Akhund Mahammadali Huseinzadeh () — first shia

Sheikh ul-Islam Sheikh (pronounced or ; ar, شيخ ' , mostly pronounced , plural ' )—also transliterated sheekh, sheyikh, shaykh, shayk, shekh, shaik and Shaikh, shak—is an honorific title in the Arabic language. It commonly designates a chief of a ...

of the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...

from 1823 to 1852. Maternal great-grandfather of

Ali bey Huseynzade Ali bey Huseyn oğlu Huseynzade ( az, Əli bəy Hüseyn oğlu Hüseynzadə; tr, Hüseyinzade Ali Turan; Salyan, February 24, 1864 – Istanbul, March 17, 1940) was an Azerbaijani writer, thinker, philosopher, artist, doctor, and the creator of ...

Early life

Mahammadali Huseinzadeh was born in Salyan,

Shirvan Khanate Shirvan Khanate ( fa, خانات شیروان, Khānāt-e Shirvan) was a Caucasian khanate under Iranian suzerainty, which controlled the Shirvan region from 1761 to 1820. Background Under the Safavid dynasty of Iran, Shirvan was a leading silk ...

in 1791. He got his primary religious education in Salyan,

Ganja Ganja (, ; ) is one of the oldest and most commonly used synonyms for marijuana. Its usage in English dates to before 1689. Etymology ''Ganja'' is borrowed from Hindi/Urdu ( hi, गांजा, links=no, ur, , links=no, IPA: �aːɲd� ...

, and later in

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 ...

and came to Tbilisi in 1802 where he was appointed as

akhund Akhund (akhoond, akhwand, akhand or akondo) ( fa, آخوند) is a Persian title or surname for Islamic scholars, common in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Azerbaijan. Other names for similar Muslim Scholar include sheik ...

of Shah Abbas Mosque. He was appointed as

of the Tbilisi in 1822 (or in 1823) and served in this post until 1846. His influence was not wider and only accepted around

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...

and

. This influence was mainly decreased after appointment of Mir-Fatah-Agha as head of Caucasian Spiritual Assembly in 1828. His main accomplishment was imperial legalization of sharia courts and feudal rights of

bey Bey ( ota, بك, beğ, script=Arab, tr, bey, az, bəy, tk, beg, uz, бек, kz, би/бек, tt-Cyrl, бәк, translit=bäk, cjs, пий/пек, sq, beu/bej, sh, beg, fa, بیگ, beyg/, tg, бек, ar, بك, bak, gr, μπέης) is ...

s on 6 December 1846 by Nicholas I just days before his resignation. He was succeeded by

Fazil Iravani Muhammad ibn Muhammad Bagher Iravani () or Fazil Iravani ( az, Fazil İrəvani) was an ethnic Azerbaijani Islamic jurist, the second Sheikh ul-Islam of the Caucasus and an Ayatollah al-Uzma. Early life and education Fazil Iravani was born in Ye ...

in 1846. Despite his resignation, he was active in religious scene and helped to fund a Shiite theological school in Tbilisi on 12 December 1847 with help from Fathali Akhundov and

Abbasgulu Bakikhanov Abbasgulu agha Bakikhanov ( az, Abbasqulu ağa Bakıxanov) (21 June 1794, Amirjan – 31 May 1847, Wadi Fatima, near Jeddah), Abbas Qoli Bakikhanov, or Abbas-Qoli ibn Mirza Mohammad (Taghi) Khan Badkubi was an Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az ...

. He died on 22 April 1852. His nephew,

Ahmad Huseinzadeh Ahmad Huseinzadeh ( az, Əhməd Hüseynzadə) also known as Sheikh Ahmad Salyani — third Sheikh ul-Islam of the Caucasus, maternal grandfather of Ali bey Huseynzade. Early life He was born in Salyan in 1812 to Ali Huseynzadeh. He was brought u ...

also became a sheikh-ul-islam.

Family

He had at least 2 daughters: # Nisa Huseinzadeh (b. 1835) # Husniyya Huseinzadeh — married to her own cousin

References

{{Religious Council of the Caucasus 1760 births Azerbaijani Shia clerics Azerbaijani religious leaders 1852 deaths