Manaf
Manaf. Name of a deity of ancient Arabia whose cult was widespread among the Quraysh. The statute of Manaf was caressed by women, but when they had their menstrual cycle they were not allowed to go near it.
Manaf. Name of a deity of ancient Arabia whose cult was widespread among the Quraysh. The statute of Manaf was caressed by women, but when they had their menstrual cycle they were not allowed to go near it.
Manastirli Mehmed Rif‘at
Manastirli Mehmed Rif‘at (1851-1907). Ottoman Turkish officer, writer, poet, and playwright. He is mainly remembered for his contribution to the Turkish theater by writing, translating and adapting many plays.
Rif'at, Manastirli Mehmed see Manastirli Mehmed Rif‘at
Manastirli Mehmed Rif‘at (1851-1907). Ottoman Turkish officer, writer, poet, and playwright. He is mainly remembered for his contribution to the Turkish theater by writing, translating and adapting many plays.
Rif'at, Manastirli Mehmed see Manastirli Mehmed Rif‘at
Manat, al-
Manat, al-. Meccan female deity which was prominent before the advent of Islam. Al-Manat was one of the most ancient dieties of the Semitic pantheon. Like al-Lat and al-‘Uzza, al-Manat was worshipped by the pre-Islamic Arabs. The Prophet ordered it to be destroyed in 629.
Al-Manat was the ancient Arabian goddess of fate and destiny, and the personification of the evening star. Al-Manat ("fate") was one of the daughters of the pre-Islamic Allah. Her cult was situated between Medina and Mecca, where she was worshipped in the form of a black stone.
Al-Manāt was one of the three chief goddesses of Mecca. The pre-Islamic Arabs believed Manāt to be the goddess of fate. She was known by the cognate name Manawat to the Nabataeans of Petra, who equated her with the Graeco-Roman goddess Nemesis and she was considered the wife of Hubal. She is also mentioned in the Qur'an (Sura 53:20) that pre-Islamic Arabs believed as one of the daughters of Allāh along with Allāt and Al-‘Uzzá. According to Grunebaum in Classical Islam, the Arabic name of Manat is the linguistic counterpart of the Hellenistic Tyche, Dahr, fateful 'Time' who snatches men away and robs their existence of purpose and value. There are also connections with Chronos of Mithraism and Zurvan mythology.
The ruling tribes of al-Madinah, and other Arabs continued to worship Manat until the time of Muhammad.
Manawat see Manat, al-.
Manat, al-. Meccan female deity which was prominent before the advent of Islam. Al-Manat was one of the most ancient dieties of the Semitic pantheon. Like al-Lat and al-‘Uzza, al-Manat was worshipped by the pre-Islamic Arabs. The Prophet ordered it to be destroyed in 629.
Al-Manat was the ancient Arabian goddess of fate and destiny, and the personification of the evening star. Al-Manat ("fate") was one of the daughters of the pre-Islamic Allah. Her cult was situated between Medina and Mecca, where she was worshipped in the form of a black stone.
Al-Manāt was one of the three chief goddesses of Mecca. The pre-Islamic Arabs believed Manāt to be the goddess of fate. She was known by the cognate name Manawat to the Nabataeans of Petra, who equated her with the Graeco-Roman goddess Nemesis and she was considered the wife of Hubal. She is also mentioned in the Qur'an (Sura 53:20) that pre-Islamic Arabs believed as one of the daughters of Allāh along with Allāt and Al-‘Uzzá. According to Grunebaum in Classical Islam, the Arabic name of Manat is the linguistic counterpart of the Hellenistic Tyche, Dahr, fateful 'Time' who snatches men away and robs their existence of purpose and value. There are also connections with Chronos of Mithraism and Zurvan mythology.
The ruling tribes of al-Madinah, and other Arabs continued to worship Manat until the time of Muhammad.
Manawat see Manat, al-.
