bargir

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Hindi बरगीर (bargīr), from Persian بارگیر (bârgir, “baggage-horse”), from ‍بار (bâr, “load, burden, cargo”) + گیر (gir, “carrying”), the present stem of گرفتن (gereftan).

Noun

bargir (plural bargirs)

1. (India, historical) A trooper of irregular cavalry who is (unlike a silladar) not the owner of his troop horse and arms, but either is put in by another person, perhaps a native officer in the regiment who takes part of his pay, or has his horse from the state he serves.

Alternative forms

• bargeer

Further reading

• Henry Yule, A[rthur] C[oke] Burnell (1903) “bargeer”, in William Crooke, editor, Hobson-Jobson […] , London: John Murray, […], page 69.