Ed-Dowleh is a suffix used as part of

title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify either generation, an official position, or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may be inserted between the f ...

s for members of royalty who were in governing positions during the

Qajar Qajar Iran (), also referred to as Qajar Persia, the Qajar Empire, '. Sublime State of Persia, officially the Sublime State of Iran ( fa, دولت علیّه ایران ') and also known then as the Guarded Domains of Iran ( fa, ممالک م ...

dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...

Iran 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 ...

(

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 ...

). Some of the children of

Abbas Mirza Abbas Mirza ( fa, عباس میرزا; August 26, 1789October 25, 1833) was a Qajar crown prince of Iran. He developed a reputation as a military commander during the Russo-Persian War of 1804–1813 and the Russo-Persian War of 1826–1828, as ...

who were governors also carried this title. It derives from the medieval Arabic title

al-Dawla The Arabic title ''al-Dawla'' (, often rendered ''ad-Dawla'', ''ad-Daulah'', ''ud-Daulah'', etc.) means 'dynasty' or 'state', (in modern usage, 'government') and appears in many honorific and regnal titles in the Islamic world. Invented in the ...

. The suffix translates literally into "of the government" but in actual usage is meant to refer to the

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 ...

who bestows the title of -dowleh. Ed-Dowleh can also be translated as "of the Empire or State."

Usage

An example of usage would be the brother of

Mohammad Ali Shah Qajar Mohammad Ali Shah Qajar ( fa, محمدعلی شاه قاجار; 21 June 1872 – 5 April 1925, San Remo, Italy), Shah of Iran from 8 January 1907 to 16 July 1909. He was the sixth shah of the Qajar dynasty. Biography Mohammad Ali Shah Qajar ...

, Salar ed-Dowleh (1881-1961). Some other examples using members of the Qajar royal family carrying the title include:

Brothers of Mohammad Shah Qajar

*Bahram Mirza (royal title: Moez ed-Dowleh) * Ardeshir Mirza (royal title: Rokn ed-Dowleh) *Farhad Mirza (royal title: Mo'tamed ed-Dowleh) *Firouz Mirza (royal title: Nosrat ed-Dowleh) * Khanlar Mirza (royal title: Ehteshami ed-Dowleh) *Hamzeh Mirza (royal title: Heshmat ed-Dowleh) *Lotfollah Mirza (royal title: Shoa' ed-Dowleh)

Sons of Nasser al-Din Shah

Mass'oud Mirza Zell-e Soltan Mass'oud Mirza Zell-e Soltan ( fa, مسعود میرزا ظل‌السلطان, "Mass'oud Mirza the Sultan's Shadow"; 5 January 1850 in Tabriz – 2 July 1918 in Isfahan), or Massud Mirza, was a Persian prince of the Qajar dynasty; he was know ...

(royal title: Yamin ed-Dowleh) *Jalal ed-Dowleh

Decline

The title was largely lost after

Reza Shah , , spouse = Maryam Savadkoohi Tadj ol-Molouk Ayromlu (queen consort) Turan Amirsoleimani Esmat Dowlatshahi , issue = Princess Hamdamsaltaneh Princess Shams Mohammad Reza Shah Princess Ashraf Prince Ali Reza Prince Gholam Reza P ...

, the creator of the Pahlavi dynasty, who had

ians pick family names. Many families with the ed-Dowleh suffix dropped the title while keeping the first segment of their title as their surnames.

References

{{Reflist Titles Qajar dynasty