Ma‘n, Banu
Ma‘n, Banu (Banu Ma‘n). Arab family of chiefs of the Druze district of the Shuf, in the southern parts of Mount Lebanon. They enjoyed a special political prominence in Syria in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Banu Ma'n see Ma‘n, Banu
Ma‘n, Banu (Banu Ma‘n). Arab family of chiefs of the Druze district of the Shuf, in the southern parts of Mount Lebanon. They enjoyed a special political prominence in Syria in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Banu Ma'n see Ma‘n, Banu
Mandeans
Mandeans. Only surviving Gnostic religion, now with no more than 20,000 adherents, living in southern Iraq and southwestern Iran. Their main city is Nasiriyya. Mandeans are often called the Christians of Saint John, as he is held to be a very sacred person in, although not indispensable to, Mandean theology. Their name is Aramaic for “knowledge”, i.e., a translation from the Greek “gnosis”.
John the Baptist is central in Mandean teaching as a representative of their faith. Jesus is also central, but he plays a totally different role than in religions like Christianity and Islam, and is considered to be a false prophet, almost depicted as evil.
The central religious book to Mandeans is the Ginza, “Treasure”, containing mythological and theological moral and narrative tracts as well as hymns to be used in the mass for the dead.
There are many other, less central books, mainly written in East Aramaic, or Mandean as the language is also called. The content in these books varies, and many have magical texts and exorcisms. The collection of books was started in the time of Islam, which differs strongly between “book-religions” and other religions, and the Mandeans soon conformed to the Qur’anic concept of “Sabians” – the fourth “book-religion”, which can be translated to “baptizers.”
Baptism is central to the cult of Mandeans, and the Mandean sanctuary, Mandi, is a very simple and small house with a slanting roof. In front of it is a pool which is connected to a nearby river. The river is called “Jordan” and is used for baptism. The whole area is surrounded by a high fence or a wall. Baptisms are performed on Sundays, and every believer passes through this several times every year. Mandean baptism can be compared to the Christian communion, and the Muslim prayer, salat.
The other central ritual is the mass for the dead, with recitations from the Ginza. The soul is released from the body the third day after the moment of death. Meals are central in these rituals. Traditional Mandean graves are unmarked, as what is buried is only the dark body. However, in modern times, these customs have adjusted themselves to Muslim customs.
The ethics of Mandeans are not all too different from Jewish ethics and the laws of the Mandeans apply to all Mandeans, man or woman, leaders or not. Monogamy, dietary laws, ritual slaughtering and alms-giving are all central acts. According to the Mandeans, the cosmos is made up of two forces, the world of light, located to the north, and the world of darkness, located to the south. There is a ruler to both, and around the rulers smaller gods, called kings. Between the two forces there are hostilities, and it is in the fights between the two that the world is created. Man is created by the forces of darkness, but in every man, there is a “hidden Adam”, the soul, which has its origin in the world of light.
The religion’s origin is difficult to reconstruct, as there is so much unknown. The origin of Mandeanism could be a continuation of traditions from Mesopotamia, or Palestine, or both. The Mandean religion could be pre-Christian, or it could date to the first or second century of the Christian calendar. It could actually be John the Baptist who founded the sect, or it could be a continuation of the Jewish sect that to which John the Baptist belonged (a sect believed to be the Essenes).
Elements of the Mandean language indicate that the Mandean community is of Jewish origin. One of the texts of the Mandeans tells about a flight of a group called “Nasoreans,” from areas that probably were in today’s Jordan, to the Mesopotamian region, in the times of the Jewish wars following the destruction of Jerusalem in the year 70 of the Christian calendar. The Mandeans appear first to have gained a strong position in Babylon, but lost this with the appearance of the Sassanids in the year 226. In the time of Mani, there were contacts between Mani and the Mandeans. This contact resulted in a love-hate relationship.
With the arrival of Islam in Iraq in 636, the Mandeans were considered as the third “people of the book”, as the mysterious Sabians of the Qur’an. However, the Mandeans still faced a difficult relationship with Islam, and Muhammad is in their writings called the “demon Bizbat.” The Mandeans moved from the cities to the marshlands in Southern Iraq. It is first in modern times that the Mandeans moved back to the cities, especially Nasiriyya, Baghdad and Basra, where many of them work as gold and silver smiths, iron smiths and boat builders.
Mandeans are also found in medium sized towns between Baghdad and Basra. Some small groups of Mandeans even live in Iran, in cities like Ahvas and Shushtar in the southwestern corner of the country.
