Tarkhan Tarkhan ( Old Turkic " Tarqan " ; Mongolian : " Darkhan " ; ; ; ; alternative spellings " Tarkan " , " Tarkhaan " , " Tarqan " , " Tarchan " , " Tarxan " , " Tarcan " or " Targan " ) is an ancient Central Asian title used by various Indo - European ( i . e . Iranian and Tokharian ) and Turco - Mongol peoples , especially in the medieval era , and prominent among the successors of the Mongol Empire . Etymology . The origin of the word is not known . Various historians identify the word as either East Iranian ( Sogdian or Khotanese Saka ) , Turkic ( Hunnic , Xiongnu ) , or Mongolian . Although R . Frye reports that the word " was probably foreign to Sogdian " , hence considered to be a loanword from Turkic , Gerhard Doerfer points out that even in Turkic languages , its plural is not Turkic ( sing . " tarxan " - - > plur . " tarxat " ) , suggesting a non - Turkic origin . L . Ligeti comes to the same conclusion , saying that " " tarxan and tegin [ prince ] form the wholly un - Turkish plurals tarxat and tegit " " and that the word was unknown to medieval western Turkic languages , such as Bulgar . Taking this in consideration , the word is most likely derived from medieval Mongolian " darqat " ( Mongolian plural suffix - at ) , itself perhaps derived from the earlier Sogdian word " * tarxant " ( " free of taxes " ) . A . Alemany gives the additional elaboration that the related East Iranian Scythian ( and Alanic ) word " * tarxan " still survives in Ossetic " tærxon " ( " argument , trial " ) and " tærxon kænyn " ( " to judge " ) . Harold Walter Bailey also proposes an Iranian ( Khotanese Saka ) root for the word . What is certain is that " Tarkhan " is not related to the Turco - Mongol royal title " Khan " / " Khaqan " . The word was borrowed into many languages , including Armenian tʿarxan , Georgian t ’ arxani and Russian тархан . History . It was used among the various Iranian ( Sogdians , Khotanese , and Hephthalites ) and Turco - Mongol peoples of Central Asia and other steppe people , and was a high rank in the army of Tamerlane . Tarkhans commanded military contingents ( roughly of regimental size under the Khazar khan ) and were , roughly speaking , general s . They could also be assigned as military governors of conquered regions . The Göktürks probably adopted the title of Darqan ( Mongolian spelling ) from the Mongol - speaking Rourans or Avars . The Tarkhan were cited in inscription of Kul Tigin ( d . c . 731 CE ) . They were given high honors such as entering the ger of Khagan without any prior appointment and shown unusual ninefold pardon to the 9th generation from any crime they committed . Although the etymology of the word is unknown , it is attested under the Khitans who ruled most of Mongolia and North China between 916 and 1125 . Like many titles , Tarkhan ( Turkic spelling ) also occurs as a personal name , independent of a person ' s rank , which makes some historical references confusing . For example , Arab texts refer to a " Tarkhan , king of the Khazars " as reigning in the mid ninth century . Whether this is a confused reference to a military official or the name of an individual Khazar khagan remains unclear . The name is occasionally used today in Turkish and Arabic speaking countries . In the Mongol Empire , the Darkhan were exempted from taxation , socage and requisitioning . Genghis Khan made those who helped his rise Darkhans in 1206 . The families of the Darkhan played crucial roles later when the succession crisis occurred in Yuan Dynasty and Ilkhanate . Abaqa Khan ( 1234 – 82 ) made an Indian Darkhan after he had led his mother and her team all the way from Central Asia to Persia safely . A wealthy merchant of Persia was made of Darkhan by Ghazan ( 1271 – 1304 ) for his service during the early defeat of the Ilkhan . In Russia , the Khans of the Golden Horde assigned important tasks to the Darkhan . A jarliq of Temur Qutlugh ( ca . 1370 – 1399 ) which authorized rights of the Tarkhan found in Crimea . During the Yuan Dynasty ( 1271 – 1368 ) , the title was bestowed mainly on the late Darkhans ' families and the government officials . After suppressing the rebellion of the right three tumens in Mongolia , Dayan Khan exempted his soldiers , who participated the battle of Dalan - Terqin , from imposts and made them Darkhan in 1513 . Even after the collapse of the Northern Yuan with the death of Ligdan Khan , the title of Darkhan was bestowed on religious dignitaries , sometimes on persons of low birth . For example , in 1665 , the Khotgoid Altan Khan Lubsan bestowed the title on a Russian interpreter and requested the Russian Tsar to exempt the interpreter from all tax obligations . The word refers the Blacksmith and is still used in Mongolia as privilege . A Tarkhan established the Tarkhan Dynasty , ruling Northern India from 1554 to 1591 AD .