Medieval Glossary (Quick Reference)

Context: Essential administrative, revenue, and military terms for UPSC Prelims across the Sultanate and Mughal eras.
Key Feature: Distinguishing between Sultanate origin and Mughal evolution of specific terms.

1. Revenue & Land Administration

Iqta (Sultanate): Revenue assignment for military/civil service
Jagir (Mughal): Land revenue assignment given to Mansabdars
Khalisa (Both): Crown lands where revenue went directly to the central treasury
Zabti (Mughal): Revenue system based on the actual measurement of land
Dahsala (Mughal): 10-year average assessment of local prices and productivity
Taqavi (Both): Agricultural loans provided by the state for seeds, wells, or cattle
Abwab (Both): Miscellaneous cesses or illegal taxes collected by officials

Mansab: A rank held by Mughal officers; Zat indicated personal rank/salary, while Sawar indicated the number of troops to be maintained.
Du-aspa Sih-aspa: Specialized rank introduced by Jahangir to increase military depth without raising the personal status of the officer.
Dagh & Chehra: The system of branding horses and descriptive rolls of soldiers to prevent fraud, perfected by Alauddin Khalji.
Ahadi: High-status 'Gentleman Troopers' who were recruited directly by the Emperor.

Diwan: The chief finance and revenue minister of the empire.
Mir Bakshi: The head of the military department under the Mughals; not the commander-in-chief, but the paymaster general.
Barid: State intelligence officers or spies who reported directly to the center.
Kotwal: The head of the police department in cities and major towns.
Muhtasib: Censor of public morals; also checked weights and measures in markets.

Hundi: A bill of exchange/credit note used for long-distance trade without moving cash.
Sarraf: Professional money-changer and banker who managed the Hundi system.
Banjara: Itinerant grain merchants who sustained the moving imperial armies.
Dadni: An advance payment system given to artisans by merchants to secure production.
Jizya: A protection tax paid by non-Muslim subjects (Zimmis); abolished by Akbar and reimposed by Aurangzeb.