Today Mandean theology is seriously threatened, as recruiting new priests is difficult, and many offices are vacant. Mandean laymen are often highly educated, but know little of the old language and the scripts, and they attend ceremonies only seldom, as in weddings. Yet, there was a strong feeling of pride of their heritage, and they often claim to belong to a religion older than Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
Sabians see Mandeans.
Mandeans. Only surviving Gnostic religion, now with no more than 20,000 adherents, living in southern Iraq and southwestern Iran. Their main city is Nasiriyya. Mandeans are often called the Christians of Saint John, as he is held to be a very sacred person in, although not indispensable to, Mandean theology. Their name is Aramaic for “knowledge”, i.e., a translation from the Greek “gnosis”.
John the Baptist is central in Mandean teaching as a representative of their faith. Jesus is also central, but he plays a totally different role than in religions like Christianity and Islam, and is considered to be a false prophet, almost depicted as evil.
The central religious book to Mandeans is the Ginza, “Treasure”, containing mythological and theological moral and narrative tracts as well as hymns to be used in the mass for the dead.
There are many other, less central books, mainly written in East Aramaic, or Mandean as the language is also called. The content in these books varies, and many have magical texts and exorcisms. The collection of books was started in the time of Islam, which differs strongly between “book-religions” and other religions, and the Mandeans soon conformed to the Qur’anic concept of “Sabians” – the fourth “book-religion”, which can be translated to “baptizers.”
Baptism is central to the cult of Mandeans, and the Mandean sanctuary, Mandi, is a very simple and small house with a slanting roof. In front of it is a pool which is connected to a nearby river. The river is called “Jordan” and is used for baptism. The whole area is surrounded by a high fence or a wall. Baptisms are performed on Sundays, and every believer passes through this several times every year. Mandean baptism can be compared to the Christian communion, and the Muslim prayer, salat.
The other central ritual is the mass for the dead, with recitations from the Ginza. The soul is released from the body the third day after the moment of death. Meals are central in these rituals. Traditional Mandean graves are unmarked, as what is buried is only the dark body. However, in modern times, these customs have adjusted themselves to Muslim customs.
The ethics of Mandeans are not all too different from Jewish ethics and the laws of the Mandeans apply to all Mandeans, man or woman, leaders or not. Monogamy, dietary laws, ritual slaughtering and alms-giving are all central acts. According to the Mandeans, the cosmos is made up of two forces, the world of light, located to the north, and the world of darkness, located to the south. There is a ruler to both, and around the rulers smaller gods, called kings. Between the two forces there are hostilities, and it is in the fights between the two that the world is created. Man is created by the forces of darkness, but in every man, there is a “hidden Adam”, the soul, which has its origin in the world of light.
The religion’s origin is difficult to reconstruct, as there is so much unknown. The origin of Mandeanism could be a continuation of traditions from Mesopotamia, or Palestine, or both. The Mandean religion could be pre-Christian, or it could date to the first or second century of the Christian calendar. It could actually be John the Baptist who founded the sect, or it could be a continuation of the Jewish sect that to which John the Baptist belonged (a sect believed to be the Essenes).
Elements of the Mandean language indicate that the Mandean community is of Jewish origin. One of the texts of the Mandeans tells about a flight of a group called “Nasoreans,” from areas that probably were in today’s Jordan, to the Mesopotamian region, in the times of the Jewish wars following the destruction of Jerusalem in the year 70 of the Christian calendar. The Mandeans appear first to have gained a strong position in Babylon, but lost this with the appearance of the Sassanids in the year 226. In the time of Mani, there were contacts between Mani and the Mandeans. This contact resulted in a love-hate relationship.
With the arrival of Islam in Iraq in 636, the Mandeans were considered as the third “people of the book”, as the mysterious Sabians of the Qur’an. However, the Mandeans still faced a difficult relationship with Islam, and Muhammad is in their writings called the “demon Bizbat.” The Mandeans moved from the cities to the marshlands in Southern Iraq. It is first in modern times that the Mandeans moved back to the cities, especially Nasiriyya, Baghdad and Basra, where many of them work as gold and silver smiths, iron smiths and boat builders.
Mandeans are also found in medium sized towns between Baghdad and Basra. Some small groups of Mandeans even live in Iran, in cities like Ahvas and Shushtar in the southwestern corner of the country.
