Khansamahs

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A person employed as a chief cook or kitchen steward in a large household or military camp; an individual responsible for the preparation and management of meals for a group
2. One who oversees the kitchen operations and food preparation for an organized group or institution; a head cook particularly in historical or South Asian contexts
3. A culinary supervisor tasked with organizing food services and cooking in settings such as barracks or estates; traditionally a title used for a master cook in certain cultures

Etymology: "Khansamahs" is the plural of "khansamah", a head cook in a household, and the singular word came into English from Urdu, where "khansamān" joins two Persian-derived elements. The first, "khān", means "master" or "lord," the same title familiar from Central Asian rulers. The second, "sāmān", means "household goods" or "belongings," so the compound literally names someone who is master over a household's stores and provisions. The word's sense is therefore tied less to cooking itself than to the broader management of a household's supplies, with the kitchen being the part of that domain the title came to name in English.

Synonyms: stewards, head servants, majordomos