Aga Khan ( fa, آقاخان, ar, آغا خان; also transliterated as ''Aqa Khan'' and ''Agha Khan'') is a title held by the

Imām Imam (; ar, إمام '; plural: ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a worship leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic worship services, lead prayers, serve ...

of the

Nizari The Nizaris ( ar, النزاريون, al-Nizāriyyūn, fa, نزاریان, Nezāriyān) are the largest segment of the Ismaili Muslims, who are the second-largest branch of Shia Islam after the Twelvers. Nizari teachings emphasize independent ...

Ismāʿīli

Shias Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, most n ...

. Since 1957, the holder of the title has been the 49th Imām, Prince

Shah Shah (; fa, شاه, , ) is a royal title that was historically used by the leading figures of Iranian monarchies.Yarshater, EhsaPersia or Iran, Persian or Farsi, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. 1 (1989) It was also used by a variety of ...

Karim al-Husseini,

Aga Khan IV Shāh Karim al-Husayni (born 13 December 1936), known by the religious title Mawlānā Hazar Imam by his Ismaili followers and elsewhere as Aga Khan IV, is the 49th and current Imam of Nizari Ismailis, a denomination within Shia Islam. He ha ...

(b. 1936). Aga Khans claim descent from

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 Common Era, CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Muhammad in Islam, Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet Divine inspiration, di ...

, the last prophet according to the doctrine of Islam.

Title

The title is made up of the titles " agha" and " khan". The Turkish "agha" is "aqa" (Āqā) in

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

. The word " agha" comes from the

Old Turkic Old Turkic (also East Old Turkic, Orkhon Turkic language, Old Uyghur) is the earliest attested form of the Turkic languages, found in Göktürks, Göktürk and Uyghur Khaganate inscriptions dating from about the eighth to the 13th century. It ...

and Mongolian "aqa", meaning "elder men", and means something like "master" or "lord." " Khan" means king or ruler in Turkish and Mongolian languages. According to

Farhad Daftary Farhad Daftary ( fa, فرهاد دفترى; born 1938 in Brussels) is a Belgian-born Iranian-British Islamic scholar who is co-director and head of the Department of Academic Research and Publications at the Institute of Ismaili Studies in London. ...

, a scholar of the Isma'ili movement, ''Aga Khan''(...) H.H. the Aga Khan 'who is known amongst his followers by the following names: "''Hazarat Mowlana Dhani Salamat Datar, Pir Salamat, Sarkar Saheb, Huzur Pur Nur, Dhani Salamat, Hazar Imam, Dhani Pir, Aga Khan.''" ' is an honorific title bestowed on Hasan Ali Shah (1800–1881), the 46th Imām of Nizari Ismai'lis (1817–1881), by

Persian king This is a list of monarchs of Persia (or monarchs of the Iranic peoples, in present-day Iran), which are known by the royal title Shah or Shahanshah. This list starts from the establishment of the Medes around 671 BCE until the deposition of the ...

Fath-Ali Shah Qajar Fath-Ali Shah Qajar ( fa, فتحعلى‌شاه قاجار, Fatḥ-ʻAli Šâh Qâjâr; May 1769 – 24 October 1834) was the second Shah (king) of Qajar Iran. He reigned from 17 June 1797 until his death on 24 October 1834. His reign saw the irr ...

. However, Daftary apparently contradicts what the Aga Khan III noted in a famous legal proceeding in India: that ''Aga Khan'' is not a title but instead an

alias Alias may refer to: * Pseudonym * Pen name * Nickname Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Alias'' (2013 film), a 2013 Canadian documentary film * ''Alias'' (TV series), an American action thriller series 2001–2006 * ''Alias the ...

that was given to the Aga Khan I when he was a young man.

History

During the latter stages of the

First Anglo-Afghan War The First Anglo-Afghan War ( fa, جنگ اول افغان و انگلیس) was fought between the British Empire and the Emirate of Afghanistan, Emirate of Kabul from 1838 to 1842. The British initially successfully invaded the country taking si ...

