Urdu: نوکرشاہ

[iskander e azam]

Friends,

I am searching for the meaning(s) of the word نوکرشاۃ. An internet search gives bureaucracy as the meaning of نوکرشاہی so it follows نوکرشاہ must mean bureaucrat.

The catalyst for this search is that yesterday, on youtube I watched سرفروش starring Amir Khan and Naseeruddin Shah and Shah SaaHib's character uses the word نوکرشاہ when introducing an acquaintance of his to others in a social setting. Now, bureaucrat has negative connotations but no contempt was implied in the scene. And the acquaintance describes his own character as a 'diplomat' much later in the film.

How many of the following meanings can be correctly given to نوکرشاہ?

1. Bureaucrat
2. Diplomat
3. Civil Servant
4. Government official

Are there other meanings we can add?

Much obliged,

Alex

 

[nadim]

Frankly naukar shah has only one meaning, beurocrate. Look at the contrast of the two words, naukar and shah. Keep in mind the system of public administration in third world countries, and typically in subcontinent. There they are not to serve [naukar] the public, but to rule [shah] the public.
In the movie, an Urdu speaking Pakistani poet is introducing a Pakistani official. The same official who taunted the poet as MUHAAJIR/immigrant. May be he has to balance his score with the official, or may be there is no literary alternate of Beurocrate in Urdu.

 

[marrish]

Bureaucracy in Urdu should be daftar-shaahii! Or daftar-shaahii nizaam! A bureaucrat is also a daftar-shaahii and the system, nizaam, can be defined by daftar-shaahii as an adjective.

Otherwise what about daftar-shaahiyat (bureaucracy, system of-, idea of-), daftar-shaahii (adj.), daftar-shaahaanah (adv., adj.) and daftar-shaah (a bureaucrat, a noun).

maadar-shaahii means both matriarchy and matriarchal, the same as pidar-shaahii for patriarchy, patriarchal.

I must see the relevant scene first to attempt to say anything about naukar-shaah. That is a subtle distinction between an office as a ruling entity but an official or a clerk who is the ruler and it's quite more the case in the "ground realities".

 

[iskander e azam]

Nadim SaaHib and marrish SaaHib,

Thank you both for your considered posts.

The scene occurs at 2:01:00. [moderator note: Please don't post links to copyrighted materials, nor videos. Thanks. Cherine]

Yours sincerely,

Alex

 

[tarkshya]

The word sounds like an oxymoron at first glance. (How can one be a "naukar" (servant) and a "shah" (king) at the same time. ) It has to be understood as naukar-of-shah, meaning a king's servant. In modern context it would mean a government servant.

 

[iskander e azam]

Here is a direct quote from www.siasat.com showing daftar-shaah being used non-pejoratively:

یوپی کے سینئر دفتر شاہ انوپ مشرا نے آج لوک سبھا کے معتمد عمومی کا عہدہ سنبھال لیا

 

[nadim]

I must admit there is a huge difference in Indian and Pakistani Urdu. Daftar_shahi is not our point of discussion, but never heard it in Pakistan. And also never heard Nokar_shah in positive tone. The Pakistani companions may enlighten more.

 

[Khaanabadosh]

It's not naukar-of-shah. It's the rule of 'naukar' i.e. administration run by civil servants.

afsar-shaah is also used in similar context.

 

[Gope]

I must admit there is a huge difference in Indian and Pakistani Urdu.

"Huge" difference: Is this a well-attested fact?

 

[nadim]

you may change the HUGE with somethin else, thats not the problem, the problem is there exist difference in many aspects of expression

 

[marrish]

I must admit there is a huge difference in Indian and Pakistani Urdu. Daftar_shahi is not our point of discussion, but never heard it in Pakistan. And also never heard Nokar_shah in positive tone. The Pakistani companions may enlighten more.

I found many instances of daftar shaahii on Pakistani fora and newspapers like Jang, Nawa-i-waqt etc. I don't subscribe to this assessment.

It's not naukar-of-shah. It's the rule of 'naukar' i.e. administration run by civil servants.

afsar-shaah is also used in similar context.

I agree partially because naukar-shaah is not the rule but the ruler. As I said before, "that is a subtle distinction between an office as a ruling entity and an official or a clerk who is the ruler and it's quite more the case in the "ground realities". Can be also interpreted to mean "one who rules over the clerks" or "the one who is the ruler of his servants" or "ruler among his own servants"!

 

[Sheikh_14]

Shaahii here performs the same purpose as the Greek cracy which is indicative of rule in English. The crat is performed by shaah alone.

For instance 1. a patriarchy is pidar-shaahii,
2. a matriarchy, maadaar-shaahii,
3. a bureaucracy, daftar/afsar/nokar-shaahii. This means in turn a bureacrat would be a daftar/afsar/naukar-shah.

So a bureaucrat I.e. a nokar/daftar/afsar-shaah is one who rules from the office or through paperwork.

Correct me if you disagree along with why, otherwise be sure to give a thumbs up to ensure people who read the thread go back properly informed.

 

[Sheikh_14]

Bureaucracy in Urdu should be daftar-shaahii! Or daftar-shaahii nizaam! A bureaucrat is also a daftar-shaahii and the system, nizaam, can be defined by daftar-shaahii as an adjective.

Otherwise what about daftar-shaahiyat (bureaucracy, system of-, idea of-), daftar-shaahii (adj.), daftar-shaahaanah (adv., adj.) and daftar-shaah (a bureaucrat, a noun).

maadar-shaahii means both matriarchy and matriarchal, the same as pidar-shaahii for patriarchy, patriarchal.

I concur with much of the above other than the fact that the individual can not be daftar/naukar/maadar/pidar-shaahii as that is limited to the system. You are right in that a nizaam can be daftar shaahii. For bureaucratic it would indeed be daftar-shaahaana. The noun would be daftar/afsar-nokar-shaah. Daftar-shaahiiyat would be equivalent to bureacraticness.

A matriarchy is indeed maadar-shaahi. A matriarchal system maadar-shaahaana nizaam or maadaar-shaahii nizaam and a matriarch by extension maadar-shaah.

 

[Qureshpor]

It seems "naukar-shah" is a relatively recent term. I could not find it in Platts or Urdu LuGhat. In Urdu LuGhat "daftar-shaahii" is explained as "naukar-shaahii".

To my mind, "naukar-shah" is "naukar-i-shah" (The king's servant) and by extension > government servant/official > civil servant > beurocrat. naukar-shaahii and daftar-shaahii, would then equate to civil service and beuracracy respectively but overlapping each other. A diplomat is a "sifaarat-kaar".