What does chowry mean?
A chowry is a traditional fly-whisk used across the Indian subcontinent, typically made from the tail hair of the yak — sometimes dyed — or from peacock feathers or other fibers, bound into a handle. Far more than a household tool, the chowry carried strong symbolic weight: attendants known as chowry-bearers waved it over kings, nobles, and deities, making it an enduring emblem of rank, honor, and divine majesty in Hindu, Buddhist, and Mughal courtly tradition. It appears frequently in descriptions of royal processions, temple ritual, and classical Indian art, where figures of authority are shown attended by whisk-holders. In English, the word surfaces mostly in historical, anthropological, and travel writing about South Asia, with variant spellings such as chowrie and chauri reflecting its Hindi and Sanskrit origins.
nounA chowry is a fly-whisk made of yak-tail hair, peacock feathers, or similar fibers set in a handle, used in South Asia — traditionally as a fan or ceremonial emblem of rank.
- A fly-whisk made of yak-tail hair or feathers, used in South Asia as a fan and as a traditional symbol of authority or royalty.
"The attendant stood behind the throne, gently waving the chowry to keep flies away from the maharaja."
"An attendant fanned the bride with a silver-handled chowry during the ceremony."
"In Mughal miniature paintings, nobles are often shown with a chowry bearer standing at their shoulder."
Regular plural; also seen spelled chowries for the chowrie variant.
"The palace armory displayed a row of ivory-handled chowries once used at coronations."
Before electric fans, Indian royalty had servants whisk the air with bundles of yak tail — the chowry was literally a badge of power you could wave.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of chowry
Chowry entered English during the period of British engagement with India, borrowed from Hindi caurī, which traces back through Prakrit to Sanskrit cāmara, meaning a yak-tail fly-whisk. The word belongs to the family of Anglo-Indian loanwords adopted in the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries, alongside terms like chowrie and chauri, which remain common variant spellings. Its cognates survive across modern Indo-Aryan languages, all pointing back to the same ancient ceremonial object described in early Indian texts.
How chowry is actually used
The word appears mainly in historical, ethnographic, or South Asian cultural writing; spellings vary widely, including chowrie, chauri, and chowry. It carries no figurative use in modern English.
Easily confused with chowry
A chowry is a ceremonial fly-whisk from South Asia, whereas chowder is a thick seafood soup.