What was the original name of Nur Jahan, the wife of Jahangir?
- A.Arjumand Banu Begum
- B.Mehr-un-Nissa
- C.Jahanara Begum
- D.Hamida Banu Begum
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is B, Mehr-un-Nissa. She was the daughter of Mirza Ghiyas Beg, whom Jahangir honoured with the title Itmad-ud-Daula, and after her marriage to the emperor in 1611 she was styled Nur Mahal, light of the palace, and then Nur Jahan, light of the world; coins were struck in her name along with the emperor. Option A is wrong because Arjumand Banu Begum was her niece, who married Shah Jahan and is remembered by her title Mumtaz Mahal. Option C is wrong because Jahanara Begum was the eldest daughter of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal. Option D is wrong because Hamida Banu Begum was the wife of Humayun and the mother of Akbar, who built Humayun tomb at Delhi. Her brother Asaf Khan was the father of Mumtaz Mahal, which is how the same family supplied the leading women of two reigns.
Read the full article: Titles of Ancient and Medieval Indian Rulers
Practice Questions
View allIn his own inscriptions, the Mauryan emperor Ashoka is referred to by which titles?
- A.Maharajadhiraja and Parameshwara
- B.Devanampiya and Piyadassi
- C.Amitraghata and Ekabrahmana
- D.Shiladitya and Satyashraya
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Ashoka edicts almost never use his personal name; they speak of Devanampiya Piyadassi, the beloved of the gods and of pleasing appearance.
Read the full explanation →Which Gupta ruler is described as Sarvarajochchetta, the uprooter of all kings?
- A.Chandragupta I
- B.Samudragupta
- C.Chandragupta II
- D.Skandagupta
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The Allahabad pillar inscription, a prashasti composed by his court poet Harisena, lists his campaigns in the Ganga valley, the Deccan and the frontier states and calls him Sarvarajochchetta; the same inscription gives him Kaviraja for his learning, and his coins show him playing the veena.
Read the full explanation →The title Trisamudratoyapitavahana, one whose horses drank the water of three seas, belongs to which ruler?
- A.Kharavela
- B.Gautamiputra Satakarni
- C.Rudradaman I
- D.Kanishka
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The Nasik cave inscription issued by his mother Gautami Balashri praises the Satavahana ruler as Trisamudratoyapitavahana and as Ekabrahmana, and credits him with destroying the Shakas, Yavanas and Pahlavas.
Read the full explanation →Which Gupta ruler assumed the title Vikramaditya after defeating the Western Kshatrapas?
- A.Samudragupta
- B.Kumaragupta I
- C.Chandragupta II
- D.Chandragupta I
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He conquered the territories of the Western Kshatrapas in Gujarat and Malwa, which gave the Guptas access to the western ports, and he used the titles Vikramaditya, Simhavikrama and Devashri; the Chinese pilgrim Fa-hien visited India in his reign.
Read the full explanation →Which Sultan of Delhi was popularly called Lakh Baksh, the giver of lakhs?
- A.Qutbuddin Aibak
- B.Iltutmish
- C.Balban
- D.Firoz Shah Tughlaq
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The founder of the Slave or Mamluk dynasty was called Lakh Baksh for his lavish charity, and he began the Qutb Minar at Delhi and the Adhai Din ka Jhonpra at Ajmer.
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