An Indian queen or princess, or the wife of a rajah (Indian king).
From Hindi 'rani' and Sanskrit 'rajni,' feminine form of 'raja' meaning king. Entered English during the British colonial period in India.
Rani is the female form of 'rajah,' and English borrowed both words from India—it's a linguistic reminder of the British Empire and how English absorbed vocabulary from the cultures it colonized, especially from India.
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