Yahya ibn Ali ibn Hammud al-Mu'tali (; died 1035) was

Caliph of Cordoba A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of the entir ...

in the

Hammudid dynasty The Hammudid dynasty () was an Arab Muslim family that briefly ruled the Caliphate of CórdobaLane-Poole (1894), p.21 and the taifas of Málaga and Algeciras and nominal control in Ceuta. The dynasty The dynasty is named after their ancestor, Ha ...

of the

Al-Andalus Al-Andalus () was the Muslim-ruled area of the Iberian Peninsula. The name refers to the different Muslim states that controlled these territories at various times between 711 and 1492. At its greatest geographical extent, it occupied most o ...

(

Moorish The term Moor is an exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a single, distinct or self-defi ...

medieval

Iberia The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, compri ...

) during two periods, from 1021 to 1023 and from 1025 to 1026. He was the son of caliph

Ali ibn Hammud Ali ibn Hammud al-Nasir () (d. 22 March 1018) was the sixth Caliph of Córdoba from 1016 until his death. He was a member of the Hammudid dynasty of Al-Andalus. He was named governor of Ceuta after 1013 by caliph Sulayman ibn al-Hakam. Taking a ...

Biography

He was governor of

Ceuta Ceuta (, , ; ) is an Autonomous communities of Spain#Autonomous cities, autonomous city of Spain on the North African coast. Bordered by Morocco, it lies along the boundary between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ceuta is one of th ...

from 1016, a title he received from his father. After the latter's death, he refused to recognize his uncle

al-Qasim al-Ma'mun Al-Qasim al-Ma'mun ibn Hammud (, died 1036) was an Arab Caliph of Córdoba in Muslim Spain for two periods, 1018 to 1021, and again for a short time in 1023 until he was driven from the city. He was the brother of the deposed Ali ibn Hammud al-N ...

as caliph. After reaching

Málaga Málaga (; ) is a Municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 591,637 in 2024, it is the second-most populo ...

he moved to

Córdoba Córdoba most commonly refers to: * Córdoba, Spain, a major city in southern Spain and formerly the imperial capital of Islamic Spain * Córdoba, Argentina, the second largest city in Argentina and the capital of Córdoba Province Córdoba or Cord ...

with a Berber army. Al-Qasim abandoned the city, taking refuge in

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

; Yahya reigned until 1023, when al-Qasim took back the throne. The latter was in turn ousted by the Umayyad party, which raised

Abd ar-Rahman V Abd ar-Rahman V () was an Umayyad Caliph of Córdoba. During the decline of the Umayyad dynasty in the Al-Andalus (Moorish Iberia), two princes of the house were proclaimed Caliph of Córdoba A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public ...

to the caliphate. Yahya moved to Málaga, and captured al-Qasim at

Jerez de la Frontera Jerez de la Frontera () or simply Jerez, also cited in old English-language sources as , is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the province of Cádiz in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Sp ...

, having him executed. In 1025 he mustered another army to march on Córdoba where caliph Muhammad III, after news of the upcoming attack arrived, fled to

Zaragoza Zaragoza (), traditionally known in English as Saragossa ( ), is the capital city of the province of Zaragoza and of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributaries, the ...

. The Córdoban aristocracy created a council to govern the city in absence of a caliph; after some six months, however, they appealed to Yahya to enter the city and assume the title of caliph. He arrived on 9 November 1025; after a few days he left the government in the hands of his vizier

Abu Ja`far Ahmad ben Musa Abu or ABU may refer to: Aviation * Airman Battle Uniform, a utility uniform of the United States Air Force * IATA airport code for A. A. Bere Tallo Airport in Atambua, Province of East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia People * Abu (Arabic term), a kun ...

while he returned to his secure stronghold of Málaga. The riots which ensued in Córdoba caused the final end of the Hammudid dynasty. In June 1026 the people expelled Yahya's vizier and elected the last caliph, the Umayyad Hisham III. After his definitive expulsion from Córdoba, Yahya created the independent taifa (kingdom) of Málaga, which he ruled until his death in 1035.

Sources

* Hammudid caliphs of Córdoba 1035 deaths 11th-century caliphs of Córdoba Year of birth unknown Taifa of Málaga 11th-century Arab people {{Al-Andalus-royal-stub