Dailamites
Encyclopedia
The Daylamites or Dailamites were an Iranian people inhabiting the mountainous regions of northern Iran
on the southern shore of the Caspian Sea
. They were employed as soldiers from the time of the Sassanid Empire
, and long resisted the Arab conquest of Iran and subsequent Islamization
. In the 930s, the Dailami Buyid dynasty emerged and managed to gain control over much of modern-day Iran, which it held until the coming of the Seljuk Turks in the mid-11th century.
mountain range, between Gilan and Tabaristan. However, the earliest Zoroastrian and Christian sources indicate that the Dailamites originally came from Anatolia near the Tigris River, where Iranian ethnolinguistic groups including Dimli
tribes live today. They spoke the Deilami language
, a northwestern Iranian dialect similar to that of the neighbouring Gilites. Nestorian Christianity had spread among them, and bishoprics are reported in the remote area as late as the 790s, while it is possible that some remnants survived there until the 14th century. During the Sassanid period, they were employed as high-quality infantry. According to the Byzantine
historians Procopius
and Agathias
, they were a warlike people and skilled in close combat, being armed each with a sword, a shield and spears or javelin
s. They supported the rebellion of Bahram Chobin
against Khosrau II
, but he later employed an elite detachment of 4,000 Dailamites as part of his guard. The Sassanid general Wahriz, who was sent by Khosrau I
in 570 to capture Yemen
, was also probably of Dailamite descent, and his troops included Deilamites, who would later play a significant role in the conversion of Yemen to the nascent Islam
.
Following the Persian defeat in the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah
, the 4,000-strong Dailamite contingent of the Persian guard, along with other Persian units, defected to the Arab side, converting to Islam
. Nevertheless, the Dailamites managed to resist the Arab invasion of their own mountainous homeland for several centuries under their own local rulers. Warfare in the region was endemic, with raids and counter-raids by both sides. Under the Arabs, the old Persian fortress-city of Qazvin
continued in its Sassanid-era role as a bulwark against Dailamite raids. According to the historian al-Tabari
, the Dailamites, along with the Turks
, were considered the worst enemies of the Muslims. The Abbasids penetrated the region and occupied parts of it, but their control was never very effective. During the reign of Harun al-Rashid
, several Shia fled to the Dailamites, most of whom remained pagan, with a few Zoroastrians and Christians, to escape persecution. Among these refugees were the Alids, who began the gradual conversion of the Dailamites to Shia Islam. Nevertheless, a strong Persian identity remained ingrained in the peoples of the region, along with an anti-Arab mentality. The local rulers, like the Ziyarid dynasty, made a point of celebrating old Iranian and Zoroastrian festivals.
A modern offshoot of the Dailamites are known under the name of Delaim or Dulaim
tribe. Another Iranian group that are likely the descendants of Daylamites are the Caspians people
and the Zaza people
. The Zazas
call themselves Dimli or Dimla, apparently derived from Daylam.
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
on the southern shore of the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...
. They were employed as soldiers from the time of the Sassanid Empire
Sassanid Empire
The Sassanid Empire , known to its inhabitants as Ērānshahr and Ērān in Middle Persian and resulting in the New Persian terms Iranshahr and Iran , was the last pre-Islamic Persian Empire, ruled by the Sasanian Dynasty from 224 to 651...
, and long resisted the Arab conquest of Iran and subsequent Islamization
Islamization
Islamization or Islamification has been used to describe the process of a society's conversion to the religion of Islam...
. In the 930s, the Dailami Buyid dynasty emerged and managed to gain control over much of modern-day Iran, which it held until the coming of the Seljuk Turks in the mid-11th century.
History
The Dailamites lived in the highlands of Dailam, part of the AlborzAlborz
Alborz , also written as Alburz, Elburz or Elborz, is a mountain range in northern Iran stretching from the borders of Azerbaijan and Armenia in the northwest to the southern end of the Caspian Sea, and ending in the east at the borders of Turkmenistan and Afghanistan...
mountain range, between Gilan and Tabaristan. However, the earliest Zoroastrian and Christian sources indicate that the Dailamites originally came from Anatolia near the Tigris River, where Iranian ethnolinguistic groups including Dimli
Zaza people
The Zazas, Kird, Kirmanc or Dimilis are an ethnic Iranic people whose native language is Zazaki spoken in eastern Anatolia. They primarily live in the eastern Anatolian provinces, such as Adıyaman, Aksaray, Batman, Bingöl, Diyarbakır, Elazığ, Erzurum, Erzincan , Gumushane, Kars, Malatya, Mus,...
tribes live today. They spoke the Deilami language
Deilami language
The Deilami language , also known as Daylamite, Daylami, Dailamite, or Deylami, is an extinct language which is a member of the northwestern Iranian language branch, of Iranian Languages...
, a northwestern Iranian dialect similar to that of the neighbouring Gilites. Nestorian Christianity had spread among them, and bishoprics are reported in the remote area as late as the 790s, while it is possible that some remnants survived there until the 14th century. During the Sassanid period, they were employed as high-quality infantry. According to the Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
historians Procopius
Procopius
Procopius of Caesarea was a prominent Byzantine scholar from Palestine. Accompanying the general Belisarius in the wars of the Emperor Justinian I, he became the principal historian of the 6th century, writing the Wars of Justinian, the Buildings of Justinian and the celebrated Secret History...
and Agathias
Agathias
Agathias or Agathias Scholasticus , of Myrina , an Aeolian city in western Asia Minor , was a Greek poet and the principal historian of part of the reign of the Roman emperor Justinian I between 552 and 558....
