ʿAlī Sher bin ʿIwaz Khaljī ( bn, আলী শের খলজী, fa, علی شیر بن عوض خلجی; fl. 1221) was a former governor of northwest

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

(

Birbhum Birbhum district () is an administrative unit in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the northernmost district of Burdwan division—one of the five administrative divisions of West Bengal. The district headquarters is in Suri. Other impor ...

) serving under his father, Sultan Iwaz Shah of the

Khalji dynasty of Bengal The Khalji dynasty ( bn, খলজী খান্দান, fa, ) was the first Muslim dynasty to rule Bengal. The dynasty, which hailed from the Garmsir region of present-day Afghanistan, was founded in 1204 by Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji, a ...

. His name finds mention in the earliest known stone inscription mentioning a Muslim ruler of Bengal.

Biography

Khalji's grandfather Husayn Khalji was an inhabitant of

Garmsir Garmsir ( ps, ګرمسير; from Persian گرمسیر, meaning "hot place") is the center of Garmsir District in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. It is situated on the eastern bank of the Helmand River on at 714 m altitude and 63 km southwest ...

. The family belonged to the

Sunni Muslim 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 disagree ...

Khalaj tribe,''the Khiljī tribe had long been settled in what is now Afghanistan ...'
Khalji Dynasty
. ''

Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various time ...

''. 2010. ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. 23 August 2010. a tribe of Turkic origin that after migration from

Turkestan Turkestan, also spelled Turkistan ( fa, ترکستان, Torkestân, lit=Land of the Turks), is a historical region in Central Asia corresponding to the regions of Transoxiana and Xinjiang. Overview Known as Turan to the Persians, western Turke ...

had later settled in

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 ...

for over 200 years. Khalji was the son and heir of

Iwaz Khalji Ḥusām ad-Dīn ʿIwaz bin Ḥusayn Khaljī ( bn, হুসামউদ্দীন ইওজ বিন হোসেন খলজী, fa, حسام الدین عوض بن حسین خلجی), later known by his regnal title as Ghiyāth ad-Dīn ʿ ...

, a deputy of

Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji Ikhtiyār al-Dīn Muḥammad Bakhtiyār Khaljī, (Pashto :اختيار الدين محمد بختيار غلزۍ, fa, اختیارالدین محمد بختیار خلجی, bn, ইখতিয়ারউদ্দীন মুহম্মদ � ...

who participated in the Muslim conquest of Lakhnauti in Bengal. His father served as Bengal's governor twice under the

Delhi Sultanate The Delhi Sultanate was an Islamic empire based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for 320 years (1206–1526).

and also independently ruled as a

Sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...

. Khalji was appointed by his father to be the governor of northwestern Bengal, a territory which spanned

and neighbouring areas. In his governorship, a ''

khanqah A khanqah ( fa, خانقاه) or khangah ( fa, خانگاه; also transliterated as ''khankah'', ''khaneqa'', ''khanegah'' or ''khaneqah''; also Arabized ''hanegah'', ''hanikah'', ''hanekah'', ''khankan''), also known as a ribat (), is a buildin ...

'' was endowed by Ibn Muhammad of

Maragheh Maragheh ( fa, مراغه, Marāgheh or ''Marāgha''; az, ماراغا ) is a city and capital of Maragheh County, East Azerbaijan Province, Iran. Maragheh is on the bank of the river Sufi Chay. The population consists mostly of Iranian Azerb ...

in 7 Jumada al-Akhir 618 AH (August 1221) in

Sian Sian or Siyan may refer to: __NOTOC__ People *Siân, a Welsh girl's name; list of people with this name Places *Sian, Iran (disambiguation), various places in Iran *Sian, Russia, a rural locality in Amur Oblast, Russia *Xi'an, China, formerly roman ...

, Suri Sadar. This khanqah now holds the

mazar (mausoleum) A ''mazār'' ( ar, مزار), or ''darīh'' () in the Maghreb, is a mausoleum or shrine in some places of the world, typically that of a saint or notable religious leader. Medieval Arabic texts may also use the words ''mašhad'' or ''maqām'' ...

of Muslim preacher Makhdum Shah. Indian epigraphist Z. A. Desai is of the opinion that Khalji was not merely a governor, but actually a Sultan who was ruling after his father's death. However, most historians reject this unconventional assumption. Sukhamay Mukherjee equates Ali Sher Khalji with Muizuddin, a name found in another inscription during Iwaz Khalji's reign that refers to him as his son.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khalji, Ali Sher Governors of Bengal 13th-century Indian Muslims People from Helmand Province

Biography

See also

References