Mihrabanids
Encyclopedia
The Mihrabanid dynasty was a Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...

 dynasty that ruled Sistan
Sistan
Sīstān is a border region in eastern Iran , southwestern Afghanistan and northern tip of Southwestern Pakistan .-Etymology:...

 (or Nimruz) from 1236 until the mid-16th century. It the third indigenous Muslim dynasty of Sistan, having been preceded by the Saffarid and Nasrid dynasties.

Overview

Most of what is known about the Mihrabanids comes from two sources. The first, the Tarikh-i Sistan, was completed in the mid-14th century by an anonymous author and covers the first hundred years of the dynasty's history. The other, the Ihya' al-muluk, was written by the 17th century author Malik Shah Husayn ibn Malik Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad and covers the entire history of the Mihrabanids' rule of Sistan.

The Mihrabanids used the title of malik
Malik
Malik is an Arabic word meaning "king, chieftain".It has been adopted in various other, mainly Islamized or Arabized, Asian languages for their ruling princes and to render kings elsewhere. It is also sometimes used in derived meanings...

 during their rule of Sistan. A malik could inherit the throne or be appointed by the nobles and military commanders. Their capital was generally the city of Shahr-i Sistan
Zaranj
Zaranj or Zarang is a border town in south-western Afghanistan, with a population of approximately 49,851 people as of 2004. It is the capital of Nimruz province and is situated next to Milak, Iran. It is linked by highways with Lashkar Gah to the east, Farah to the north and Zabol in Iran to the...

. Outside of the capital, the Mihrabanids frequently had problems asserting their authority over the outer towns of the province, and on occasion had to resort to force in order to bring them into line. The maliks often gave control of these towns to other Mihrabanids. Sometimes the Mihrabanids managed to extend their influence beyond Sistan, such as when parts of Quhistan
Quhistan
Quhistan or Kohistan was a region of medieval Persia, essentially the southern part of Greater Khorasan. Its boundaries appear to have been indeterminate, and the term generally seems to have been applied loosely....

 were conquered in the late 13th century.

Both the Mihrabanids and the general population of Sistan were Sunni Muslims. In the early 16th century Malik Sultan Mahmud
Sultan Mahmud ibn Nizam al-Din Yahya
Sultan Mahmud was the last Mihrabanid malik of Sistan, from c. 1495 until c. 1537.-Biography:sultan Mahmud was the son of Nizam al-Din Yahya and the sister of the Timurid Sultan Abu Sa'id....

 became a Safavid vassal; as a result certain Shi'i religious practices were introduced, such as the Shi'i call to prayer. This transition was disliked by many of the people of Sistan.

The Mihrabanids were often vassals of their more powerful neighbors. The Mihrabanids assumed control of Sistan in the wake of its subjugation by the Mongols
Mongol Empire
The Mongol Empire , initially named as Greater Mongol State was a great empire during the 13th and 14th centuries...

. After the foundation of the Ilkhanate
Ilkhanate
The Ilkhanate, also spelled Il-khanate , was a Mongol khanate established in Azerbaijan and Persia in the 13th century, considered a part of the Mongol Empire...

 by Hulegu Khan in 1256 the maliks recognized the Ilkhans as their overlords. Under the Ilkhans, Sistan's distance from the capital gave the Mihrabanids a high degree of autonomy. During this time they intermittently fought against the Kartid maliks of Herat
Herat
Herāt is the capital of Herat province in Afghanistan. It is the third largest city of Afghanistan, with a population of about 397,456 as of 2006. It is situated in the valley of the Hari River, which flows from the mountains of central Afghanistan to the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan...

, who were also Ilkhanid vassals. After the Ilkhanate's collapse in the mid-14th century the Mihrabanids were independent for almost half a century. This independence was ended by Timur
Timur
Timur , historically known as Tamerlane in English , was a 14th-century conqueror of West, South and Central Asia, and the founder of the Timurid dynasty in Central Asia, and great-great-grandfather of Babur, the founder of the Mughal Dynasty, which survived as the Mughal Empire in India until...

, who invaded Sistan in 1383 and caused extensive devastation to the province. The Mihrabanids henceforth were Timurid vassals until the latter's overthrow by the Shaybanids
Shaybanids
The Shaybanids were a Persianized dynasty of Mongolian origin in central Asia. They were the patrilineal descendants of Shiban, the fifth son of Jochi and grandson of Genghis Khan. Until the mid-14th century, they acknowledged the authority of the descendants of Batu Khan and Orda Khan, such as...

 in the first decade of the 16th century. The last malik of the dynasty decided to recognize the authority of the Safavids, eventually handing over control of Sistan and ending the Mihrabanids' governance of the region.

