, native_name = , other_name = , coat of arms = , alt = , caption = , image_size = , type =

Noble family Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy (class), aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below Royal family, royalty. Nobility has often been an Estates of the realm, estate of the realm with many e ...

, origin =

Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

, parent house = , country =

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 ...

, founded = , founder = Prince Ahmed Pasha Turguman , current head = , dissolution = , final ruler = , members = Ahmed Pasha Zulfikar , estates =

Islamic Cairo Islamic Cairo ( ar, قاهرة المعز, lit= Al-Mu'izz's Cairo), also called Historic Cairo or Medieval Cairo, refers generically to the historic areas of Cairo, Egypt, that existed before the city's modern expansion during the 19th and 20th ce ...

Old Cairo Old Cairo (Arabic: مصر القديمة , Miṣr al-Qadīma, Egyptian pronunciation: Maṣr El-ʾAdīma) is a historic area in Cairo, Egypt, which includes the site of a Roman-era fortress and of Islamic-era settlements pre-dating the founding of ...

Upper Egypt Upper Egypt ( ar, صعيد مصر ', shortened to , , locally: ; ) is the southern portion of Egypt and is composed of the lands on both sides of the Nile that extend upriver from Lower Egypt in the north to Nubia in the south. In ancient ...

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Pasha Pasha, Pacha or Paşa ( ota, پاشا; tr, paşa; sq, Pashë; ar, باشا), in older works sometimes anglicized as bashaw, was a higher rank in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, gener ...

, Bek or

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 ...

, Hanum, Prince,

Emir Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or cerem ...

, styles = , deposition = , cadet branches = The Zulfikar family, sometimes spelled Zolfakar ( arz, عيلة ذو الفقار,

Aliases A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

: آل ذو الفقار,

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

: عائلة ذو الفقار, Egyptian (Coptic): Ⲍⲩⲗϥⲓⲕⲁⲣ), is a prominent Egyptian noble family. They have had an influence that has stretched from the late 16th century to modern times. It is known that more than one Zulfikar has been either a ruler of Egypt or a prince in the Egyptian Mamluk era. The family has produced a large number of military officers from the 19th to the late-20th century. It has also contributed to modern Egyptian art through the works of filmmaker Ezz El-Dine Zulfikar, filmmaker

Mahmoud Zulfikar Mahmoud Qasdy Ahmed Mourad Zulfikar (18 February 1914 – 22 May 1970) was an Egyptians, Egyptian film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He started his career as an architect, before becoming an actor in 1939. He was a major figur ...

, actor

Salah Zulfikar Salah El Din Ahmed Mourad Zulfikar ( ar, صلاح ذو الفقار; ; 18 January 1926 – 22 December 1993) was an Egyptian actor and film producer. He started his career as a police officer in the Egyptian National Police, before becoming an ac ...

, poet Magda Zulfikar, among others.

Name origin

Sources indicate that family's last name 'Zulfikar' came as a reference to the

Zulfiqar Zulfiqar ( ar, ذُو ٱلْفَقَار, Ḏū-l-Faqār, ), also spelled ''Zu al-Faqar'', ''Zulfikar'', ''Dhu al-Faqar'', ''Dhulfaqar'' or ''Dhulfiqar'', is the sword of Ali ibn Abi Talib. Middle Eastern weapons are commonly inscribed wi ...

sword of

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 ...

. In legend, Muhammad asked God to give him a sword, and granted it to

Ali ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib ( ar, عَلِيّ بْن أَبِي طَالِب; 600 – 661 CE) was the last of four Rightly Guided Caliphs to rule Islam (r. 656 – 661) immediately after the death of Muhammad, and he was the first Shia Imam. ...

to replace his old broken sword. This sword is of a high value to the

Muslim world The terms Muslim world and Islamic world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is practiced. I ...

History

Sources indicate that the Zulfikar family was already well established in

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

by the late 16th century. Many elders thereof held the title of prince, pasha, bey or hanim in the

Mamluk Mamluk ( ar, مملوك, mamlūk (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural), translated as "one who is owned", meaning " slave", also transliterated as ''Mameluke'', ''mamluq'', ''mamluke'', ''mameluk'', ''mameluke'', ''mamaluke'', or ''marmeluke'') ...

era. Also sources indicate that other Zulfikars sat on the

Majlis ( ar, المجلس, pl. ') is an Arabic term meaning "sitting room", used to describe various types of special gatherings among common interest groups of administrative, social or religious nature in countries with linguistic or cultural conne ...