Today Mandean theology is seriously threatened, as recruiting new priests is difficult, and many offices are vacant. Mandean laymen are often highly educated, but know little of the old language and the scripts, and they attend ceremonies only seldom, as in weddings. Yet, there was a strong feeling of pride of their heritage, and they often claim to belong to a religion older than Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
Sabians see Mandeans.
Mandil, Banu
Mandil, Banu (Banu Mandil) (Awlad Mandil). Family of the Maghrawa, prominent in the twelfth through the fourteenth centuries in what is now western Algeria.
The Banu Mandi are derived from Khazrun bin Falful, the ancestor of the Banu Khazrun, who ruled Tripoli from 1001 to 1146. From the Banu Khazrun, several tribal branches were issued, but the main ones were the ones that ruled Tripoli and one that ruled Chelif. From the Banu Khazrun came the Abu Nas. The son of Abu Nas was Ibn Abu Nas who, in turn, was the father of Mandil I, the Almohad governor of Chelif around 1160 and the namesake founder of the Banu Mandil.
Awlad Mandil or Banu Madil were a family of the Maghrawa that ruled several regions in North Africa from c. 1160 to 1372.
His origin was Khazrun ben Falful ancestor of the Banu Khazrun, who ruled Tripoli from 1001 to 1146. From the Banu Khazrum issued several branches, but the main ones were: one that ruled Tripoli and one that ruled Chelif.
This last one was originated from Abu Nas; his son was Ibn Abu Nas; this has a son called Mandil I, Almohad governor of Chelif c. 1160. His son, Abd al-Rhaman ben Mandil was also governor of Chelif c. 1180.
Mandil II ben Abd al-Rahman was governor of Chelif, Uarsenis, Madiyya (Medea) and Mitidja c. 1190-1126. Was killed in 1126 by Yahya Ibn Ghaniya that occupied Mitidja. Mandil II has several sons:
* Al Abbas ben Mandil, governor of Chelif 1226-1249, that lost Medea and Uersenis against the Banu Tudjin but received Mliana, Tenes, Brechk and Cherchell from the Hafsids, as vassal.
* Muhammad I ben Mandil, heir of his brother 1249-1263 (killed by Aid)
* Aid ben Mandil, governor of Uersenis and Madiyya 1263-1269
* Umar ben Mandil, emir of Maghrawa 1269-1278 (installed by the Abdalwadid dynasty)
* Thabit ben Mandil, emir of Maghrawa 1278-1294 sold Tlemcen to Abdalwadid waiting obtain Mliana in exchange.
Muhammad ben Thabit was emir from 1294 to 1295 in absence of his father. The Abdalwadid dynasty occupied their lands in 1295. Rashid ben Thabit ben Mandil asked for help to Marinid dynasty of Morocco (1295), but the emirate was assigned to Umar ben Waghram ben Mandil (c. 1299-13002). Rashid revolted in Mazuna and defeated Umar ben Waghram, ruling the Maghrawa 1302-1310, allied to Hafsid dynasty of Bugia (Bidjaya) after 1307. In 1310 Rashid died, and his son Ali ben Rashid was deposed by the Hafsid dynasty, migrating to Morocco with his followers. In 1342, after a defeat of Hafsid against Marinids, he took Mliana, Tenes, Brechk and Cherchel, reestablishing the emirate of Maghrawa, but defeated by the Addalwadid (1351/1352) he committed suicide. His son Hamza ben Ali moved to Morocco. He come back to the Chelif and revolted with the help of the Maghrawa (1371) against Marinids, but was defeated in 1371, and fled to the lands of the tribe of Banu Husayn (that were revolted against Marinids with the help of Abdalwadids) and took the title of emir of Titteri. Defeated in Timzught was captured and executed (1372).
Banu Mandil see Mandil, Banu
Awlad Mandil see Mandil, Banu
Mandil, Banu (Banu Mandil) (Awlad Mandil). Family of the Maghrawa, prominent in the twelfth through the fourteenth centuries in what is now western Algeria.
