Meeana

noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A palanquin with open sides. India, historical

    "The lowest kind of palanquins, which are small litters suspended under a straight bamboo, by which they are carried, and shaded by a frame covered with cloth, do not admit the passenger to lie at length, and are here called Miyana, or Mahapa. In some places, these terms are considered as synonymous, in others, the Mayana is open at the sides, and is intended for carrying men, while the Mahapa, intended for women, is surrounded by curtains."

  2. 2
    Synonym of palanquin, an Indian litter of whatever form. India

    "After that, in the same style as the bridegroom came the preceding night to the bride's house, he now proceeds home on horseback, and she along with him in a meeana (a palankeen) with doors shut, attended by music, dancing-girls, and accompanied by all the relatives, &c. On reaching his house, the attendants, musicians, &c. are dismissed with betel."

Example

More examples

"The lowest kind of palanquins, which are small litters suspended under a straight bamboo, by which they are carried, and shaded by a frame covered with cloth, do not admit the passenger to lie at length, and are here called Miyana, or Mahapa. In some places, these terms are considered as synonymous, in others, the Mayana is open at the sides, and is intended for carrying men, while the Mahapa, intended for women, is surrounded by curtains."

Etymology

From Hindi मियाना (miyānā).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.