Alam al-Malika () (died 1130), was the chief adviser and ''de facto'' prime minister of the

Najahid dynasty Najahid dynasty ( ar, بنو نجاح; Banū Najāḥ) was a slave dynasty of Ethiopian, Abyssinian origin founded in Zabid in the Tihama (lowlands) region of Yemen around 1050 AD. They faced hostilities from the Highlands dynasties of the time ...

Zubayd Zabid ( ar, زَبِيد) (also spelled Zabīd, Zabeed and Zebid) is a town with an urban population of around 52,590 people on Yemen's western coastal plain. It is one of the oldest towns in Yemen, and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since ...

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...

in 1111–1123, and its ruler in 1123–1130. She was the slave singer, or ''

jarya Jarya, also called jariyah and jawaris, was a term for a certain type of slave girl in the medieval Islamic world. They were "slaves for pleasure" (muṭʿa, ladhdha) or “slave-girls for sexual intercourse” (jawārī al-waṭ), who had receive ...

'', to King Mansur ibn Najah of Zubayd or Zabid (r. 1111–1123), a city principality close to

Sana'a Sanaa ( ar, صَنْعَاء, ' , Yemeni Arabic: ; Old South Arabian: 𐩮𐩬𐩲𐩥 ''Ṣnʿw''), also spelled Sana'a or Sana, is the capital and largest city in Yemen and the centre of Sanaa Governorate. The city is not part of the Governo ...

in Yemen. He was reportedly so impressed by her intelligence and astuteness that he gave her the title ''

al-hurra Al-hurra or al hurra () was an Arabic title historically often given to, or used to refer to, women who exercised power or had a position of power or high status. In a harem, the title al-hurra was often used to refer to a legal wife of aristocr ...

'', placed her in charge of state affairs and "made no decision concerning it without consulting her".Guida Myrl Jackson-Laufer, ''Women Rulers Throughout the Ages: An Illustrated Guide'' In 1123, Mansur ibn Najah was poisoned by his

vizier A vizier (; ar, وزير, wazīr; fa, وزیر, vazīr), or wazir, is a high-ranking political advisor or minister in the near east. The Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was a ...

Mann Allah, but Alam al-Malika remained in charge of the state of Zubayd. Though she was not allowed to have the ''

khutba ''Khutbah'' ( ar, خطبة ''khuṭbah'', tr, hutbe) serves as the primary formal occasion for public preaching in the Islamic tradition. Such sermons occur regularly, as prescribed by the teachings of all legal schools. The Islamic traditi ...

'' proclaimed in her name and thus not given full recognition as monarch, she was the ''

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

'' ruler, and it was said of her that "she discharged her task with distinction".

References

{{Reflist 12th-century women rulers 1130 deaths Arabian slaves and freedmen 12th-century women singers 12th century in Yemen Yemeni singers Medieval slaves Medieval Arabic singers