Gymkhana

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Karachi Gymkhana Club in 1890.

Gymkhana Urdu: جِمخانہ‎, Sindhi: جمخانه‎), (Hindi: जिमख़ाना, Assamese: জিমখানা, Bengali: জিমখানা, is a British Raj term which originally referred to a place of assembly. The meaning then altered to denote a place where skill-based contests were held. "Gymkhana" is an Anglo-Indian expression, which is derived from the Persian word "Jamat-khana".^[1] Most gymkhanas have a Gymkhana Club associated with them, a term coined during British Raj for gentlemen's club.

More generally, gymkhana refers to a social and sporting club in the Indian subcontinent, and in other Asian countries including Malaysia, Thailand, Burma and Singapore, as well as in East Africa.

Etymology[edit]

Bombay Gymkhana or Bombay Gym

The first element of Gymkhana comes from gend meaning ball in Hindi/Hindustani/Khariboli.^{[citation needed]} This element is distinct from English word gym, short for gymnasium and gymnastics which has Greek and Latin roots.^[2] The second element, khānā has a Persian origin, meaning a home or a compartment. In Persian, (خانه) is a term for dwelling, house.^[3] The court language of the Mughal Empire was Persian.

References[edit]

↑ MacMillan, Michael (1895). The Globe Trotter in India Two Hundred Years Ago: And Other Indian Studies. S. Sonnenschein & Company. p. 91.
↑ Oxford Dictionaries Gymnasium etymology
↑ From Loghat'nāmeh-ye Dehkhoda, Third Edition (Tehran University Press, 2006), quoted from Borhān-e Ghāte' by Mohammad Moin.

External links[edit]

[1] MacMillan, Michael (1895). The Globe Trotter in India Two Hundred Years Ago: And Other Indian Studies. S. Sonnenschein & Company. p. 91.

[2] Oxford Dictionaries Gymnasium etymology

[3] From Loghat'nāmeh-ye Dehkhoda, Third Edition (Tehran University Press, 2006), quoted from Borhān-e Ghāte' by Mohammad Moin.

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Etymology[edit]

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