Maulana
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A 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."
- 2 A Muslim person in general, especially an extreme conservative. India, Internet, slur
Example
More examples"Here is a beautiful pair of verses by Maulana Rumi that contains a world of meaning in just a few words."
Etymology
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).
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.