The name Rajput is derived from "Rajaputra", the son of a ruler. Between the eighth and fourteenth centuries, a body of warriors who were Kshatriya by caste was termed as Rajputs. The Rajputs were not just rulers and chieftains, but also soldiers and commanders who served in the armies of different monarchs all over the subcontinent. This group of people became important in this period. Poets and bards of these Rajput rulers ascribed some great qualities, such as great valour and immense sense of loyalty, to these rulers.