Adud al-Dawla Shir-Zad ( fa, عدودالدوله شیرزاد), better known as Shir-Zad () was the

sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...

of the

Ghaznavid Empire The Ghaznavid dynasty ( fa, غزنویان ''Ġaznaviyān'') was a culturally Persianate society, Persianate, Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslim dynasty of Turkic peoples, Turkic ''mamluk'' origin, ruling, at its greatest extent, large parts of Persia, ...

from 1115 to 1116. A son of

Mas'ud III Mas'ūd III of Ghazna (b. 1061 – d. 1115), was a sultan of the Ghaznavid Empire and son of Ibrahim of Ghazna. Life Mas'ūd was born in 1061 in Ghazni. Reign Mas'ud was sultan for 16 years. In 1112, Mas'ūd III built the Palace of Sultan Ma ...

(), Shir-Zad served as a governor in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

during his father's reign. The deputy governor of Shir-Zad was Qiwam al-Mulk Nizam al-Din. During his governorship, Shir-Zad became very close friends with the Persian poet

Masud Sa'd Salman Mas'ud-i Sa'd-i Salmān ( fa, مسعود سعد سلمان) was an 11th-century Persian poet of the Ghaznavid empire who is known as the prisoner poet. He lived from ca. 1046 to 1121. Early life He was born in 1046 in Lahore to wealthy parents fr ...

, who had recently been released from his imprisonment at Nay. In one of his poems, Masud Sa'd Salman makes mention of a certain Amir Kaykavus at Shir-Zad's court in the city of

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

, which may been the

Ziyarid The Ziyarid dynasty ( fa, زیاریان) was an Iranian dynasty of Gilaki origin that ruled Tabaristan from 931 to 1090 during the Iranian Intermezzo period. The empire rose to prominence during the leadership of Mardavij. After his death, his ...

ruler and author of the ''

Qabus-Nama ''Qabus-nama'' or ''Qabus-nameh'' (variations: ''Qabusnamah'', ''Qabousnameh'', ''Ghabousnameh'', or ''Ghaboosnameh'', in Persian: or , "Book of Kavus"), ''Mirror of Princes'', is a major work of Persian literature, from the eleventh century (c ...

'', Kaykavus. It was probably at his accession that Shir-Zad adopted the ''

laqab Arabic language names have historically been based on a long naming system. Many people from the Arabic-speaking and also Muslim countries have not had given/ middle/family names but rather a chain of names. This system remains in use throughout ...

'' (honorific epithet) of Kamal al-Daula. He ruled for one year, until he was overthrown by his brother Arslan-Shah in February 1116. Shir-Zad fled to the

Caspian Caspian can refer to: *The Caspian Sea *The Caspian Depression, surrounding the northern part of the Caspian Sea *The Caspians, the ancient people living near the Caspian Sea *Caspian languages, collection of languages and dialects of Caspian peopl ...

lands, where he received shelter by the ''

ispahbad ''Spāhbed'' (also spelled ''spahbod'' and ''spahbad'') is a Middle Persian title meaning "army chief" used chiefly in the Sasanian Empire. Originally there was a single ''spāhbed'', called the , who functioned as the generalissimo of the Sasani ...

'' (ruler) of the local

Bavand dynasty The Bavand dynasty () (also spelled Bavend), or simply the Bavandids, was an Iranian dynasty that ruled in parts of Tabaristan (present-day Mazandaran province) in what is now northern Iran from 651 until 1349, alternating between outright inde ...

Tabaristan Tabaristan or Tabarestan ( fa, طبرستان, Ṭabarestān, or mzn, تبرستون, Tabarestun, ultimately from Middle Persian: , ''Tapur(i)stān''), was the name applied to a mountainous region located on the Caspian coast of northern Iran. ...

. With the help of the ''ispahbad'', Shir-Zad made a pilgrimage to

Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...

in April–May. After his return, Shir-Zad attempted to regain the throne from his brother, but was killed by the latter. No coins of Shir-Zad are known, which implies he did not rule long enough to have them minted, or none minted by him have been found yet.

References

Sources

* * {{Ghaznavid sultans Ghaznavid rulers 1116 deaths 11th-century births