What exactly is a Nabob?

Recently, someone asked me what a nabob was. The question surprised me: having grown up on a steady diet of Georgette Heyer, it's a word I've always been familiar with, and I suppose I thought everyone else would know it too. Asking around, though, I found that wasn't the case. Some people knew. Some had worked it out. Others had no idea.

So, here goes:

What is a nabob?

The actual definition of a nabob, (pronounced neigh-bob) Is, “a conspicuously wealthy man who made his fortune in the east, particularly in India.” The word comes from the Hindustani, “nawab,” which was a royal title, on a par with a Prince. The British pinched and anglicised the word, much as they did words like pyjamas, bungalow, veranda, and thug.

Nabob actually entered the English language as far back as 1612, but we tend to associate it with the incredibly wealthy men of the 18th and 19th centuries. These men, many of whom had gone to India with the East India Company, amassed fortunes, then used them to buy power and influence back home, purchasing seats in parliament, and getting the law changed to suit themselves.

They weren't popular. The upper class tended to think of them as upstarts, merchants who should know their places in a world that was far less socially mobile than today. The working class and less wealthy middle class saw nabobs as greedy, immoral, and corrupt.

Which, indeed, many were.

But some, undoubtedly, were decent, hard working men who happened to be in the right place at the right time, saw an opportunity, and grabbed it.

Which is what happened to Josh Summersby, the hero of “Viscount in Hiding.” The second son of a Viscount, Josh left home after an argument with his father. He found a mentor, learned his trade, worked hard, and succeeded beyond his wildest dreams.

Fourteen years later, he receives a letter from home. His older brother is dead, his father is in mortal danger, and someone is pretending to be Josh himself…

In “Acting the Nabob,” we meet Josh’s cousin, Ben Summersby. Ben and Josh look alike, but that's where the similarities end. Whereas Josh is richer than Croesus, Ben is a jobbing actor, struggling to make ends meet in a third rate London theatre. But there’s a murderous gang of criminals in Shropshire, targeting and killing wealthy men. The authorities ask Ben to impersonate Josh to attract the gang's attention and lure them into a trap.

However, Ben didn't reckon on his journey to Shropshire being a “honeymoon trip.” Nor did he expect his “wife” would be played by Alice, an opera dancer with urgent reasons of her own to escape London…

You can find out more about Viscount in Hiding here

There are more details about Acting the Nabob here.