Samanid
Encyclopedia
The Samani dynasty also known as the Samanid Empire, or simply Samanids (819–999) was a Persian
state and empire
in Central Asia
and Greater Iran
, named after its founder Saman Khuda
, who converted to Sunni Islam despite being from Zoroastrian
theocratic nobility. It was a native Persian dynasty in Greater Iran
and Central Asia
after the collapse of the Sassanid Persian empire
caused by the Arab conquest
.
(including Kabul
), Ray
, Transoxiania, Tabaristan, Kerman
, Gorgan
, and west of these provinces up to Isfahan. At the peak of their power, the Samanids controlled territory extending as far south as the Sulaiman Mountains
in Pakistan
, Ghazni
and Kandahar
. The Samanids were descendants of Bahram Chobin
, and thus descended from the House of Mihrān
, one of the Seven Great Houses of Iran. In governing their territory, the Samanids modeled their state organization after the Abbasids, mirroring the caliph
's court and organization. They were rewarded for supporting the Abbasids in Transoxania and Khorasan
, and with their established capitals located in Bukhara
, Balkh
, Samarkand
, and Herat
, they carved their kingdom after defeating the Saffarids.
With their roots stemming from the city of Balkh
(then, part of Greater Khorasan
) the Samanids promoted the arts, giving rise to the advancement of science and literature, and thus attracted scholars such as Rudaki
and Avicenna
. While under Samanid control, Bukhara
was a rival to Baghdad
in its glory. Scholars note that the Samanids revived Persian more than the Buyids and the Saffarids, while continuing to patronize Arabic to a significant degree. Nevertheless, in a famous edict, Samanid authorities declared that "here, in this region, the language is Persian
, and the kings of this realm are Persian kings." During the Samanid period the Tajik nation was formed in Central Asia. The Samanid Empire is considered as the first Tajik state, also earlier perso-Iranian dynasties arose from the regions Tajiks inhabit till today (Tahirid, Saffarid, Farighunid etc.)
, had been rewarded with provinces for their faithful service to the Abbasid caliph al-Mamun: Nuh obtained Samarkand
; Ahmad, Fergana
; Yahya, Shash; and Elyas, Herat
. Ahmad's son Nasr became governor of Transoxania in 875, but it was his brother and successor, Ismail Samani who overthrew the Saffarids and the Zaydites of Tabaristan, thus establishing a semiautonomous rule over Transoxania and Khorasan, with Bukhara as his capital. In 893, Ismail invaded and defeated the Karluk Turks, taking Talas
and converting the Nestorian church
there into a mosque
. Ismail's son, Ahmad, sent two military excursions(911 & 912-913) into Sistan
to re-establish Samanid control over the Caspian provinces.
was not formally recognized by the caliph until the early 900s when the Saffarid
ruler 'Amr-i Laith had asked the caliph for the investiture of Transoxiana. The caliph, Al-Mu'tadid
however sent the Samanid amir, Ismail Samani, a letter urging him to fight Amr-i Laith and the Saffarids whom the caliph considered usurpers. According to the letter, the caliph stated that he prayed for Ismail who the caliph considered as the rightful ruler of Khorasan
. The letter had a profound effect on Ismail, as he was determined to oppose the Saffarids.
The two sides fought in Balkh
, (now modern-day Afghanistan
), during the spring of 900. During the battle, Ismail was significantly outnumbered as he came out with 20,000 horsemen against Amr's 70,000 strong cavalry. Ismail's horsemen were ill-equipped with most having wooden stirrups while some had no shields or lances. Amr-i Laith's cavalry on the other hand, were fully equipped with weapons and armor. Despite fierce fighting, Amr was captured as some of his troops switched sides and joined Ismail.
Isma'il thereafter sent an army to Tabaristan in accordance with the caliph's directive. The area at that time was then controlled by the Zaydids. The Samanid army defeated the Zaydid ruler and the Samanids gained control of the region.
, Bal'ami
and Daqiqi. They also determinedly propagated Sunni Islam
. However, the Samanids repressed Ismaili
Shiism but were more tolerant of Twelver Shiism. Islamic architecture and Islamo-Persian culture was spread deep into the heart of Central Asia by the Samanids. Following the first complete translation of the Qur'an
into Persian, during the 9th century, populations under the Samanid empire began accepting Islam in significant numbers.
