ikbaln.
/ˈikbal/ A member of the harem of an Ottoman Sultan.
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > marriage or wedlock > types of marriage custom or practice > [noun] > concubinage or secondary marriage > concubine or secondary wife > member of harem
odalisque1681
domestic slave1776
ikbal1910
1910 Encycl. Brit. XII. 950/2 The so-called Odalisks..are subdivided according to the degree of favour.., into Ikbals (‘Favourites’) and Geuzdés (literally the ‘Eyed’ ones), those whom the sultan has favourably noticed.
1937 Times Lit. Suppl. 16 Jan. 36/3 The Sultan selected his favourites, or ikbals.
1956 A. D. Alderson Struct. Ottoman Dynasty ix. 80 If the relationship showed any signs of permanence, she was promoted to the rank of ‘Ikbal’ (Fortunate).
1962 J. Fleming When I grow Rich iii. 40 She had ceased to be an ikbal (the name given to those members of the harem who actually slept with the Shadow of God upon Earth).
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1976; most recently modified version published online March 2018).
<
n.1910