Amajur al-Turki ( ar, أماجور التركي) (also known as Majur, Anajur and Majura) was a
Turkic military officer for the
Abbasid Caliphate
The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...
. He served as the
governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
of
Damascus
)), is an adjective which means "spacious".
, motto =
, image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg
, image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg
, seal_type = Seal
, map_caption =
, ...
during the caliphate of
al-Mu'tamid
Abu’l-ʿAbbās Aḥmad ibn Jaʿfar ( ar, أبو العباس أحمد بن جعفر; – 14 October 892), better known by his regnal name Al-Muʿtamid ʿalā ’llāh (, "Dependent on God"), was the Caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate from 870 t ...
, from 870 until his death in ca. 878.
Career
![Page from the Amajur Qur'an (TIEM 1023)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Page_from_the_Amajur_Qur%27an_%28TIEM_1023%29.jpg)
Little is known about Amajur outside of his governorship of Damascus; it is possible that he was related to the later
Banu Amajur family of astronomers, but this is not known for certain. He received his appointment around the time of al-Mu'tamid's accession and was dispatched to
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
with a contingent of several hundred Turkish soldiers. He initially had difficulty establishing his authority within the province, due to the presence of the rebel
'Isa ibn al-Shaykh, and was forced to fight the latter in the vicinity of Damascus. Despite having a much smaller force, Amajur won the engagement, routing 'Isa's army and killing his son Mansur. Shortly after the battle, 'Isa abandoned Syria for
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
, thereby securing Amajur's position as governor.
Over the course of the next several years, Amajur administered the province with a firm hand. He maintained a state of order, making the roads secure and cracking down against bandits, and also engaged in the building of public works. At the same time, however, an oppressive tax regime was instituted during his governorship, and a period of major
inflation
In economics, inflation is an increase in the general price level of goods and services in an economy. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reductio ...
resulted in a general increase in poverty. In ca. 876 he presented a
Qur'an
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , sing. ...
to a
mosque
A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
in
Tyre, granting it as a ''
waqf
A waqf ( ar, وَقْف; ), also known as hubous () or '' mortmain'' property is an inalienable charitable endowment under Islamic law. It typically involves donating a building, plot of land or other assets for Muslim religious or charitabl ...
''; several folios from this work still exist.
In ca. 877 the Abbasid regent
al-Muwaffaq
Abu Ahmad Talha ibn Ja'far ( ar, أبو أحمد طلحة بن جعفر}; 29 November 843 – 2 June 891), better known by his as Al-Muwaffaq Billah (), was an Abbasid prince and military leader, who acted as the ''de facto'' regent of the Abba ...
decided to appoint Amajur over
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
, as its governor
Ahmad ibn Tulun
Ahmad ibn Tulun ( ar, أحمد بن طولون, translit=Aḥmad ibn Ṭūlūn; c. 20 September 835 – 10 May 884) was the founder of the Tulunid dynasty that ruled Egypt and Syria between 868 and 905. Originally a Turkic slave-soldier, in 868 ...
had been displaying signs of independence. Although Amajur was somewhat reluctant about the plan, the general
Musa ibn Bugha
Musa ibn Bugha al-Kabir (died 877) was an Abbasid military leader of Turkic origin. Musa was the son of Bugha al-Kabir, one of the leading Turkish generals under Caliph al-Mu'tasim (r. 833–842). He may have participated in or at least organized ...
was dispatched to enforce the decision and install him in the province. The expedition, however, stalled at
Raqqa
Raqqa ( ar, ٱلرَّقَّة, ar-Raqqah, also and ) (Kurdish languages, Kurdish: Reqa/ ڕەقە) is a city in Syria on the northeast bank of the Euphrates River, about east of Aleppo. It is located east of the Tabqa Dam, Syria's largest dam. T ...
and came to an end when Musa's troops revolted against him, forcing him to return to
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
; as a result, Ibn Tulun remained in control of Egypt.
Amajur died in ca. 878. He was briefly succeeded as governor by his minor son
'Ali
Ali is a common unisex name.
In Arabic, Ali is derived from the Arabic root ʕ-l-w, which literally means "high", "elevated" or "champion", and is used as both a given name and surname. Islamic traditional use of the name goes back to the Isla ...
; that same year, however, Ibn Tulun decided to take advantage of his death and marched into Syria, adding the province to his domains.
[Cobb, p. 41; Lewis, p. 179; Ibn al-Athir, p. 277; al-Kindi, pp. 219-20; Ibn 'Asakir, p. 220. According to al-Mas'udi, pp. 67-68, Ibn Tulun had already been marching toward Syria when Amajur died.]
