THE ZAKKA KHEL.
IVO TRH EDrroe or THE SezorLros."3
SIR,—May I point out that the word "khel" is precisely what you say in your last issue it is not—that is, part of the name of a Pathan tribe, or section of a tribe—and that it ought not to be omitted? The late Sir Denzil Ibbetson in his Report on the Census of the Punjab wrote :— "The tribe, clan and sept are alike distinguished by patronymics formed from the name of the common ancestor
by the addition of the word zai or khel Zai being the corruption of the Pushtn zoe, meaning son,' while khel is an Arabic word meaning an association or company. Both terms are used indifferently for the larger and smaller divisions."
Mountstuart Elphinstone in his "Account of Caubul" (1842 edition, I. 214) wrote :—" Mail is a corruption of the Arabic word Hhyle, a band or assemblage." In Freytag's Arabic lexicon you will find khel, " egui et equites." The word is also common in Persian and Turkish. Dr. Bellew, indeed, preferred to believe that khel was derived from the Sanskrit kilt; signifying tribe, race, family ; but his opinion has not generally been accepted. In any case, we must not call the Zakka Khel the Zakkas, the Musa Khel the M.usas, the Sultan Khel the Sultans, the Ahmad Khel the Ahmads, or the Ali Khel the Alis.—I am, Sir, &c.,
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