Through zealous missionary work as many as 30,000 tents of Turks
came to profess Islam
and later under the Ghaznavids more than 55,000 under the Hanafi
school of thought. The mass conversion of the Turks to Islam eventually led to a growing influence of the Ghaznavids, who would later rule the region.
Agriculture and trading were the economic basis of Samanid State. The Samanids were heavily involved in trading - even with Europe, as thousands of Samanid coins that have been found in the Baltic and Scandinavian countries testify.
Another lasting contribution of the Samanids to the history of Islamic art is the pottery known as Samanid Epigraphic Ware: plates, bowls, and pitchers fired in a white slip and decorated only with calligraphy, often elegantly and rhythmically written. The Arabic phrases used in this calligraphy are generally more or less generic well wishes, or Islamic admonitions to good table manners.
, grandson of the paramount tribal chief of the Karluk confederation, occupied Bukhara
, the Samanid
capital. The Samanid domains were split up between the Ghaznavids, who gained Khorasan
and Afghanistan
, and the Karakhanids, who received Transoxania; the Oxus River thus became the boundary between the two rival empires. During this period the Kara-Khanids converted to Islam.
says of them:
"Where have all the great Sassanids gone?
From the Bahrāmids to the Samanids what has come upon?"
According to a Bukharian historian writing in 943 stated that Ismail Samani:
The celebrated scholar Nizam al-Mulk
, in his famous work, Siyasatnama
, stated that Ismail Samani:
The Somoni currency of Tajikistan
is named after the Samanids. A notable airline based in Dushanbe
is also named Somon Air
. Also, the highest mountain
in Tajikistan and in the former Soviet Union
is named after Ismail Samani. The mountain was formerly known as "Stalin Peak" and "Communism Peak" but was subsequently changed to the Ismoil Somoni Peak.
Persian people
The Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians and themselves part of...
state and empire
Empire
The term empire derives from the Latin imperium . Politically, an empire is a geographically extensive group of states and peoples united and ruled either by a monarch or an oligarchy....
in Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
and Greater Iran
Greater Iran
Greater Iran refers to the regions that have significant Iranian cultural influence. It roughly corresponds to the territory on the Iranian plateau and its bordering plains, stretching from Iraq, the Caucasus, and Turkey in the west to the Indus River in the east...
, named after its founder Saman Khuda
Saman Khuda
Saman Khuda was the founder of the Samanid dynasty – The House of Saman. He was a landowner from the village of Saman in Balkh province in northern Afghanistan, who arrived in the early 8th century in Merv to the court of the Caliphal governor of Khorasan, Asad ibn ‘Abd Allah al-Qasri , adopted...
, who converted to Sunni Islam despite being from Zoroastrian
Zoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of prophet Zoroaster and was formerly among the world's largest religions. It was probably founded some time before the 6th century BCE in Greater Iran.In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil...
theocratic nobility. It was a native Persian dynasty in Greater Iran
Greater Iran
Greater Iran refers to the regions that have significant Iranian cultural influence. It roughly corresponds to the territory on the Iranian plateau and its bordering plains, stretching from Iraq, the Caucasus, and Turkey in the west to the Indus River in the east...
and Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
after the collapse of the Sassanid Persian 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...
caused by the Arab conquest
Islamic conquest of Persia
The Muslim conquest of Persia led to the end of the Sassanid Empire in 644, the fall of Sassanid dynasty in 651 and the eventual decline of the Zoroastrian religion in Persia...
.
Domination
The Samanids were a Persian state that reigned for 180 years, encompassing a territory which included KhorasanGreater Khorasan
Greater Khorasan or Ancient Khorasan is a historical region of Greater Iran mentioned in sources from Sassanid and Islamic eras which "frequently" had a denotation wider than current three provinces of Khorasan in Iran...
(including Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
), Ray
Ray, Iran
Rey or Ray , also known as Rhages and formerly as Arsacia, is the capital of Rey County, Tehran Province, Iran, and is the oldest existing city in the province....
, Transoxiania, Tabaristan, Kerman
Kerman
- Geological characteristics :For the Iranian paleontologists, Kerman has always been considered a fossil paradise. Finding new dinosaur footprints in 2005 has now revealed new hopes for paleontologists to better understand the history of this area.- Economy :...
, Gorgan
Gorgan
Gorgan Some east of Gorgan is the Golestan National Park. The city has a regional airport and several universities. Gorgan Airport was opened in September 2005.-Etymology:...
