IN GREEK
αγάς
agas
aga; a man who lives in idle comfort
IN TURKISH
ağa
ağa
landowner, local notable; respectful address
WEAR THE WORD
αγάς in blue ink and ağa in red, on a T shirt, a tote or a mug.
THE RECORD
- LENT BY, BORROWED BY
- Turkish to Greek
- STARTED IN
- Turkish
- CATEGORY
- People and family
- HOW THE MEANING DRIFTED
- Greek mostly uses it in idioms of idle luxury; Turkish still uses it of landowners and as respectful address.
- NOTES
- Turkish ağa may itself go back to Mongolic.
COMMENTS
An editor reads every comment before it appears.
SOURCES
- Nişanyan Sözlük (checked online)
Etymologies are checked against the dictionaries and studies listed. An entry is stamped settled only when both the Greek and the Turkish side have been checked. Research for this ledger was compiled with AI assistance and reviewed by the editors.
HOW TO CITE THIS ENTRY
Gold, K. (ed.) (2026) ‘αγάς / ağa’, entry 236, Defter ή Tefteri: a ledger of shared Greek and Turkish words. https://defteritefteri.com/en/w/236-agas/. Accessed [day month year].