Soldan
Preserved but no longer current.
Also seen as: Sowdan
A corruption of sultan, meaning in mediaeval romance the Saracen king; but, with the usual inaccuracy of these writers, we have the Soldan of Egypt, the Soudan of Persia, the Sowdan of Babylon, etc., all represented as accompanied by grim Saracens to torment Christians.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Soldan” mean?
A corruption of sultan, meaning in mediaeval romance the Saracen king; but, with the usual inaccuracy of these writers, we have the Soldan of Egypt, the Soudan of Persia, the Sowdan of Babylon, etc., all represented as accompanied by grim Saracens to torment Christians.
Is “Soldan” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.