Abu Ayyub Sulayman ibn Wahb () (died July/August 885) was a senior official of the

Abbasid Caliphate The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...

who served several times as

vizier A vizier (; ar, وزير, wazīr; fa, وزیر, vazīr), or wazir, is a high-ranking political advisor or minister in the near east. The Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was a ...

. His family, the Banu Wahb, were originally

Nestorian Christians Nestorianism is a term used in Christian theology and Church history to refer to several mutually related but doctrinarily distinct sets of teachings. The first meaning of the term is related to the original teachings of Christian theologian N ...

from

Wasit Wasit ( ar, وَاسِط, Wāsiṭ, syr, ‎ܘܐܣܛ) is an ancient city in Wasit Governorate, south east of Kut in eastern Iraq. History The city was built by al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf in c. 702 CE on the west bank of the Tigris across from the hist ...

, and had produced secretaries in the caliphal administration since late

Umayyad The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE; , ; ar, ٱلْخِلَافَة ٱلْأُمَوِيَّة, al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawīyah) was the second of the four major caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. The caliphate was ruled by the ...

times. Sulayman first appears as a secretary to Caliph

al-Ma'mun Abu al-Abbas Abdallah ibn Harun al-Rashid ( ar, أبو العباس عبد الله بن هارون الرشيد, Abū al-ʿAbbās ʿAbd Allāh ibn Hārūn ar-Rashīd; 14 September 786 – 9 August 833), better known by his regnal name Al-Ma'mu ...

(r. 813–833). Under

al-Wathiq Abū Jaʿfar Hārūn ibn Muḥammad ( ar, أبو جعفر هارون بن محمد المعتصم; 17 April 812 – 10 August 847), better known by his laqab, regnal name al-Wāthiq bi’llāh (, ), was an Abbasid caliph who reigned from 842 un ...

(r. 842–847), he forged ties with the powerful Turkish military, serving as secretary to the Turkish generals

Musa ibn Bugha Musa ibn Bugha al-Kabir (died 877) was an Abbasid military leader of Turkic origin. Musa was the son of Bugha al-Kabir, one of the leading Turkish generals under Caliph al-Mu'tasim (r. 833–842). He may have participated in or at least organized ...

and Aytakh. Under

al-Mutawakkil Abū al-Faḍl Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad al-Muʿtaṣim bi-ʾllāh ( ar, جعفر بن محمد المعتصم بالله; March 822 – 11 December 861), better known by his regnal name Al-Mutawakkil ʿalā Allāh (, "He who relies on God") was t ...

(r. 847–861) he served twice as ''ʿamil'' (supervisor of finances) in

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

, during which time he reportedly made a fortune. As a senior court official, he distinguished himself as the patron of notable poets like

Abu Tammam Ḥabīb ibn Aws al-Ṭā’ī (; ca. 796/807 - 845), better known by his sobriquet Abū Tammām (), was an Arab poet and Muslim convert born to Christian parents. He is best known in literature by his 9th-century compilation of early poems kn ...

and

al-Buhturi Al-Walīd ibn Ubaidillah Al-Buḥturī ( ar, أبو الوليد بن عبيدالله البحتري التنوخي, al-Walīd ibn `Ubayd Allāh al-Buhturī) (821–97 AD; 206–84 AH) was an Arab poet born at Manbij in Islamic Syria, between Al ...

. He was first appointed as vizier—by then an almost powerless office due to the internal turmoil and increasing domination of the Turkish military—towards the end of the reign of

al-Muhtadi Abū Isḥāq Muḥammad ibn al-Wāthiq ( ar, أبو إسحاق محمد بن هارون الواثق‎; – 21 June 870), better known by his regnal name Al-Muhtadī bi-'llāh (Arabic: , "Guided by God"), was the Caliph of the Abbasid Calipha ...

(r. 869–870), and then again in 877 and 878 under

al-Mu'tamid Abu’l-ʿAbbās Aḥmad ibn Jaʿfar ( ar, أبو العباس أحمد بن جعفر; – 14 October 892), better known by his regnal name Al-Muʿtamid ʿalā ’llāh (, "Dependent on God"), was the Caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate from 870 t ...

(r. 870–892), alternating with his rival

al-Hasan ibn Makhlad al-Jarrah Al-Hasan ibn Makhlad ibn al-Jarrah () was a senior official of the Abbasid Caliphate. Born a Nestorian Christian, he converted to Islam late in life, and served as secretary under Caliph al-Mutawakkil (r. 847–861). Under Caliph al-Mu'tamid (r. 870 ...

. His inability to counter the mounting financial crisis led to his permanent dismissal and imprisonment, dying in prison in May/June 885. Sulayman was the founder of a veritable administrative dynasty: his son

Ubayd Allah Ubayd Allah ( ar, عبيد الله), also spelled or transliterated Obaidullah, Obaydullah, Obeidallah, or Ubaydullah, is a male Arabic given name that means "little servant of God". Given name Obaidullah * Obaidullah (detainee), an Afghan detaine ...

, grandson

al-Qasim The Qassim Province ( ar, منطقة القصيم ' , Najdi Arabic: ), also known as the Qassim Region, is one of the 13 provinces of Saudi Arabia The Provinces of Saudi Arabia, also known as Regions, and officially the Emirates of the Provin ...

, and great-grandsons

al-Husayn Abū ʿAbd Allāh al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib ( ar, أبو عبد الله الحسين بن علي بن أبي طالب; 10 January 626 – 10 October 680) was a grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a son of Ali ibn Abi ...

and

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 Common Era, CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Muhammad in Islam, Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet Divine inspiration, di ...

all became viziers.

References

Sources

* 9th-century births 885 deaths Viziers of the Abbasid Caliphate Banu Wahb Prisoners and detainees of the Abbasid Caliphate 9th-century people from the Abbasid Caliphate 9th-century Arabs {{Islam-bio-stub