Raja (also spelled Rajah, from Sanskrit rājān-, nominative rājā) is the Hindustani term for a monarch, or princely ruler of the Kshatriya varna. The female form, the word for "queen", mainly used for a Raja's wife, is Rani (sometimes spelled Ranee), from Sanskrit rājñī. The title has a long history in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, being attested from the Rigveda, where a rājān- is a ruler, see for example the, the "battle of ten kings". Sanskrit rājān- is cognate to Latin rēx (genitive rēgis), Gaulish rīx etc. , originally denoting tribal chiefs or heads of small 'city states'. It is ultimately derived from a PIE *h3rẽǵs, a vrddhi formation to the root *h3reǵ- "to straighten, to order, to rule". The Sanskrit n-stem is secondary in the male title, apparently adapted from the female counterpart rājñī which also has an -n- suffix in related languages, compare Old Irish rígain and Latin regina. Cognates of the word Raja in other Indo-European languages include English reign and German reich. Rather common variants in Hindi, used for the same royal rank in parts of India include Rana, Rao, Raol, Rawal and Rawat. Raja, the lower title Thakore and many variations, compounds and derivations including either of these were used in and around South Asia by most Hindu, Muslim and some Buddhist and Sikh rulers, while Muslims also used Nawab or Sultan, and still is commonly used in India. In Pakistan, Raja is still used by many Muslim Rajput clans as hereditary titles. Raja is also used as a given name by Hindus and Sikhs.
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