خلفا

Ottoman Turkish

Etymology

Borrowed from Arabic خُلَفَاء (ḵulafāʔ).

Noun

خلفا • (hulefâ)

1. plural of خلیفه (halife)

Descendants

• Turkish: hulefa

Persian

Etymology

Borrowed from Arabic خُلَفَاء (ḵulafāʔ).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Persian) IPA^(key): [xu.la.ˈfɑː]

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [xʊ.lä.fɑ́ː]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [xʊ.lä.fɑ́ː]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [xʊ.lä.fɑ́ː]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [xu.lä.fɔ́ː]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [xo.læ.fɒ́ː]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [χu.lä.fɔ́]

Readings
Classical reading?	xulafā
Dari reading?	xulafā
Iranian reading?	xolafâ
Tajik reading?	xulafo

Noun

Dari	خلفا
Iranian Persian
Tajik	хулафо

خلفا • (xolafâ)

1. plural of خلیفه (xalife)

Urdu

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian خلفا (xolafâ), from Arabic خُلَفَاء (ḵulafāʔ).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /xʊ.lə.fɑː/
• Rhymes: -ɑː

Noun

خُلَفا • (xulafā) m pl (Hindi spelling ख़ुलफ़ा)

1. formal plural of خلیفہ (xalīfah, “caliph”)

References

• “خلفا”, in اُردُو لُغَت (urdū luġat) (in Urdu), Ministry of Education: Government of Pakistan, 2017.
• “خلفا”, in ریخْتَہ لُغَت (rexta luġat) - Rekhta Dictionary [Urdu dictionary with meanings in Hindi & English], Noida, India: Rekhta Foundation, 2025.