(1841–1842), Hasan Ali Shah and his cavalry officers provided assistance to General Nott in

Kandahar Province Kandahār ( ps, ; Kandahār, prs, ; ''Qandahār'') is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, located in the southern part of the country, sharing a border with Pakistan, to the south. It is surrounded by Helmand in the west, Uruzgan ...

and to General England in his advance from

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

to join Nott. For these and for other diligent efforts made by him in the service of the Empire, the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

recognised him as a "Prince". This title was less extraordinary in that time and place than it seems today, because the British while consolidating their hold on India, had been handing out similar titles liberally to any large landowner or tribal chieftain with local influence who made himself useful to them. The Aga Khan was exceptional in that, while it was the local tribal influence that had enabled him to serve the British and gain their favour, his claim to nobility was based upon his claim to leadership of an entire sect of Islam. Imperial Britain saw great possibilities in having under their control and patronage the head of a major

Shia Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his S ...

sect; it could even be used at some later stage to counterbalance the influence of the

Ottoman Caliph The Caliphate of the Ottoman Empire ( ota, خلافت مقامى, hilâfet makamı, office of the caliphate) was the claim of the heads of the Turkish Ottoman dynasty to be the caliphs of Islam in the late medieval and the early modern era. D ...

, the head of Islam as recognized by the

Sunni Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...

sects. The Aga Khan was the only religious or community leader in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

granted a personal gun salute. When Hasan Ali Shah, the first Aga Khan, came to Sindh (which is now in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

) from

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

, he and his army were welcomed by Mir Nasir Khan Noori of

Baluchistan Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. ...

. In 1866, the Aga Khan won a court victory in the High Court of Bombay in what popularly became known as the Aga Khan Case, securing his recognition by the

British government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_es ...

as the head of the

Khoja The Khojas ( sd}; gu, ખોજા, hi, ख़ोजा) are a mainly Nizari Isma'ili Shia community of people originating in Gujarat, India. Derived from the Persian Khwaja, a term of honor, the word Khoja is used to refer to Lohana Rajput ...

community. The Aga Khan is also the Pir within the

Ismaili Isma'ilism ( ar, الإسماعيلية, al-ʾIsmāʿīlīyah) is a branch or sub-sect of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili () get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor (imām) to Ja'far al-Sa ...

community. The Bombay High Court decision of 1866 recognized Aga Khan I as the hereditary

of Isma'ilis. In 1887, the

Secretary of State for India His (or Her) Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for India, known for short as the India Secretary or the Indian Secretary, was the British Cabinet minister and the political head of the India Office responsible for the governance of th ...

, acting through the

Viceroy of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...

, formally recognized the title ''Aga Khan''.

List of Aga Khans

Four Ismāʿīli imāms have held this title: #

Aga Khan I Aga Khan I ( fa, , Āghā Khān-i Awwal or fa, , Āqā Khān-i Awwal, link=no) or Hasan Ali Shah ( fa, , Ḥasan 'Alī Shāh, link=no) (1804–1881) was the governor of Kirman, the 46th Imam of the Nizari Ismaili Muslims, and a prominent M ...

– Hasan Ali Shah Mahallati (1804–1881), 46th Imam of Nizari Ismailis (1817–1881) #

Aga Khan II Aga Khan II ( fa, آقا خان دوّم; ''Āghā Khān-i Duvvum'' or, less commonly but more correctly ''Āqā Khān-i Duvvum''), or Aqa Ali Shah ( ''Āqā ‘Alī Shāh''; born 1830 in Mahallat, Iran; died August 1885 in Poona, India), the 47 ...

– Shah Ali Shah (about 1830–1885), 47th Imam of Nizari Ismailis (12 April 1881 – August 1885) #

Aga Khan III Sultan Muhammad Shah (2 November 187711 July 1957), commonly known by his religious title Aga Khan III, was the 48th Imam of the Nizariyya. He played an important role in British Indian politics. Born to Aga Khan II in Karachi, Aga Khan II ...

– Sir Sultan Mohammed Shah (1877–1957), 48th Imam of Nizari Ismailis (17 August 1885 – 11 July 1957) #

– Prince Shah Karim Al Husseini (b. 1936), 49th Imam of Nizari Ismailis (11 July 1957 – present)

Title

History

List of Aga Khans

See also

References

Further reading