sanjak
/ˈsandʒak/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.31 in modern English
17
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A district, a prefecture, particularly (historical) a second-level administrative division of the Ottoman Empire.
Example Sentences
- "This lymphatic monster had once blocked the distinguished pharynx of Lord Blatherard Osmo, who at the time occupied the Novy Pazar desk at the Foreign Office, an obscure penance for the previous century of British policy on the Eastern Question, for on this obscure sanjak had once hinged the entire fate of Europe."
- "... the Duke ... enforced all the whole Armie to retire to the Campe, with the losse of five or six thousand, with the Bashaw of Buda, and foure or five Zanzacks, with divers other great Commanders, two hundred Prisoners, and nine peeces of Ordnance."
Etymology
From Ottoman Turkish سنجاق (sancâk, “subdivision of a vilayet”, literally “flag, banner”), from Proto-Turkic *sančgak (“lance, streamer attached to a spear”).
Word Breakdown
- Root: سنجاق, *sančgak
Regional Pronunciation
- British English: /ˈsandʒak/