Baig, also commonly spelled Beg, or Begh (Persian: بیگ, Bay, Turkish: Bey) was a title of Turko-Mongol origin, which is today used as a surname or middle name to identify lineage. It means Chief or Commander and is common in Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Turkey, Iran, Caucasus, Central Asia and Eastern Europe (former Yugoslav) and among their respective diaspora.
The name Baig is derived from the Iranian Languages word Beg or Bey, which itself comes from the Proto-Aryan *bege- "God", from Proto-Indo-European *bʰágo- "God, divinity" *bʰag-.
Beg was also subsequently used as a military rank in the Ottoman Empire.
It was also used during the Qing dynasty in China. When the Qing dynasty ruled Xinjiang, it permitted the Turkic Begs in the Altishahr region to maintain their previous status, and they administered the area for the Qing as officials. High-ranking Begs were allowed to wear the Queue.
For the Persian use, it is common to see the name Beg added to the Persian suffix of 'zada' (male), 'zadi' (female), which means 'son of' or 'daughter of'. For Example: Mirza Begzada or Noor Begzadi. For the Turkish use, it is most common to see the spelling Beg or Bey utilized. (Sometimes, it is used along with the title "Mirza", similar to the Moghal usage).
For the Moghal use, the honorific title Mirza (Persian: مرزا) was added before the given name for all the males and 'Baig' (Persian: بیگ) for the males or Begum (Persian: بگوم) for the females, was added as a family name. For example: Mirza Abdullah Baig or Farzana Begum. This was the historical naming convention for the descendants of the Moghal dynasty. Today, however, it is not uncommon to see descendants of the Moghals use Baig as a middle name and Mirza as the surname or vice versa. For example: Abdullah Baig Mirza or Abdullah Mirza Baig.
For the Slavic or Bosniak use, it is common to see the name Beg added to the Slavic suffix of 'ovic', 'ovich', which roughly means 'descendant of'. While the title "Beg" is not in use in Bosnia anymore, track of families of "Beg" descent is kept. But a surname containing "-begović" suffix in itself is not a clear indicator of descent. For example, there is a number of "Begović" families, some are of noble descent, some not. "Idrizbegović" would be another example of non-noble family with the suffix. Some examples of "beg" families are: Šahbegović, Rizvanbegović, Šačirbegović. On the other hand, "Kukavica" is an example of a famous "beg" family, not containing the title in itself. The book by Enver Imamović "Porijeklo i pripadnost stanovništva Bosne i Hercegovine" details the origin of a big number of families in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
There are various other alternative spellings used today as well, such as: Begh, Begg, Beigh, Beyg, Bayg, Bek, Bik.
Afghanistan
Sultan Abu Sa'id Beg
Mohammad Murad Beg, Emir of Bokhara
Mir Yar Beg and Mir Yar Beg Sahibzada, Emir of Bokhara
Albania
Skanderbeg, Dominus Albaniae (lord of Albania)
Azerbaijan
Jani Beg
Mirza Adigozal bey, was an Azerbaijani historian of the 19th century.
Mirza Miran Shah Beg, was a son of Mirza Timur Beg, and a Timurid governor during his father's lifetime.
Elbey Mirza-Hasan oglu Rzaguliyev, was an Azerbaijani Soviet artist and stage director, and father of artist Ayten Rzaguliyeva.
Bosnia
Isa-Beg Isaković
Isak-Beg
Gazi Husrev-beg
Ali-paša Rizvanbegović
Safvet beg Bašagić
Turahan Bey
Turahanoğlu Ömer Bey
Central Asia
Shadi Beg
Timur-Malik
Temür Qutlugh
England
Moazzam Begg
India
Abbas Ali Baig, Indian Cricketer
Mahmud Begada, Sultan of Gujarat
Mirza Asadullah Baig Khan
Mirza Babur Beg, the first Mughal emperor
Mirza Muhammad Akbar Beg, He was the third and one of the greatest rulers of the Mughal Dynasty in India.
Mirza Abul-Qasim Babur bin Baysonqor Beg, was a Timurid ruler in Khurasan (1449–1457).
Mirza Mehboob Beg, is an Indian politician, belonging to Jammu & Kashmir National Conference.
Mirza Farhatullah Baig, was an Indian Urdu writer of humor and prose.
Mirza Muhammed Baig Chishti Qalandari Hyderabadi, He is renowned as a Sufi saint and great scholar of Hyderabad Deccan.
Mirza Ibrahim Beg, was Subahdar of Bengal during the reign of emperor Jahangir Beg.
Wali Beg Zul-Qadr, Soldier under Akbar Mirza Mughal Emperor.
Tardi Beg, was a military commander in the 16th century in Mughal India.
Iran
Ulugh Beg
Sultan Ibrahim Beg
Otar Beg
Kashgar
Yaqub Beg
Pakistan
Mirza Fahim Ahmad Baig is also known as "Baba e Scale" for his achievement of being the first in his era to develop a locally manufactured weighing scale.
Mirza Aslam Baig
Mirza Aziz Akbar Baig
General Mohammad Abbas Baig
Obaidullah Baig was an eminent scholar, Urdu writer/novelist, columnist, media expert, and most notably a documentary filmmaker from Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.
Mirza Iqbal Baig is a Pakistani sports journalist and cricket commentator who currently works as a television show host.
Mirza Mohammad Afzal Beg was a Kashmiri politician and lieutenant of the late Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir.
Naeem Baig is an eminent Pakistani Novelist and short story writer, who has conceived articles, short stories and Novels in Urdu and English languages.
Mirza Nazeer Baig Mughal is a Pakistani actor. He has acted in several films, tele-films, and TV drama serials.
Mirza Rafiuddin 'Raz' Baig is a Pakistani poet.
Adina Beg, was the governor of the Punjab including Lahore, Jalandhar and Multan from 1755 to 1758.
Poland
Naiman-Beg
Russia
Mirza Kazem-Bey, Muhammad Ali Kazim-bey, was a famous orientalist, historian and philologist of Azeri and Iranian origin.
Alexander Lvovich Kazembek (often spelled Kazem-Bek or Kasem-Beg), was a Russian émigré and political activist, and founder of the Mladorossi political group.
Iskander Mirza Huzman Beg Sulkiewicz, was a Polish politician of Tatar ethnicity, activist in socialist and independence movements and one of the co-founders of Polish Socialist Party.
Sri Lanka
Mohideen Baig, was a popular Sri Lankan musician.
Turkey
Sultan Osman-beg, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire
Mirza Tugay Bey, was a notable military leader and politician of the Crimean Tatars.
United States
Ed Baig, is an American technology columnist.
