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Divan or diwan was a high governmental body in a number of Islamic states, or metonymically its chief official, and similar offices, see Diwan (title); the divan (furniture) was also called after it.
Etymology
The word is recorded in English since 1586, meaning "Oriental council of state," from Turkish divan, from Arabic diwan, from Persian (itself possibly from Aramaic) devan "bundle of written sheets, small book, collection of poems" (as in the "Divan i-Hafiz"), related to debir "writer." Sense evolved through "book of accounts," to "office of accounts," "custom house," "council chamber," then to "long, cushioned seat," such as are found along the walls in Middle Eastern council chambers.
Council
The word first appears under the caliphate of Omar (A.D. 634-644). Great wealth, gained from the Moslem conquests, was pouring into Medina, and a system of business management and administration became necessary. This was copied from the Persians and given the Persian name, divan. Later, as the state became more complicated, the term was extended over all the government bureaus. The divan of the Sublime Porte was for long the council of the empire, sort of a cabinet of the Ottoman Empire. It consisted of the usually (except in the Sultan's presence) presiding Grand Vizier and other viziers, and occasionally the Janissary Ağa.
In Javanese and related languages the cognate Dewan is the standard word for council, as in the Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat or Council of People's Representatives.
Ministerial departments
In the sultanate of Morocco, several portfolio Ministries had a title based on Diwan:
- Diwan al-Alaf: ministry of War.
- Diwan al-Bar: 'ministry of the Sea', i.e. (overseas=) Foreign ministry.
- Diwan al-Shikayat (or - Chikayat): ministry of Complaints.
Halls
Two types of palatial buildings in Indian courts are called divan. They tend to occur in pairs, as in several of the Mughal imperial capitals, especially Delhi where they are the most famous ones, but also in Agra and Fatehpur Sikri, and certain other princely capitals, e.g. Amber.
Diwan-i-Am
A court's Hall of Public Audience, where the ruler can hold a mass audience. The hall in the Delhi case originally contained the Peacock throne.Diwan-i-Khas
A court's Hall of Private Audience, smaller then the Diwan-i-Am. Here envoys and other honored guests are granted a personal audience with the ruler.Sources and references
"Divan"