The Banu Mandi are derived from Khazrun bin Falful, the ancestor of the Banu Khazrun, who ruled Tripoli from 1001 to 1146. From the Banu Khazrun, several tribal branches were issued, but the main ones were the ones that ruled Tripoli and one that ruled Chelif. From the Banu Khazrun came the Abu Nas. The son of Abu Nas was Ibn Abu Nas who, in turn, was the father of Mandil I, the Almohad governor of Chelif around 1160 and the namesake founder of the Banu Mandil.
Awlad Mandil or Banu Madil were a family of the Maghrawa that ruled several regions in North Africa from c. 1160 to 1372.
His origin was Khazrun ben Falful ancestor of the Banu Khazrun, who ruled Tripoli from 1001 to 1146. From the Banu Khazrum issued several branches, but the main ones were: one that ruled Tripoli and one that ruled Chelif.
This last one was originated from Abu Nas; his son was Ibn Abu Nas; this has a son called Mandil I, Almohad governor of Chelif c. 1160. His son, Abd al-Rhaman ben Mandil was also governor of Chelif c. 1180.
Mandil II ben Abd al-Rahman was governor of Chelif, Uarsenis, Madiyya (Medea) and Mitidja c. 1190-1126. Was killed in 1126 by Yahya Ibn Ghaniya that occupied Mitidja. Mandil II has several sons:
* Al Abbas ben Mandil, governor of Chelif 1226-1249, that lost Medea and Uersenis against the Banu Tudjin but received Mliana, Tenes, Brechk and Cherchell from the Hafsids, as vassal.
* Muhammad I ben Mandil, heir of his brother 1249-1263 (killed by Aid)
* Aid ben Mandil, governor of Uersenis and Madiyya 1263-1269
* Umar ben Mandil, emir of Maghrawa 1269-1278 (installed by the Abdalwadid dynasty)
* Thabit ben Mandil, emir of Maghrawa 1278-1294 sold Tlemcen to Abdalwadid waiting obtain Mliana in exchange.
Muhammad ben Thabit was emir from 1294 to 1295 in absence of his father. The Abdalwadid dynasty occupied their lands in 1295. Rashid ben Thabit ben Mandil asked for help to Marinid dynasty of Morocco (1295), but the emirate was assigned to Umar ben Waghram ben Mandil (c. 1299-13002). Rashid revolted in Mazuna and defeated Umar ben Waghram, ruling the Maghrawa 1302-1310, allied to Hafsid dynasty of Bugia (Bidjaya) after 1307. In 1310 Rashid died, and his son Ali ben Rashid was deposed by the Hafsid dynasty, migrating to Morocco with his followers. In 1342, after a defeat of Hafsid against Marinids, he took Mliana, Tenes, Brechk and Cherchel, reestablishing the emirate of Maghrawa, but defeated by the Addalwadid (1351/1352) he committed suicide. His son Hamza ben Ali moved to Morocco. He come back to the Chelif and revolted with the help of the Maghrawa (1371) against Marinids, but was defeated in 1371, and fled to the lands of the tribe of Banu Husayn (that were revolted against Marinids with the help of Abdalwadids) and took the title of emir of Titteri. Defeated in Timzught was captured and executed (1372).
Banu Mandil see Mandil, Banu
Awlad Mandil see Mandil, Banu
Mandingo
Mandingo. See Mandinka.
Mandingo. See Mandinka.
Manding speaking peoples
Manding speaking peoples. Manding speakers make up one of the largest groups of West African peoples speaking closely related forms of the same language. Mostly rural, agricultural peoples, those who speak the Manding languages inhabit the western savannas in a broad area around a geographical and cultural center on the upper Niger River in eastern Guinea and southwestern Mali. Although Manding speakers share a strong cultural identity in addition to their often mutually intelligible languages, they have no common name for themselves or their languages. The word “Manding,” which scholars in increasing numbers have been using in the past decade to refer to the group of languages, comes from the name “Mandingue,” which French colonial officials used when referring to all speakers of the languages. The French took Mandingue from Manden or Mande, the name for the traditional heartland on the upper Niger to which most Manding speakers look for their common heritage.
The Manding languages are a fairly mutually intelligible group of dialects or languages in West Africa, belonging to the Mande languages. Their best known members are Bambara (the most widely spoken language in Mali), Mandinka (the main language of Gambia), Maninka (or Malinke, a major language of Guinea), and Dioula (Dyula or Jula) (an important language of the northern Cote d'Ivoire and western Burkina Faso). Smaller languages belonging to the group include Khassonke or Xaasongaxango.