, and west of these provinces up to Isfahan. At the peak of their power, the Samanids controlled territory extending as far south as the Sulaiman Mountains
Sulaiman Mountains
The Sulaiman Mountains are a major geological feature of southeastern Afghanistan and northern Balochistan province of Pakistan. In Pakistan, it forms the eastern edge of the Iranian plateau where the Indus River separates it from the Asian Subcontient...
in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Ghazni
Ghazni
For the Province of Ghazni see Ghazni ProvinceGhazni is a city in central-east Afghanistan with a population of about 141,000 people...
and Kandahar
Kandahar
Kandahar is the second largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 512,200 as of 2011. It is the capital of Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at about 1,005 m above sea level...
. The Samanids were descendants 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 :...
, and thus descended from the House of Mihrān
House of Mihran
The House of Mihrān was a leading Iranian noble family , one of the Seven Great Houses of the Sassanid Persian Empire which claimed descent from the earlier Arsacid dynasty...
, one of the Seven Great Houses of Iran. In governing their territory, the Samanids modeled their state organization after the Abbasids, mirroring the caliph
Caliph
The Caliph is the head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the ruler of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah. It is a transcribed version of the Arabic word which means "successor" or "representative"...
's court and organization. They were rewarded for supporting the Abbasids in Transoxania and Khorasan
Greater Khorasan
Greater Khorasan or Ancient Khorasan is a historical region of Greater Iran mentioned in sources from Sassanid and Islamic eras which "frequently" had a denotation wider than current three provinces of Khorasan in Iran...
, and with their established capitals located in Bukhara
Bukhara
Bukhara , from the Soghdian βuxārak , is the capital of the Bukhara Province of Uzbekistan. The nation's fifth-largest city, it has a population of 263,400 . The region around Bukhara has been inhabited for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time...
, Balkh
Balkh
Balkh , was an ancient city and centre of Zoroastrianism in what is now northern Afghanistan. Today it is a small town in the province of Balkh, about 20 kilometers northwest of the provincial capital, Mazar-e Sharif, and some south of the Amu Darya. It was one of the major cities of Khorasan...
, Samarkand
Samarkand
Although a Persian-speaking region, it was not united politically with Iran most of the times between the disintegration of the Seleucid Empire and the Arab conquest . In the 6th century it was within the domain of the Turkic kingdom of the Göktürks.At the start of the 8th century Samarkand came...
, and 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...
, they carved their kingdom after defeating the Saffarids.
With their roots stemming from the city of Balkh
Balkh
Balkh , was an ancient city and centre of Zoroastrianism in what is now northern Afghanistan. Today it is a small town in the province of Balkh, about 20 kilometers northwest of the provincial capital, Mazar-e Sharif, and some south of the Amu Darya. It was one of the major cities of Khorasan...
(then, part of Greater Khorasan
Greater Khorasan
Greater Khorasan or Ancient Khorasan is a historical region of Greater Iran mentioned in sources from Sassanid and Islamic eras which "frequently" had a denotation wider than current three provinces of Khorasan in Iran...
) the Samanids promoted the arts, giving rise to the advancement of science and literature, and thus attracted scholars such as Rudaki
Rudaki
Abu Abdollah Jafar ibn Mohammad Rudaki , also written as Rudagi , was a Persian poet, and is regarded as the first great literary genius of the Modern Persian, who composed poems in the "New Persian" alphabet. Rudaki is considered as a founder of Persian classical literature.He was born in 858 in...
and Avicenna
Avicenna
Abū ʿAlī al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Sīnā , commonly known as Ibn Sīnā or by his Latinized name Avicenna, was a Persian polymath, who wrote almost 450 treatises on a wide range of subjects, of which around 240 have survived...
. While under Samanid control, Bukhara
Bukhara
Bukhara , from the Soghdian βuxārak , is the capital of the Bukhara Province of Uzbekistan. The nation's fifth-largest city, it has a population of 263,400 . The region around Bukhara has been inhabited for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time...
was a rival to Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
in its glory. Scholars note that the Samanids revived Persian more than the Buyids and the Saffarids, while continuing to patronize Arabic to a significant degree. Nevertheless, in a famous edict, Samanid authorities declared that "here, in this region, the language is Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
, and the kings of this realm are Persian kings." During the Samanid period the Tajik nation was formed in Central Asia. The Samanid Empire is considered as the first Tajik state, also earlier perso-Iranian dynasties arose from the regions Tajiks inhabit till today (Tahirid, Saffarid, Farighunid etc.)
