Atâ-Malek Juvayni (1226–1283) ( fa, عطاملک جوینی), in full, Ala al-Din Ata-ullah (), was a
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 ...
historian and an official of the Mongol state who wrote an account of the
Mongol Empire entitled ''
Tarīkh-i Jahān-gushā'' (''History of the World Conqueror'').
Early life
Juvayni was born in
Joveyn, a city in
Khorasan in eastern
Persia
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
. Both his grandfather and his father, Baha al-Din, had held the post of ''sahib-divan'' or Minister of Finance for
Muhammad Jalal al-Din and
Ögedei Khan respectively. Baha al-Din also acted as deputy c. 1246 for his immediate superior, the emir
Arghun
Arghun Khan (Mongolian Cyrillic: ''Аргун хан''; Traditional Mongolian: ; c. 1258 – 10 March 1291) was the fourth ruler of the Mongol empire's Ilkhanate, from 1284 to 1291. He was the son of Abaqa Khan, and like his father, was a dev ...
, in which role he oversaw a large area including
Kingdom of Georgia.
Career
Juvayni, just as his predecessors became an important state official. He visited the Mongol capital of
Karakorum twice, beginning his history of the Mongols conquests on one such visit (c. 1252–53).
He was with
Ilkhan Hulagu in
the 1256 campaign at the taking of
Alamut, where he selected many 'choice books' from the famous Alamut library for his own purposes and burnt those books that he did not like.
was responsible for saving part of its celebrated library. He had also accompanied Hulagu during the
sack of Baghdad
The siege of Baghdad was a siege that took place in Baghdad in 1258, lasting for 13 days from January 29, 1258 until February 10, 1258. The siege, laid by Ilkhanate Mongol forces and allied troops, involved the investment, capture, and sack of ...
in 1258, and the next year was appointed governor of
Baghdad
Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon. I ...
, Lower
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...
, and
Khuzistan
Khuzestan Province (also spelled Xuzestan; fa, استان خوزستان ''Ostān-e Xūzestān'') is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southwest of the country, bordering Iraq and the Persian Gulf. Its capital is Ahvaz and it covers ...
.
Around 1282, Juvayni attended a Mongol ''
quriltai'', or assembly, held in the Ala-Taq pastures northeast of
Lake Van. He died the following year in
Mughan
Mughan plain ( az, Muğan düzü, مغان دوزو; ) is a plain stretching from northwestern Iran to the southern part of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The highest density of irrigation canals is in the section of the Mughan plain which lies in ...
or
Arran in
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of t ...
.
Siege of Alamut
Juvayni's brother was the powerful
Shams al-Din Mohammad Sahib-Divan, who had served as Minister of Finance under Hulagu and
Abaqa Khan
Abaqa Khan (27 February 1234 – 4 April 1282, mn, Абаха/Абага хан (Khalkha Cyrillic), ( Traditional script), "paternal uncle", also transliterated Abaġa), was the second Mongol ruler (''Ilkhan'') of the Ilkhanate. The son of Hul ...
. A skillful leader in his own right, Shams al-Din also had influential in-laws: his wife Khoshak was the daughter of
Avag Mkhargrdzeli
Avag Mkhargrdzeli (died 1250 AD) was a Georgian noble of Armenian descent, he was ''atabeg'' and ''amirspasalar'' of Georgia during the 13th century.
The eastern areas Bjni, Gegharkunik, Vayots-dzor, Artsakh, Siunik, Nakhichevan, Dvin and ...
,
Lord High Constable of Georgia, and
Gvantsa, a noblewoman who went on to become
queen of Georgia.
Work and legacy
Juvayni's position at court and his family connections made him privy to information unavailable to other historians. For unknown reasons, Juvayni's ''
Tarīkh-i Jahān-gushā'' ends in 1260, more than twenty years before his death.
The standard edition of Juvayni's history is published under the title ''Tarīkh-i Jahān-gushā'', ed.
Mirza Muhammad Qazwini, 3 vol, Gibb Memorial Series 16 (Leiden and London, 1912–37). An English translation by John Andrew Boyle ''The History of the World-Conqueror'' was republished in 1997.
References
Sources
*
*
*
External links
''History of the World Conqueror'' by Ala Ad Din Ata Malik Juvaini, translated by John Andrew Boyle Harvard University Press 1958, on the
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Joveini, Ata-Malik
13th-century Iranian historians
1226 births
1283 deaths
Juvayni family
Ilkhanate historians
Officials of the Ilkhanate