S̲h̲āhbandar ( fa, شه‌بندر, ,

Harbourmaster A harbourmaster (or harbormaster, see spelling differences) is an official responsible for enforcing the regulations of a particular harbour or port, in order to ensure the safety of navigation, the security of the harbour and the correct operat ...

), was an official of the ports in

Safavid Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...

Persia and one also known on other shores of the Indian Ocean. The Shahbandar (Port Master) was in charge of the traders and the collection of taxes. The office of shahbandar first appeared in Persia, and from there spread throughout the Indian Ocean basin. Later on, having become obsolete for the port towns of Persia, the term shahbandar was now used for the official who represented the interests of the Turkish merchants operating within Persia. In the Brunei Sultanate, or was the highest honour for a politician, reserved for the royal house family.

Malacca Sultanate

During the time of the

Malacca Sultanate The Malacca Sultanate ( ms, Kesultanan Melaka; Jawi script: ) was a Malay sultanate based in the modern-day state of Malacca, Malaysia. Conventional historical thesis marks as the founding year of the sultanate by King of Singapura, Parameswa ...

, four Shahbandars oversaw different communities in the port of Malacca: the Gujarati traders; the traders from Southern India, Bengal, Burma, and

Pasai The Samudera Pasai Sultanate (), also known as Samudera or Pasai or Samudera Darussalam or Pacem, was a Muslim harbour kingdom on the north coast of Sumatra from the 13th to the 16th centuries CE. The kingdom was believed to have been founded ...

; traders from Maritime Southeast Asia; and traders from Annam, China, and Ryukyu. The Shahbandars of Malacca's ranks were below those of the

Laksamana The Laksamana ( Jawi: ) is a position within the armed forces, similar to the position of admiral in Malay sultanates and in present-day countries like Indonesia and Malaysia. Since South East Asia was part of Indosphere of Greater India since earl ...

(admiral) and the

Temenggung Temenggong or Tumenggung ( Jawi: تمڠݢوڠ; ''Temenggung'', Hanacaraka: ꦠꦸꦩꦼꦁꦒꦸꦁ; ''Tumenggung'') is an old Malay and Javanese title of nobility, usually given to the chief of public security. Responsibilities The Temen ...

(chief of public security).

Malacca Sultanate

See also

References

Further reading