This article is about the South Asian Royal title. For other uses of Rana, see Rana (disambiguation)
Rana (Sanskrit: राणा; Urdu: رانا) is a Rajput title for Monarch. The title is derivative of the word 'Ran', which means "Battle Field". In status quo Rana is being used as a hereditary name by many and Rajput clans throughout South Asia.
Compound titles include Rana Sahib, Ranaji, Rana Bahadur, and Maharana.
Royal title in India
Rana was used to be a title for martial sovereignty of Rajput kings in India. As a prefix, Rana means a Rajput who has proven his worth in a hard-fought war and turned out as a Monarch by winning it against all odds.
As title "Rana" was conceived as carrying martial and highly prideful meaning, so it was earned through valiance, but very occasionally it was transferred from generation to generation. It is also used as surname by people of Rajput ancestry in India, Pakistan and Nepal. Rana Pratap Singh, ruler of Mewar, fought numerous wars against the Mughals. Jat rulers of Gohad were also awarded the title of Rana.
In the former princely states of Bangalore, Ali Rajpur, Bashahr, Baghal, Baghat and Keonthal, the rulers changed their titles from Rana to Raja. The style of the Rana of Porbandar was upgraded in 1918 to Maharana Sahib. There was only one incumbent before accession to of the state to the Republic of India.
Princely states that continued to use the title Rana for their rulers included Bhajji, Darkoti, Jobat, Jubbal, Khaneti, Kumharsain, Kuthar, Mangal, Kangra, Sakti, Wao and Dhami (a tributary state of Bilaspur). (Please add/delete).
Rana dynasty of Nepal
The Rana dynasty ruled the Kingdom of Nepal from 1846 until 1953, reducing the Shah monarch to a figurehead and making Prime Minister and other government positions hereditary. It is descended from one Bal Narsingh Kunwar (Ranaji) of Kaski, who moved to Gorkha in the early 18th century and entered the service of Raja Nara Bhupal Shah around 1740. Originally, the Rana dynasty originated from the Royal family of Udaipur in India, also known as Mewar.
Rana rulers of Nepal
- Maharaja Bir Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana
- Maharaja Dev Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana
- Maharaja Bhim Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana
- Maharaja Juddha Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana
- Maharaja Padma Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana
- Maharaja Mohan Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana
Rana title in Pakistan
Members of many Rajput clans use Rana as hereditary title in Pakistan and their majority is Muslim. However Hindu Rajputs with this title are also there in Sindh. Umerkot was a state of Hindu Rajput ruler in Pakistan. In 16th century, The then Rana of Umerkot, Rana Prasad gave refuge to mughal prince Humayun and his wife Hamida Banu Begum who fled from military defeat at the hands of Sher Shah Suri and their son Akbar was born in the fort of the Rana of Umerkot.
- Seesodia, Jessrajsingh (1915). The Rajputs: A Fighting Race. East and West, ltd. p. 41.
- Bhattarai, Krishna (2009). Nepal. Infobase Publishing. p. 42. ISBN 9781438105239.
- Rose, Bhuwan (1966). Democratic Innovations in Nepal: A Case Study of Political Acculturation. University of California Press. p. 34.
- Rajput appeal from Amarkot
- Rana kin in Pakistan for mourning
- Umerkot’s former Rajput ruler is dead