Also 6 bellerbey, 69 beglerbey, 7 beglarbeg. [a. Turk. beglerbeg bey of beys; cf. BEG (of which begler is plural).] The governor of a province of the Ottoman empire, in rank next to the grand vizier.
Hence Begler-beglic, -lik, -luc, the district over which a beglerbeg rules, the dignity or office of a beglerbeg. Also Beglerbegship.
1594. T. B., La Primaud. Fr. Acad., 631. Neither doth any other sit there but the twelve bellerbeis.
1602. Carew, Cornwall, 126 a. A Turkish Beglerbey of Greece.
1603. Knolles, Hist. Turkes (1621), 945. It is now one of the Turkes proud Beglerbegships.
1614. Selden, Titles Hon., 377. Begler-Beg is Lord of Lords, that is, one which hath vnder his gouernment diuers Begs of lesser Prouinces. And Begluc is the Dignitie of the one, Beglarbegluc of the other.
1624. Massinger, Renegado, III. iv. What places of credit are there? Theres your beglerbeg.
1813. J. C. Hobhouse, Journey, I. 162. Reckoned the eighth under the Beglerbey of Romania.