History
The Samanid Empire was the first native Persian dynasty to arise after the Muslim Arab conquest. The four grandsons of the dynasty's founder, Saman KhudaSaman Khuda
Saman Khuda was the founder of the Samanid dynasty – The House of Saman. He was a landowner from the village of Saman in Balkh province in northern Afghanistan, who arrived in the early 8th century in Merv to the court of the Caliphal governor of Khorasan, Asad ibn ‘Abd Allah al-Qasri , adopted...
, had been rewarded with provinces for their faithful service to the Abbasid caliph al-Mamun: Nuh obtained Samarkand
Samarkand
Although a Persian-speaking region, it was not united politically with Iran most of the times between the disintegration of the Seleucid Empire and the Arab conquest . In the 6th century it was within the domain of the Turkic kingdom of the Göktürks.At the start of the 8th century Samarkand came...
; Ahmad, Fergana
Fergana
Fergana is a city , the capital of Fergana Province in eastern Uzbekistan, at the southern edge of the Fergana Valley in southern Central Asia, cutting across the borders of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan...
; Yahya, Shash; and Elyas, 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...
. Ahmad's son Nasr became governor of Transoxania in 875, but it was his brother and successor, Ismail Samani who overthrew the Saffarids and the Zaydites of Tabaristan, thus establishing a semiautonomous rule over Transoxania and Khorasan, with Bukhara as his capital. In 893, Ismail invaded and defeated the Karluk Turks, taking Talas
Taraz
Taraz , is a city and a center of the Jambyl Province in Kazakhstan. It is located in the south of Kazakhstan, near the border with Kyrgyzstan, on the Talas River...
and converting the Nestorian church
Church of the East
The Church of the East tāʾ d-Maḏnḥāʾ), also known as the Nestorian Church, is a Christian church, part of the Syriac tradition of Eastern Christianity. Originally the church of the Persian Sassanid Empire, it quickly spread widely through Asia...
there into a mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
. Ismail's son, Ahmad, sent two military excursions(911 & 912-913) into Sistan
Sistan
Sīstān is a border region in eastern Iran , southwestern Afghanistan and northern tip of Southwestern Pakistan .-Etymology:...
to re-establish Samanid control over the Caspian provinces.
The Samanids defeat the Saffarids and Zaydids
Samanid rule in BukharaBukhara
Bukhara , from the Soghdian βuxārak , is the capital of the Bukhara Province of Uzbekistan. The nation's fifth-largest city, it has a population of 263,400 . The region around Bukhara has been inhabited for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time...
was not formally recognized by the caliph until the early 900s when the Saffarid
Saffarid dynasty
The Saffarids or the Saffarid dynasty was a Persian empire which ruled in Sistan , a historical region in southeastern Iran, southwestern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan...
ruler 'Amr-i Laith had asked the caliph for the investiture of Transoxiana. The caliph, Al-Mu'tadid
Al-Mu'tadid
Al-Mu'tadid was the Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad from 892 to 902. As the son and heir of the powerful vizier and virtual regent Al-Muwaffaq , Mu'tadid was already in possession of supreme power even before he was appointed Caliph, and continued as Caliph to ably administer the Government...
however sent the Samanid amir, Ismail Samani, a letter urging him to fight Amr-i Laith and the Saffarids whom the caliph considered usurpers. According to the letter, the caliph stated that he prayed for Ismail who the caliph considered as the rightful ruler of Khorasan
Greater Khorasan
Greater Khorasan or Ancient Khorasan is a historical region of Greater Iran mentioned in sources from Sassanid and Islamic eras which "frequently" had a denotation wider than current three provinces of Khorasan in Iran...
. The letter had a profound effect on Ismail, as he was determined to oppose the Saffarids.
The two sides fought in Balkh
Balkh
Balkh , was an ancient city and centre of Zoroastrianism in what is now northern Afghanistan. Today it is a small town in the province of Balkh, about 20 kilometers northwest of the provincial capital, Mazar-e Sharif, and some south of the Amu Darya. It was one of the major cities of Khorasan...
, (now modern-day Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
), during the spring of 900. During the battle, Ismail was significantly outnumbered as he came out with 20,000 horsemen against Amr's 70,000 strong cavalry. Ismail's horsemen were ill-equipped with most having wooden stirrups while some had no shields or lances. Amr-i Laith's cavalry on the other hand, were fully equipped with weapons and armor. Despite fierce fighting, Amr was captured as some of his troops switched sides and joined Ismail.