In addition to language, what gives Manding speakers a sense of unity is their knowledge of having common origins and a common cultural heritage. At the root of this heritage is the once-great Mali Empire. A small state of Mali – al-Bakri, the Arab geographer of the mid-eleventh century, called it “Malil” – founded by several Mandinka clans and centered on the upper Niger, existed from early in the second millennium, but its period of expansion and greatness came later. In the thirteenth century, the “lion king,” Sundiata, unified the Mandinka, conquered others and took advantage of the lucrative trade passing between the Sahara Desert and the goldfields of the more southerly forests to make Mali strong and its leading families wealthy.
Foreign merchants from across the Sahara came to Mali’s leading cities, and with them came Islam. The religion blended with local religious practices and maintained an importance, particularly among the Mandinka and Dyula, down through the centuries. Mali’s famous ruler, Mansa Musa, provided evidence of Islam’s influence when in 1324 he made a pilgrimage to Mecca. In Cairo, he spent or gave away so much gold that he disrupted the monetary standard of the eastern Mediterranean. Evidence of Islam’s penetration among Manding speakers today is reflected in the fact that over ninety percent of Senegambia Mandinka and Ivory Coast – Guinea Dyula are Muslims. Such percentages decline considerably among the Bambara and some fringe groups.
Manding speaking peoples. Manding speakers make up one of the largest groups of West African peoples speaking closely related forms of the same language. Mostly rural, agricultural peoples, those who speak the Manding languages inhabit the western savannas in a broad area around a geographical and cultural center on the upper Niger River in eastern Guinea and southwestern Mali. Although Manding speakers share a strong cultural identity in addition to their often mutually intelligible languages, they have no common name for themselves or their languages. The word “Manding,” which scholars in increasing numbers have been using in the past decade to refer to the group of languages, comes from the name “Mandingue,” which French colonial officials used when referring to all speakers of the languages. The French took Mandingue from Manden or Mande, the name for the traditional heartland on the upper Niger to which most Manding speakers look for their common heritage.
The Manding languages are a fairly mutually intelligible group of dialects or languages in West Africa, belonging to the Mande languages. Their best known members are Bambara (the most widely spoken language in Mali), Mandinka (the main language of Gambia), Maninka (or Malinke, a major language of Guinea), and Dioula (Dyula or Jula) (an important language of the northern Cote d'Ivoire and western Burkina Faso). Smaller languages belonging to the group include Khassonke or Xaasongaxango.
In addition to language, what gives Manding speakers a sense of unity is their knowledge of having common origins and a common cultural heritage. At the root of this heritage is the once-great Mali Empire. A small state of Mali – al-Bakri, the Arab geographer of the mid-eleventh century, called it “Malil” – founded by several Mandinka clans and centered on the upper Niger, existed from early in the second millennium, but its period of expansion and greatness came later. In the thirteenth century, the “lion king,” Sundiata, unified the Mandinka, conquered others and took advantage of the lucrative trade passing between the Sahara Desert and the goldfields of the more southerly forests to make Mali strong and its leading families wealthy.
Foreign merchants from across the Sahara came to Mali’s leading cities, and with them came Islam. The religion blended with local religious practices and maintained an importance, particularly among the Mandinka and Dyula, down through the centuries. Mali’s famous ruler, Mansa Musa, provided evidence of Islam’s influence when in 1324 he made a pilgrimage to Mecca. In Cairo, he spent or gave away so much gold that he disrupted the monetary standard of the eastern Mediterranean. Evidence of Islam’s penetration among Manding speakers today is reflected in the fact that over ninety percent of Senegambia Mandinka and Ivory Coast – Guinea Dyula are Muslims. Such percentages decline considerably among the Bambara and some fringe groups.
