ban, former Hungarian title denoting a governor of a military district (banat) and later designating a local representative of the Hungarian king in outlying possessions—e.g., Bosnia and Croatia. The etymology of the word ban has been contested. Some linguists argue that it was originally a Persian word that was introduced into Europe by the Avars. Others emphasize its origins in Serbo-Croatian language, whereas still others assign it Old Germanic roots. The Kingdom of Yugoslavia, divided into banovine, or provinces, revived the title and office of ban in October 1929 and used it until the German-Italian invasion of April 1941.