Isma'il thereafter sent an army to Tabaristan in accordance with the caliph's directive. The area at that time was then controlled by the Zaydids. The Samanid army defeated the Zaydid ruler and the Samanids gained control of the region.
Cultural and religious efforts
The Samanids revived Persian culture by patronizing RudakiRudaki
Abu Abdollah Jafar ibn Mohammad Rudaki , also written as Rudagi , was a Persian poet, and is regarded as the first great literary genius of the Modern Persian, who composed poems in the "New Persian" alphabet. Rudaki is considered as a founder of Persian classical literature.He was born in 858 in...
, Bal'ami
Bal'ami
AMĪRAK BALʿAMĪ, name given to ABŪ ʿALĪ MOḤAMMAD , son of Abu’l-Fażl Moḥammad b. ʿObaydallāh Baḷʿamī ' ; both served as viziers of the Samanids . Mostly known as Bal'ami , was a Persian historian, writer, and vizier to the Samanids...
and Daqiqi. They also determinedly propagated Sunni Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
. However, the Samanids repressed Ismaili
Ismaili
' is a branch of Shia Islam. It is the second largest branch of Shia Islam, after the Twelvers...
Shiism but were more tolerant of Twelver Shiism. Islamic architecture and Islamo-Persian culture was spread deep into the heart of Central Asia by the Samanids. Following the first complete translation of the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
into Persian, during the 9th century, populations under the Samanid empire began accepting Islam in significant numbers.
Through zealous missionary work as many as 30,000 tents of 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...
came to profess Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
and later under the Ghaznavids more than 55,000 under the Hanafi
Hanafi
The Hanafi school is one of the four Madhhab in jurisprudence within Sunni Islam. The Hanafi madhhab is named after the Persian scholar Abu Hanifa an-Nu‘man ibn Thābit , a Tabi‘i whose legal views were preserved primarily by his two most important disciples, Abu Yusuf and Muhammad al-Shaybani...
school of thought. The mass conversion of the Turks to Islam eventually led to a growing influence of the Ghaznavids, who would later rule the region.
Agriculture and trading were the economic basis of Samanid State. The Samanids were heavily involved in trading - even with Europe, as thousands of Samanid coins that have been found in the Baltic and Scandinavian countries testify.
Another lasting contribution of the Samanids to the history of Islamic art is the pottery known as Samanid Epigraphic Ware: plates, bowls, and pitchers fired in a white slip and decorated only with calligraphy, often elegantly and rhythmically written. The Arabic phrases used in this calligraphy are generally more or less generic well wishes, or Islamic admonitions to good table manners.
Decline
In 999, the Kara-Khanid leader Sultan Satuq Bughra KhanSultan Satuq Bughra Khan
Satuq Boghra Khan was a Kara-Khanid Khan; in 934, he was one of the first Turks to convert to Islam.According to 12th century historian Jamal Qarshi's History of Kashgar, Satuq was first taught about Islam by Nasr, a wealthy merchant from Bukhara...
, grandson of the paramount tribal chief of the Karluk confederation, occupied Bukhara
Bukhara
Bukhara , from the Soghdian βuxārak , is the capital of the Bukhara Province of Uzbekistan. The nation's fifth-largest city, it has a population of 263,400 . The region around Bukhara has been inhabited for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time...
, the Samanid
Samanid
The Samani dynasty , also known as the Samanid Empire, or simply Samanids was a Persian state and empire in Central Asia and Greater Iran, named after its founder Saman Khuda, who converted to Sunni Islam despite being from Zoroastrian theocratic nobility...
capital. The Samanid domains were split up between the Ghaznavids, who gained Khorasan
Greater Khorasan
Greater Khorasan or Ancient Khorasan is a historical region of Greater Iran mentioned in sources from Sassanid and Islamic eras which "frequently" had a denotation wider than current three provinces of Khorasan in Iran...
and Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, and the Karakhanids, who received Transoxania; the Oxus River thus became the boundary between the two rival empires. During this period the Kara-Khanids converted to Islam.
Legacy
In commending the Samanids, the epic Persian poet FerdowsiFerdowsi
Ferdowsi was a highly revered Persian poet. He was the author of the Shahnameh, the national epic of Iran and related societies.The Shahnameh was originally composed by Ferdowsi for the princes of the Samanid dynasty, who were responsible for a revival of Persian cultural traditions after the...
says of them:
کجا آن بزرگان ساسانیان
ز بهرامیان تا به سامانیان
"Where have all the great Sassanids gone?
