divan
/dɪˈvæn/ noun
Forms divans
- noun (now historical) A Muslim council of state, specifically that of viziers of the Ottoman Empire that discussed and recommended new laws and law changes to a higher authority (the sultan).
- noun The council chamber where this court is held; (by extension), any court of justice.
- noun (now rare) Any council or assembly.
- noun (furniture) A couch or sofa-like piece of furniture made of a mattress lying against the wall and on either the floor or an elevated structure.
- noun (dated) An establishment that serves cigars and coffee, and may offer other amenities such as books, newspapers, and chess.
- noun (Hong Kong) A drug or cigarette den.
- noun A collection of poems, especially one written by an author in Arabic or Persian.
Synonyms
Etymology
Borrowed from French, from Ottoman Turkish دیوان (divan), from Classical Persian دیوان (dēwān), from Middle Persian d(p)ywʾn' (dēwān, “archive, collected writings”), from Sumerian 𒁾 (dub). Compare mattress, from Arabic (both of Middle Eastern origin, due to the local custom of lying on padding on floor being foreign to Europeans). Doublet of dewan, douane, and diwaniya.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A book; esp., a collection of poems written by one author; as, the divan of Hafiz. [Persia]
- noun In Turkey and other Oriental countries: A council of state; a royal court. Also used by the poets for a grand deliberative council or assembly. Pope.
Etymology [Per. diwan a book of many leaves, an account book, a collection of books, a senate, council: cf. Ar. daiwan, F. divan.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “divan”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details