n. [ OE. caliphe, califfe, F. calife (cf. Sp. califa), fr. Ar. khalīfan successor, fr. khalafa to succed (i. e. a successor of Mohammed). ] Successor or vicar; the civil and religious leader of a Muslim state; -- a title of the successors of Mohammed both as temporal and spiritual rulers, used formerly by the sultans of Turkey.
n. [ Cf. F. califat. ] The office, dignity, or government of a caliph or of the caliphs. [ 1913 Webster ]