created by Ibrahim Pasha. Ahmed Pasha Zulfikar is widely considered to be the modern founding father of the family. On the occasion of the 1952 Egyptian Revolution, the Zulfikar family contributed in fighting against the British occupation, with many members in the

Egyptian Armed Forces The Egyptian Armed Forces ( arz, القُوّات المُسَلَّحَة المِصْرِيَّة, alquwwat almusalahat almisria) are the military forces of the Arab Republic of Egypt. They consist of the Egyptian Army, Egyptian Navy, Egypti ...

and the

Egyptian National Police , ') , mottotranslated = Police of the people ( ar, شرطة الشعب, ') Counter-terrorism and hostage rescue Combat all types of crimes Maintaining public health Achieve the tranquility of the citizen , formedyear = 1878 ( years) , for ...

during the period. The influence of the family on Egyptian culture, literature, academia, and art was fundamental.

Notable members

Notable family members include Mohammed Bek Zulfikar and

Ahmed Mourad Bey Zulfikar Ahmed Mourad Bey Zulfikar or Ahmed Mourad Zulfikar (Egyptian Arabic: أحمد مراد بك ذو الفقار; August 18, 1888 – April 3, 1945), was an Egyptian police commissioner in the ministry of Interior. He held the position of Cairo Hea ...

(who served as Senior Cairo police commissioner in early 1940s). With a majority of a military background, such as major general Kamal Zulfikar in the

, others switched careers to filmmaking in the mid-20th century. This cohort included such figures as

Ezz El-Dine Zulficar Ezz El-Dine Ahmed Mourad Zulficar (Egyptian Arabic: عز الدين ذو الفقار, ; October 28, 1919 – July 1, 1963) was an Egyptian film director, screenwriter, actor and producer known for his distinctive style, which blends romance and ...

, who was also a military officer in the Egyptian Armed Forces, a friend of many of the major Free Officers Movement members who had a career shift in 1947. He presented patriotic films after the

revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

. He is regarded as one of the most influential filmmakers in

Egyptian cinema The cinema of Egypt refers to the flourishing film industry based in Cairo, sometimes also referred to as Hollywood on the Nile. Since 1976, the capital has held the annual Cairo International Film Festival, which has been accredited by the Intern ...

was one of Egypt's heroes in its battle against the occupation while serving in the

. He became an actor in 1956 and a film producer in 1958. He starred in over one hundred films. He is regarded as one of his country's most iconic male performers in the 20th century.

was a film director, actor, producer and screenwriter. He was a major cinematic figure in the Egyptian film industry. In the

Businessworld ''BusinessWorld'' is a business newspaper in the Philippines with a nationwide circulation of more than 117,000 (as of March 2014). Founded in 1967 as ''Business Day'', it is Southeast Asia's first daily business newspaper. History ''Busin ...

, notable family members include Ahmed Bek Zulfikar, Abbas Helmi Bek Zulfikar, Mohammed Zulfikar, Mamdouh Zulfikar among others - who all worked in multiple business fields during the 19th and the 20th centuries.

Ahmed Zulfikar Ahmed Mourad Salah El-Din Zulfikar (15 August 1952 – 1 May 2010) was an Egyptian mechanical engineer and entrepreneur. He worked for three decades in the field of infrastructure. Zulfikar was one of the first founders of the modern irrigation sy ...

was an Egyptian entrepreneur. He was one of the first founders of the modern irrigation systems technology in

Other notable members of the family include Mona Zulfikar; she is a prominent lawyer and

human rights activist A human rights defender or human rights activist is a person who, individually or with others, acts to promote or protect human rights. They can be journalists, environmentalists, whistleblowers, trade unionists, lawyers, teachers, housing campai ...

who was included in the ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

'' 2021 list of the "100 most powerful businesswomen in the Arab region". Ezz El-Dine Zulfikar's daughter, Dina Zulfikar, is an environmentalist and active member of Egypt's animal rights community, having co-founded the country's first and largest animal rights organization, the

Society for Protection of Animal Rights in Egypt Society for the Protection of Animal Rights in Egypt, or S.P.A.R.E., is a non-profit animal welfare organization founded by Amina Abaza in 2001. It is the first animal welfare organization in Egypt to address the situation of all animals, inc ...

References

{{reflist Egyptian families Culture of Egypt Arab culture Egyptian nobility Egyptian pashas Culture of Africa Egyptian revolutionaries Egyptian nationalists African noble families Political families of Egypt

Name origin

History

Notable members

See also

References