Mandinka
Mandinka (Mandingo). Although they collectively look to “Manden,” the small region near where the Niger River crosses the Guinea-Mali border, as their cultural homeland, the Mandinka are widely dispersed throughout a considerable portion of West Africa’s westernmost savannas. They inhabit eastern Guinea, extreme southern Mali, northwestern Ivory Coast, eastern Guinea-Bissau, southeastern Senegal and most of Gambia. There are small groups of Mandinka in eastern Sierra Leone and Liberia as well. Sometimes called Malinke (as they are known to the Fulani and many French-speaking Africans), Maninka, Mandinko or Mandingo, they are also often identified locally by place of origin (a Mandinka from Kaabu in Guinea-Bissau is called a Kaabunka, for instance). As with most groups where ethnic mixture has been extreme, it is not easy to determine just who is and who is not a Mandinka.
The location and distribution of Mandinka today is a result of movements of people and cultural diffusion over the last millennium and especially during the period of greatness of the Mali Empire from the thirteenth to the fifteenth centuries. For social, political and economic reasons, and also because long periods of drought seem to have made support of a large population difficult in the more central portions of Mali, Manding speakers gradually spread from the upper Niger River homelands into their present locations. The Mandinka movement was primarily west and southwest. Where they moved, they mixed with local peoples, while keeping the essence of Mandinka culture, so that Mandinka today – especially those on the periphery of the major Mandinka culture area – have a heritage of mixed ethnicity.
Islam has been penetrating Mandinka society since the days of Mali or perhaps before. Muslim scribes and clerics played important roles in the affairs of the Malian court for many years. However, conversion of an individual ruler and influence in the centers of Mandinka political power did not mean conversion of most Mandinka. Into the eighteenth century, there were pockets of Muslim clericalism within small Mandinka states, but the majorities of people in these states practiced pre-Islamic religions that involved worship of spirits of the land upon which they live. Muslim clerics were valued at court for their literacy and for their abilities to make protective amulets. Otherwise, Islam was a minority religion.
It was largely
a series of Islamic jihads among the Mandinka that led to their general conversion. Catalysts for these movements of religious revival were members of a Fulani clan, the Torodbe, many of whom lived among the larger Mandinka population.
The Mandinka are also known as the Mandingo and were the people who formed the Mandingo Kingdom. The Mandingo Kingdom was an ancient African state centered around the Upper Niger Valley. It embraced Islam between 1230 and 1255 and flourished during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries when it extended to the Slave Coast on the Gulf of Guinea. Allied with the Portuguese in 1530, it became a source of black slaves for the Brazilian plantations. It began to decline in the seventeenth century and disintegrated as an empire in 1670. Later it was reduced to a small province whose ruler was a French vassal until modern times. Mandingo slaves, in the colonial West Indies and Brazil, were Sudanese, non-black slaves who converted to Islam and were brought mainly from the Mandingo Kingdom. Of Arabic and Tuareg ancestry, they were known for their tendency toward group suicide, which they considered a means of freeing themselves from a cruel servitude and of escaping to a better world. In Bahia, Brazil, former Mandingo slaves conducted trade between their city and African towns such as Lagos and Ardra. Indeed, a significant part of the African-Americans in North America descended from Mandinka people.
Mandinka in Guinea felt the effects of a Fulani-led jihad in the first half of the eighteenth century, and most Mandinka were influenced much more directly by Al-Hajj Umar Tall’s great movement of Islamic revival in Guinea and eastern Senegal in the 1850s. Mandinka in Guinea-Bissau were converted forcefully by the Fulani of Futa Jalon in Guinea in the 1860s. A series of wars, led by Muslim clerics of varying religious fervor, brought Islam to many Mandinka in Gambia in the last half of the nineteenth century. Most of those who did not convert as a result of jihad movements came to accept Islam because clerics – especially Jahanka – spread the religion in the early decades of the colonial period. Today the degree of Islamization among the Mandinka varies from about ninety percent in Senegambia to less than 50 percent in certain parts of Guinea and Sierra Leone.