, they were a warlike people and skilled in close combat, being armed each with a sword, a shield and spears or javelin
Javelin
A Javelin is a light spear intended for throwing. It is commonly known from the modern athletic discipline, the Javelin throw.Javelin may also refer to:-Aviation:* ATG Javelin, an American-Israeli civil jet aircraft, under development...
s. They supported the rebellion of Bahram Chobin
Bahram Chobin
General Bahrām Chobin was a famous Eran spahbod during the late 6th century in Persia, usurping the Sassanid throne for a year as Bahram VI .- Life :...
against Khosrau II
Khosrau II
250px|thumb|Khosrau II 250px|thumb|Khosrau II 250px|thumb|Khosrau II (Khosrow II, Chosroes II, or Xosrov II in classical sources, sometimes called Parvez, "the Ever Victorious" – (in Persian: خسرو پرویز), was the twenty-second Sassanid King of Persia, reigning from 590 to 628...
, but he later employed an elite detachment of 4,000 Dailamites as part of his guard. The Sassanid general Wahriz, who was sent by Khosrau I
Khosrau I
Khosrau I , also known as Anushiravan the Just or Anushirawan the Just Khosrau I (also called Chosroes I in classical sources, most commonly known in Persian as Anushirvan or Anushirwan, Persian: انوشيروان meaning the immortal soul), also known as Anushiravan the Just or Anushirawan the Just...
in 570 to capture Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
, was also probably of Dailamite descent, and his troops included Deilamites, who would later play a significant role in the conversion of Yemen to the nascent Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
.
Following the Persian defeat in the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah
Battle of al-Qadisiyyah
The Battle of al-Qādisiyyah was fought in 636; it was the decisive engagement between the Arab muslim army and the Sassanid Persian army during the first period of Muslim expansion. It resulted in the Islamic conquest of Persia, and was key to the conquest of Iraq...
, the 4,000-strong Dailamite contingent of the Persian guard, along with other Persian units, defected to the Arab side, converting to Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
. Nevertheless, the Dailamites managed to resist the Arab invasion of their own mountainous homeland for several centuries under their own local rulers. Warfare in the region was endemic, with raids and counter-raids by both sides. Under the Arabs, the old Persian fortress-city of Qazvin
Qazvin
Qazvin is the largest city and capital of the Province of Qazvin in Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 349,821, in 96,420 families....
continued in its Sassanid-era role as a bulwark against Dailamite raids. According to the historian al-Tabari
Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari
Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari was a prominent and influential Sunni scholar and exegete of the Qur'an from Persia...
, the Dailamites, along with the Turks
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
, were considered the worst enemies of the Muslims. The Abbasids penetrated the region and occupied parts of it, but their control was never very effective. During the reign of Harun al-Rashid
Harun al-Rashid
Hārūn al-Rashīd was the fifth Arab Abbasid Caliph in Iraq. He was born in Rey, Iran, close to modern Tehran. His birth date remains a point of discussion, though, as various sources give the dates from 763 to 766)....
, several Shia fled to the Dailamites, most of whom remained pagan, with a few Zoroastrians and Christians, to escape persecution. Among these refugees were the Alids, who began the gradual conversion of the Dailamites to Shia Islam. Nevertheless, a strong Persian identity remained ingrained in the peoples of the region, along with an anti-Arab mentality. The local rulers, like the Ziyarid dynasty, made a point of celebrating old Iranian and Zoroastrian festivals.
A modern offshoot of the Dailamites are known under the name of Delaim or Dulaim
Dulaim
Dulaim or Dulaimi or Al Duliam or Dulaym is one of the largest of Arab tribes , with over seven million people. The confederation's history goes back to pre-Islamic times and millions descend from the original tribe today in Iraq and neighboring countries such as Syria and Jordan.The Dulaim tribe...
tribe. Another Iranian group that are likely the descendants of Daylamites are the Caspians people
Caspians
Caspians is the English version of a Greek ethnonym mentioned twice by Herodotus among the satrapies of Darius and applied by Strabo to the ancient people dwelling along the southern and southwestern shores of the Caspian Sea, in the region which was called Caspiane after them...
and the Zaza people
Zaza people
The Zazas, Kird, Kirmanc or Dimilis are an ethnic Iranic people whose native language is Zazaki spoken in eastern Anatolia. They primarily live in the eastern Anatolian provinces, such as Adıyaman, Aksaray, Batman, Bingöl, Diyarbakır, Elazığ, Erzurum, Erzincan , Gumushane, Kars, Malatya, Mus,...
. The Zazas
Zaza people
The Zazas, Kird, Kirmanc or Dimilis are an ethnic Iranic people whose native language is Zazaki spoken in eastern Anatolia. They primarily live in the eastern Anatolian provinces, such as Adıyaman, Aksaray, Batman, Bingöl, Diyarbakır, Elazığ, Erzurum, Erzincan , Gumushane, Kars, Malatya, Mus,...
call themselves Dimli or Dimla, apparently derived from Daylam.