From the Bahrāmids to the Samanids what has come upon?"
According to a Bukharian historian writing in 943 stated that Ismail Samani:
"was indeed worthy and right for padishahPadishahPadishah, Padshah, Padeshah, Badishah or Badshah is a superlative royal title, composed of the Persian pād "master" and the widespread shāh "king", which was adopted by several monarchs claiming the highest rank, roughly equivalent to the ancient Persian notion of "The Great" or "Great King", and...
ship. He was intelligent, just, compassionate person, one possessing reason and prescience...he conducted affairs with justice and good ethics. Whoever tyrannized people he would punish...In affairs of state he was always impartial."
The celebrated scholar Nizam al-Mulk
Nizam al-Mulk
Abu Ali al-Hasan al-Tusi Nizam al-Mulk, better known as Khwaja Nizam al-Mulk Tusi ; born in 1018 – 14 October 1092) was a Persian scholar and vizier of the Seljuq Empire...
, in his famous work, Siyasatnama
Siyasatnama
Siyāsatnāma , also known as Siyar al-muluk , is the most famous work by Nizam al-Mulk, the founder of Nizamiyyah schools in medieval Persia and vizier to the Seljuq sultans Alp Arslan and Malik Shah...
, stated that Ismail Samani:
"was extremely just, and his good qualities were many. He had pure faith in God (to Him be power and glory) and he was generous to the poor - to name only one of his notable virtues.
The Somoni currency of Tajikistan
Tajikistan
Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....
is named after the Samanids. A notable airline based in Dushanbe
Dushanbe
-Economy:Coal, lead, and arsenic are mined nearby in the cities of Nurek and Kulob allowing for the industrialization of Dushanbe. The Nurek Dam, the world's highest as of 2008, generates 95% of Tajikistan's electricity, and another dam, the Roghun Dam, is planned on the Vakhsh River...
is also named Somon Air
Somon Air
Somon Air is the first private airline company in Tajikistan, and is based at Dushanbe Airport. The airline started operating on February 5, 2008 with regular flights to Moscow and further to Dubai...
. Also, the highest mountain
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
in Tajikistan and in the former Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
is named after Ismail Samani. The mountain was formerly known as "Stalin Peak" and "Communism Peak" but was subsequently changed to the Ismoil Somoni Peak.
Samanid Amirs
- Saman KhudaSaman KhudaSaman Khuda was the founder of the Samanid dynasty – The House of Saman. He was a landowner from the village of Saman in Balkh province in northern Afghanistan, who arrived in the early 8th century in Merv to the court of the Caliphal governor of Khorasan, Asad ibn ‘Abd Allah al-Qasri , adopted...
- Asad ibn SamanAsad ibn SamanAsad was an early Samanid. He was the son of Saman Khuda, the founder of the Samanid dynasty.According to tradition, Asad was named by his father in honor of the Caliphal governor of Khurasan Asad ibn 'Abd-Allah al-Qasri , who had converted Saman to Islam. Asad had four sons: Nuh, Ahmad, Yahya, and...
- Yahya ibn AsadYahya ibn AsadYahya was a Samanid ruler of Shash and Samarkand . He was a son of Asad.In 819 Yahya was granted authority over the city of Shash by Caliph Al-Ma'mun's governor of Khurasan, Ghassan ibn 'Abbad, as a reward for his support against the rebel Rafi' ibn Laith...
(819-855) - Nasr I (864 - 892) (Effectively independent 875)
- Ismail (892 - 907)
- Ahmad (907 - 914)
- Nasr II (914 - 943)
- Nuh I (943 - 954)
- 'Abd al-Malik I (954 - 961)
- Mansur I (961 - 976)
- Nuh II (976 - 997)
- Mansur II (997 - 999)
- 'Abd al-Malik II (999)
See also
- Persian empire
- History of IranHistory of IranThe history of Iran has been intertwined with the history of a larger historical region, comprising the area from the Danube River in the west to the Indus River and Jaxartes in the east and from the Caucasus, Caspian Sea, and Aral Sea in the north to the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman and Egypt...
- Greater KhorasanGreater KhorasanGreater Khorasan or Ancient Khorasan is a historical region of Greater Iran mentioned in sources from Sassanid and Islamic eras which "frequently" had a denotation wider than current three provinces of Khorasan in Iran...
- Full list of Iranian Kingdoms
- List of Sunni Muslim dynasties