Notes
References
*
Abu al-Fath, Ibn Abi al-Hasan al-Samiri al-Danafi
Abu'l-Fath ibn Abi al-Hasan al-Samiri al-Danafi, ( ar, أبو الفتح إبن أبي الحسن السامري) was a 14th-century Samaritan chronicler. His major work is ''Kitab al-Ta'rikh'' ( ar, كتاب التاريخ). The work was commiss ...
. ''Continuation of the Samaritan chronicle of Abu L-Fath Al-Samiri Al-Danafi.'' Ed. and trans. Milka Levy-Rubin. Princeton, NJ: Darwin Press, 2002.
*
Cobb, Paul M. ''White Banners: Contention in 'Abbasid Syria, 750-880.'' Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 2001.
*
Ettinghausen, Richard,
Oleg Grabar
Oleg Grabar (November 3, 1929 – January 8, 2011) was a French-born art historian and archeologist, who spent most of his career in the United States, as a leading figure in the field of Islamic art and architecture.
Academic career
O ...
and Marilyn Jenkins-Madina. ''Islamic Art and Architecture 650-1250.'' New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001.
*
*
*
Ibn 'Asakir
Ibn Asakir ( ar-at, ابن عساكر, Ibn ‘Asākir; 1105–c. 1176) was a Syrian Sunni Islamic scholar, who was one of the most renowned experts on Hadith and Islamic history in the medieval era. and a disciple of the Sufi mystic Abu al-Najib S ...
, Abu al-Qasim 'Ali ibn al-Hasan ibn Hibat Allah. ''Tarikh Madinat Dimashq, Vol 9.'' Ed. 'Umar ibn Gharama al-'Amrawi. Beirut: Dar al-Fikr, 1995.
*
Ibn al-Athir
Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAlī ibn Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad ash-Shaybānī, better known as ʿAlī ʿIzz ad-Dīn Ibn al-Athīr al-Jazarī ( ar, علي عز الدین بن الاثیر الجزري) lived 1160–1233) was an Arab or Kurdish historian a ...
, 'Izz al-Din. ''Al-Kamil fi al-Tarikh, Vol. 6.'' Beirut: Dar al-‘Ilmiyyah, 1987.
*
Islamic Manuscripts: al-Qur'an" ''Cambridge Digital Library.'' Retrieved 30 December 2013.
*
Al-Kindi
Abū Yūsuf Yaʻqūb ibn ʼIsḥāq aṣ-Ṣabbāḥ al-Kindī (; ar, أبو يوسف يعقوب بن إسحاق الصبّاح الكندي; la, Alkindus; c. 801–873 AD) was an Arab Muslim philosopher, polymath, mathematician, physician ...
, Muhammad ibn Yusuf. ''The Governors and Judges of Egypt.'' Ed. Rhuvon Guest. Leydon and London: E. J. Brill, 1912.
*
Lewis, Bernard. "Egypt and Syria." ''The Cambridge History of Islam, Volume 1A.'' Ed.
P.M. Holt,
Ann K.S. Lambton
Ann Katharine Swynford Lambton, (8 February 1912 – 19 July 2008), usually known as A.K.S. Lambton or "Nancy" Lambton, was a British historian and expert on medieval and early modern Persian history, Persian language, Islamic political theor ...
and Bernard Lewis. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1970.
*
Al-Mas'udi
Al-Mas'udi ( ar, أَبُو ٱلْحَسَن عَلِيّ ٱبْن ٱلْحُسَيْن ٱبْن عَلِيّ ٱلْمَسْعُودِيّ, '; –956) was an Arab historian, geographer and traveler. He is sometimes referred to as the "Herodotus ...
, Ali ibn al-Husain. ''Les Prairies D'Or.'' Ed. and Trans.
Charles Barbier de Meynard
Charles Adrien Casimir Barbier de Meynard (6 February 1826 – 31 March 1908), born at sea on a ship from Constantinople to Marseille, was a nineteenth-century French historian and orientalist.
Biography
His studies focused on the early history ...
and
Abel Pavet de Courteille
Abel Jean Baptiste Michel Pavet de Courteille (23 June 1821 – 12 December 1889) was a 19th-century French orientalist, who specialized in the study of Turkic languages.
Career
Through his mother, Sophie Silvestre (1793-1877), he was Antoi ...
. 9 vols. Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 1861-1917.
*
* {{The History of al-Tabari, volume=36
*
Al-Ya'qubi
ʾAbū l-ʿAbbās ʾAḥmad bin ʾAbī Yaʿqūb bin Ǧaʿfar bin Wahb bin Waḍīḥ al-Yaʿqūbī (died 897/8), commonly referred to simply by his nisba al-Yaʿqūbī, was an Arab Muslim geographer and perhaps the first historian of world cultu ...
, Ahmad ibn Abu Ya'qub. ''Historiae, Vol. 2.'' Ed. M. Th. Houtsma. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1883.
870s deaths
Abbasid governors of Damascus
Year of birth missing
9th-century people from the Abbasid Caliphate
9th-century Turkic people