Bohtan (also Buhtan, ''Bokhti'') was a medieval Kurdish

principality A principality (or sometimes princedom) can either be a monarchical feudatory or a sovereign state, ruled or reigned over by a regnant-monarch with the title of prince and/or princess, or by a monarch with another title considered to fall un ...

in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...

centered on the town of Jazirah ibn 'Omar (modern

Cizre Cizre (; ar, جَزِيْرَة ٱبْن عُمَر, Jazīrat Ibn ʿUmar, or ''Madinat al-Jazira'', he, גזירא, Gzira, ku, Cizîr, ''Cizîra Botan'', or ''Cizîre'', syr, ܓܙܪܬܐ ܕܒܪ ܥܘܡܪ, Gāzartā,) is a city in the Cizre Di ...

also known as ''Cizîra Botan'' (''Jazira Botan'') in southeastern

Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...

. Bohtanis were an ancient and prominent branch of the

Kurds ug:كۇردلار Kurds ( ku, کورد ,Kurd, italic=yes, rtl=yes) or Kurdish people are an Iranian peoples, Iranian ethnic group native to the mountainous region of Kurdistan in Western Asia, which spans southeastern Turkey, northwestern Ir ...

that claimed descent from the

Islamic Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ma ...

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". O ...

and

Sahaba The Companions of the Prophet ( ar, اَلصَّحَابَةُ; ''aṣ-ṣaḥāba'' meaning "the companions", from the verb meaning "accompany", "keep company with", "associate with") were the disciples and followers of Muhammad who saw or m ...

Khalid ibn al-Walid Khalid ibn al-Walid ibn al-Mughira al-Makhzumi (; died 642) was a 7th-century Arab military commander. He initially headed campaigns against Muhammad on behalf of the Quraysh. He later became a Muslim and spent the remainder of his career in ...

. The official religion of this principality was

Yezidism Yazidism , alternatively Sharfadin is a monotheistic ethnic religion that has roots in a western Iranic pre-Zoroastrian religion directly derived from the Indo-Iranian tradition. It is followed by the mainly Kurmanji-speaking Yazidis and is ...

in 14th century, although the rulers eventually converted to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

, Bohtan still constituted the third major

Yezidi Yazidis or Yezidis (; ku, ئێزیدی, translit=Êzidî) are a Kurmanji-speaking endogamous minority group who are indigenous to Kurdistan, a geographical region in Western Asia that includes parts of Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Iran. The ma ...

enclave after Shekhan and

Sinjar Sinjar ( ar, سنجار, Sinjār; ku, شنگال, translit=Şingal, syr, ܫܝܓܪ, Shingar) is a town in the Sinjar District of the Nineveh Governorate in northern Iraq. It is located about five kilometers south of the Sinjar Mountains. Its p ...

until 19th century.

History

In the early 8th century, Bukhtis and Bajnawi Kurds ruled the area surrounding

and Jazira mountains known under name ''Zozan'' by Arab geographers. Yaqoot Hamawi describes their residing area to be from Ikhlat to

Salmas Salmas ( fa, سلماس; ; ; ; syr, ܣܵܠܵܡܵܣ, Salamas) is the capital of Salmas County, West Azerbaijan Province in Iran. It is located northwest of Lake Urmia, near Turkey. According to the 2019 census, the city's population is 127,86 ...

which included many strongholds belonging to Bokhtis; he also mentioned town of Jardhakil as their capital. The principality ruled over an area extending from Diyarbakir to

Van A van is a type of road vehicle used for transporting goods or people. Depending on the type of van, it can be bigger or smaller than a pickup truck and SUV, and bigger than a common car. There is some varying in the scope of the word across th ...

and from

Rawanduz Rawandiz ( ar, رواندز; ku, ڕەواندز, Rewandiz) is a city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, located in the Erbil Governorate, close to the borders with Iran and Turkey, it is located 10 km to the east from Bekhal Waterfall. The di ...

to Sinjar at its peak. The first governors of Bohtan, were from the Azizan family, who originally followed

later converted to

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disag ...

and were related to the Governors of the

Principality of Bitlis The Principality of Bitlis, also known as the Bitlis Khanate and the Bitlis Emirate (1182–early 19th century) was a Kurdish principality originated from the ''Rojaki'' (or ''Rozagi'') tribal confederation. The Rojaki defeated the Georgian Kin ...

. Following their role in the Ottoman defeat of the

Safavids 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 ...

in the Battle of Caldiran in 1514, Bohtan was granted the status of a Hükümet, and it became a hereditary Kurdish principality within the

. An important governor of the Bohtan was Bedir Khan Bey, who succeeded Mir Seyfeddin. Bedir Khan Bey was Mîr of the principality between 1821 and 1847. He reformed the military forces in establishing an elite force consistent with members of the several tribes within the emirate which brought security into Bohtan.Gökçe, Hasan (1997). Kieser, Hans-Lukas (ed.), p. 80 According to European diplomats in the region, he even tested if the regional chief was observant enough. He would try to raid a tribe by night, and if he succeeded he would punish the tribal chief in whose territory the robbery was successful. He then returned what he had robbed the night before. The security standard in Bohtan was such, that it encouraged the population of neighboring provinces to move into the territory under Bedir Khans control. This led to the opposition by the Ottoman Vali of

Mosul Mosul ( ar, الموصل, al-Mawṣil, ku, مووسڵ, translit=Mûsil, Turkish: ''Musul'', syr, ܡܘܨܠ, Māwṣil) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second larg ...

, who demanded an end to the emigration of the habitants from the Mosul province to Bohtan. Following, Bedir Khan expelled 2000 immigrants who settled into Bohtan during the Governorship of Mehmet Pasha in Mosul, but they returned after four years. The renewed emigration lead the Vali of Mosul Mehmet Şerif Pasha to file a report against Bedir Khan, who in 1847 had to agree to bring an end to the immigration of foreigners in Bohtan. Bedir Khan Bey resigned after an unsuccessful uprising against the

and following, Bohtan lost its independence

References

{{reflist

External links

Encyclopaedia Islamica (in Persian)
Former Kurdish states in Turkey Kurdish dynasties History of Şırnak Province Vassal states of the Ottoman Empire Yazidi history

History

See also

References

External links