Jana Begum was a Mughal Indian noblewoman and scholar, noted for being one of the first women to write a commentary (Arabic:

tafsir Tafsir ( ; ) refers to an exegesis, or commentary, of the Quran. An author of a ''tafsir'' is a ' (; plural: ). A Quranic ''tafsir'' attempts to provide elucidation, explanation, interpretation, context or commentary for clear understanding ...

) on the

Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...

in the 17th century. She was the daughter of

Abdul Rahim Khan-i-Khanan Khanzada Mirza Khan Abdul Rahim (17 December 1556 – 1 October 1627), popularly known as simply Rahim and titled ''Khan-i-Khanan'', was a poet who lived in India during the rule of Mughal emperor Akbar, who was Rahim's mentor. He was one of ...

, a scholar and general under

Mughal Mughal or Moghul may refer to: Related to the Mughal Empire * Mughal Empire of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries * Mughal dynasty * Mughal emperors * Mughal people, a social group of Central and South Asia * Mughal architecture * Mug ...

Emperor

Akbar Akbar (Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar, – ), popularly known as Akbar the Great, was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Humayun, under a regent, Bairam Khan, who helped the young emperor expa ...

.Yoginder Sikand. Bastions of Believers: Madrasas and Islamic Education in India. (Delhi: Penguin Books), 2005, p. 35 Her grandfather was

Bairam Khan Muhammad Bairam Khan (; 18 January 1501 – 31 January 1561), commonly known as Bairam Khan or Bayram Khan was an important military commander, and later commander-in-chief of the Mughal Empire, Mughal army, a powerful statesman and regent at ...

, another general under Mughal Emperors Humayun and Akbar. Bairam Khan had also served as Regent to Akbar. Jana Begum later went on to marry

Daniyal Mirza Daniyal Mirza (11 September 1572 – 19 March 1605) was a prince of the Mughal Empire who served as the Viceroy of the Deccan. He was the third son of the emperor Akbar and a half-brother of the emperor Jahangir. Daniyal was Akbar's favouri ...

, a son of Akbar making her the Mughal Emperor's daughter-in-law. Akbar had also married Bairam Khan's widow

Salima Sultan Begum Salima Sultan Begum (23 February 1539 – 2 January 1613) was the third wife and chief consort of the Mughal emperor Akbar, and a granddaughter of Babur. Salima was the daughter of Akbar's paternal aunt, Gulrukh Begum, and her husband, the Vic ...

hence Salima not only was step-grandmother to Jana, but also step-mother-in-law.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Begum, Jana Women from the Mughal Empire Mughal nobility 17th-century Muslim scholars of Islam Quranic exegesis scholars Islam in South Asia 17th-century Indian women writers 17th-century Indian writers Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Women scholars of Islam 17th-century Mughal Empire people