Hastings (then Governor General) made an extraordinary demand of five lack rupees on Raja Chait Singh. In July 1778 Warren Hastings wrote to Chait Singh, "War having been declared between the Courts of Great Britain and France, by the former on the 18th March ... I am to request of you, in my own name and that of the Board, as a subject of the Company, bound to promote their interest on every occasion, to contribute your share of the burden of the present war." The fact is that the Zamindars paid as much to Government as their lands could afford. A second year's contribution of five lakhs (£ 50,000) was demanded from Chait Singh, then a third year's contribution of five lakhs, and then a fourth year's contribution, besides expenses of troops. Chait Singh had to pay above fifty lacks, whereas his rent was not even twenty-four lacks. He refused to comply with the engagements requiring the contribution of cavalry and maintenance grants for battalions of sepoys, and began corresponding with the company's enemies.

In September 1781 AD Hastings came to Benaras to collect the fine which he had levied upon Raja Chait Singh, on behalf of the East India Company. Hastings sent a couple of hundred native soldiers, sepoys under command of 3 young English lieutenants. The Raja submitted without a word. Chait Singh was stripped of his position and placed under house arrest pending an interview with Hastings. The arrest enraged Chait Singh's people, and all Benaras came storming about the palace and threatening vengeance. The mob broke into the fort and massacared the helpless soldiers and their officers. Chait Singh escaped by climbing down to the river from a small window on the north wall of his fort aided by his followers who fashioned a rope out of their turbans. In skirmishes with the Company forces, Chait Singh's troops were easily defeated, the rebellion crushed and the zamindari confiscated and given over to his nephew Raja Sri Mahip Narayan Singh on 14^th September, 1781. Chait Singh himself fled to Awadh, then to Gwalior, where he was granted a jagir for a while until it was later confiscated. He died in Gwalior on 29^th March 1810 in obscurity, leaving three sons.

A non-commissioned native officer in the army or police.

The title of ofificials in various departments : now especially applied to subordinate controlling officers in the police and jail departments.