The Army of the Indian Moghuls: Its Organization and Administration c9.38

c9.38

Rānak. — In the Āīn list, 112, Nº. 69, appears the word rāk or rāg, which is quite unmeaning. When we turn to Nº. 56 on Blochmann’s plate xiv, we see that the thing itself is an iron leg-piece or greave. Now, wherever there are lists of armour in the MS. Dastūr-ul-ʿAml, I find a word راک, which is invariably shown with a fourth letter of some sort; it might be read rātak, rālak, rānak, but never rāk. As rān means in Persian the ‘thigh,’ I propose to substitute for Blochmann’s rāk the reading rānak, the diminutive ending being used to denote relation or connection, a formation like dastak (little hand), a short written order, fit to be (as it were) carried in the hand. The word rānak is not in Steingass.