Diwan

   The diwan, or guesthouse, was a special room or house that the agha (landlord) maintained for travelers to rest, be entertained, or given tea, a meal, or a place to spend the night. Until recently, all male villagers came and sat there in the evenings to discuss daily matters. The agha settled minor disputes, and decisions affecting the village were made there. The young also learned traditions at the diwan, and the older men would furnish examples of what a man should be like. Thus, the diwan provided a powerful mechanism of social control. In recent years, the institution of the diwan has declined due to rapid economic changes among aghas and villagers.

   Diwan also means "a poet's collection of writings." The connection between these two different meanings is that in the sense of a guesthouse, a diwan is also a place where a magistrate and his staff discuss policy and write it down. These similar meanings of diwan also appear in Arabic, Persian, and Turkish.