Mihrabanid maliks

  • Shams al-Din 'Ali ibn Mas'ud
    Shams al-Din 'Ali ibn Mas'ud
    Shams al-Din 'Ali ibn Mas'ud ibn Khalaf ibn Mihraban was the first Mihrabanid malik of Sistan. He ruled from 1236 until his death.-Biography:...

     (1236–1255)
  • Nasir al-Din Muhammad
    Nasir al-Din Muhammad
    Nasir al-Din Muhammad was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1261 until his death. He was the son of Mubariz al-Din Abu'l-Fath ibn Mas'ud.-Struggle to gain control of Sistan:...

     (1261–1318)
  • Nusrat al-Din Muhammad
    Nusrat al-Din Muhammad
    Nusrat al-Din Muhammad was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1318 until his death. He was the son of Nasir al-Din Muhammad.-Biography:...

     (1318–1330)
  • Qutb al-Din Muhammad
    Qutb al-Din Muhammad
    Qutb al-Din Muhammad was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1330 until his death. He was the son of Rukn al-Din Mahmud.-Biography:...

     (1330–1346)
  • Taj al-Din ibn Qutb al-Din
    Taj al-Din ibn Qutb al-Din
    Taj al-Din was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1346 until 1350. He was the son of Qutb al-Din Muhammad.-Biography:Under his father, Taj al-Din had served as the governor of the town of Uq. After Qutb al-Din's death in 1346 he gained control of Sistan despite the rival claims of his first...

     (1346–1350)
  • Jalal al-Din Mahmud
    Jalal al-Din Mahmud
    Jalal al-Din Mahmud was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1350 until his death. He was the son of Rukn al-Din Mahmud.-Biography:...

     (1350–1352)
  • 'Izz al-Din ibn Rukn al-Din Mahmud
    'Izz al-Din ibn Rukn al-Din Mahmud
    Izz al-Din was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1352 until 1380. He was the son of Rukn al-Din Mahmud.- Biography :'Izz al-Din was appointed as malik by the notables of Sistan in 1352 after the death of Jalal al-Din Mahmud...

     (1352–1380)
  • Qutb al-Din ibn 'Izz al-Din
    Qutb al-Din ibn 'Izz al-Din
    Qutb al-Din was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1380 until 1383. He was the son of 'Izz al-Din ibn Rukn al-Din Mahmud.-Biography:During his father's lifetime Qutb al-Din had not been given a role in the government...

     (1380–1383)
  • Taj al-Din Shah-i Shahan Abu'l Fath
    Taj al-Din Shah-i Shahan Abu'l Fath
    Taj al-Din Shah-i Shahan Abu'l Fath was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1383 until his death. He was the son of Mas'ud Shihna.-Biography:...

     (1383–1403)
  • Qutb al-Din Muhammad ibn Shams al-Din Shah 'Ali
    Qutb al-Din Muhammad ibn Shams al-Din Shah 'Ali
    Qutb al-Din Muhammad was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1403 until his death. He was the son of Shams al-Din Shah 'Ali.-Biography:...

     (1403–1419)
  • Shams al-Din 'Ali ibn Qutb al-Din
    Shams al-Din 'Ali ibn Qutb al-Din
    Shams al-Din 'Ali was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1419 until his death. He was the son of Qutb al-Din Muhammad.-Biography:...

     (1419-1438/9)
  • Nizam al-Din Yahya
    Nizam al-Din Yahya
    Nizam al-Din Yahya was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1438/9 until his death. He was the son of Shams al-Din 'Ali.-Biography:...

     (1438/9-1480)
  • Shams al-Din Muhammad
    Shams al-Din Muhammad
    Shams al-Din Muhammad was the Mihrabanid malik of Sistan from 1480 until around the end of the 15th century. He was the eldest son of Nizam al-Din Yahya.-Biography:...

     (1480-c. 1495)
  • Sultan Mahmud ibn Nizam al-Din Yahya
    Sultan Mahmud ibn Nizam al-Din Yahya
    Sultan Mahmud was the last Mihrabanid malik of Sistan, from c. 1495 until c. 1537.-Biography:sultan Mahmud was the son of Nizam al-Din Yahya and the sister of the Timurid Sultan Abu Sa'id....

     (c. 1495-c. 1537)

See also

  • Saffarids
  • Nasrids
  • History of Afghanistan
    History of Afghanistan
    The written history of Afghanistan can be traced back to the Achaemenid Empire ca. 500 BCE, although evidence indicates that an advanced degree of urbanized culture has existed in the land since between 3000 and 2000 BCE. Alexander the Great and his Macedonian army arrived to Afghanistan in 330 BCE...

  • List of Sunni Muslim dynasties
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