Al-Mundhir VI ibn al-Nu'man (

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

: المنذر بن النعمان) also known by the title al-Ma'rur was the final member of the

Lakhmid The Lakhmid kingdom ( ), also referred to as al-Manādhirah () or as Banū Lakhm (), was an Arab kingdom that was founded and ruled by the Lakhmid dynasty from to 602. Spanning Eastern Arabia and Sawad, Southern Mesopotamia, it existed as a d ...

dynasty to exert power and rule over the ancient city of

Al-Hira Al-Hira ( Middle Persian: ''Hērt'' ) was an ancient Lakhmid Arabic city in Mesopotamia located south of what is now Kufa in south-central Iraq. The Sasanian government established the Lakhmid state (Al-Hirah) on the edge of the Arabian Desert ...

. He was a son of

Al-Nu'man III ibn al-Mundhir Al-Nuʿmān III ibn al-Mundhir (), also transcribed Naʿaman, Nuʿaman and Noman and often known by the patronymic Abu Qabus (), was the last Lakhmid king of al-Hirah (582 – ) and a Nestorian Christian Arab. He is considered one of the mos ...

and succeeded the Persian governor Azadbeh, hence temporarily restoring the rule of Al-Hira to Lakhmid control. His reign was short, only ruling for eight months.

Biography

Childhood

Al-Mundhir was a son of

. He also held the title ''al-Ma'rur''. He is from the family of the Lakhmids, and not much is known from his early life.

Temporary rule and death

The Persian governor, Azadbeh, fled from his rule over

in 633 CE after the city faced invasions from the Muslim armies of the

Rashidun Caliphate The Rashidun Caliphate () is a title given for the reigns of first caliphs (lit. "successors") — Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali collectively — believed to Political aspects of Islam, represent the perfect Islam and governance who led the ...

. The rule returned to the family of Lakhm, with Al-Mundhir assuming power.Mubarakpuri, Saifur Rahman (2008). ''The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet''. Dar-us-Salam Publications. However, his reign lasted for only eight months before the Muslim armies led by

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

advanced on his territories. According to the historian Muhammad ibn Habib al-Baghdadi, Al-Mundhir was killed in a battle against the Muslims at a place known as Jawatha (present-day

Al-Ahsa Governorate Al-Ahsa (, locally pronounced ''Al-Ḥasāʾ'' ()) also known as Hajar () is the largest Governorates of Saudi Arabia, governorate in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia, Eastern Province, named after the Al-Ahsa Oasis. In Classical Arab ...

Legacy

Al-Mundhir was the last Lakhmid ruler of Al-Hira. His death signified the end of the ruling dynasty. Muslims would rule Al-Hira and other areas of

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

after the

Battle of Hira The Battle of Hira () was fought between the Sasanian Empire and the Rashidun Caliphate in 633. It was one of the early battles of the Muslim conquest of Persia, and the loss of the frontier city on the Euphrates River opened the way to the Sasa ...

in 633 CE, the same year of his death.

Religious affiliation

Al-Mundhir VI might have been a

Nestorian 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 ...

Christian, as the Lakhmids themselves were Nestorians. However, Ibn Habib mentioned in the Kitāb al-Muḥabbar that Al-Mundhir was an "apostate" which implies he may have converted to Islam and then left the faith afterwards.

References