Mandingo see Mandinka
Malinke see Mandinka
Maninka see Mandinka
Mandinko see Mandinka
The Mandinka are also known as the Mandingo and were the people who formed the Mandingo Kingdom. The Mandingo Kingdom was an ancient African state centered around the Upper Niger Valley. It embraced Islam between 1230 and 1255 and flourished during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries when it extended to the Slave Coast on the Gulf of Guinea. Allied with the Portuguese in 1530, it became a source of black slaves for the Brazilian plantations. It began to decline in the seventeenth century and disintegrated as an empire in 1670. Later it was reduced to a small province whose ruler was a French vassal until modern times. Mandingo slaves, in the colonial West Indies and Brazil, were Sudanese, non-black slaves who converted to Islam and were brought mainly from the Mandingo Kingdom. Of Arabic and Tuareg ancestry, they were known for their tendency toward group suicide, which they considered a means of freeing themselves from a cruel servitude and of escaping to a better world. In Bahia, Brazil, former Mandingo slaves conducted trade between their city and African towns such as Lagos and Ardra. Indeed, a significant part of the African-Americans in North America descended from Mandinka people.
Mandinka in Guinea felt the effects of a Fulani-led jihad in the first half of the eighteenth century, and most Mandinka were influenced much more directly by Al-Hajj Umar Tall’s great movement of Islamic revival in Guinea and eastern Senegal in the 1850s. Mandinka in Guinea-Bissau were converted forcefully by the Fulani of Futa Jalon in Guinea in the 1860s. A series of wars, led by Muslim clerics of varying religious fervor, brought Islam to many Mandinka in Gambia in the last half of the nineteenth century. Most of those who did not convert as a result of jihad movements came to accept Islam because clerics – especially Jahanka – spread the religion in the early decades of the colonial period. Today the degree of Islamization among the Mandinka varies from about ninety percent in Senegambia to less than 50 percent in certain parts of Guinea and Sierra Leone.
Mandingo see Mandinka
Malinke see Mandinka
Maninka see Mandinka
Mandinko see Mandinka
Mandur, Muhammad
Mandur, Muhammad (1907-1965). Egyptian journalist, translator and literary critic. In intellectual vigor and critical insight he surpassed his teacher Taha Husayn, but did not possess the latter’s versatility nor did he acquire the latter’s fame.
Muhammad Mandur see Mandur, Muhammad
Mandur, Muhammad (1907-1965). Egyptian journalist, translator and literary critic. In intellectual vigor and critical insight he surpassed his teacher Taha Husayn, but did not possess the latter’s versatility nor did he acquire the latter’s fame.
Muhammad Mandur see Mandur, Muhammad
Mangits
Mangits (Manghits) (Manghuds) (Mangghuds) (Mangudais) (Nogais) . Uzbek dynasty of the khans of Bukhara (r.1753 -1921). A tribe of the Nogal federation, originally settlers in the territory of the Golden Horde, the Mangits later moved to Transoxiana with the Shaybanids at the start of the sixteenth century. Their rise came under the related Jalayirids. Mir Masum Shah (r. 1785-1800), regent in Bukhara from 1770, deposed the last Jalayirids and seized power for himself. Following unrest during the early days, Mangit rule stabilized under Nasrullah Bahadur (r. 1826-1860). In 1873, under Sayid Muzaffar (r. 1860-1885), Russia occupied their territory. The last khans were ousted by the Soviets in 1921.
The Manġits (Manghuds) originally were a Mongol tribe of the Urud-Manghud federation. They established the Nogai Horde in the 14th century of the Christian calendar. The clan name was used for Mongol vanguards as well. Their descendants live in several regions of the former Mongol Empire.
According to ancient sources, the Manghuds were derived from the Kiyad Mongols. The Manghuds and the Uruuds were war-like people from the Mongolian plateau. Some notable Manghud warriors supported Genghis Khan (1162–1227) while a body of them resisted his rise to power. When the Mongol Empire began to expand westward, the Manghud people were spread westward into the Middle East along with many other Mongol tribes. In the Golden Horde, the Manghuds supported Nogai (d.1299) and established their own semi-independent horde from the khans in Sarai. After Nogai's death in 1299, the majority of Manghud warriors joined the service of Tokhta Khan. Their chieftain Edigu, the powerful warlord of the Golden Horde, officially founded Nogai Horde or Manghit Horde in the 14th-15th century. Turkish historians would record their tribal name as Manghit or Nogais, as opposed to the original Manghud or Mangudai.
The mangudai or mungadai were military units of the Mongol Empire, but sources differ wildly in their descriptions. Some sources state that references to Mongol light cavalry "suicide troops" date back to the 13th century. However, other sources assert that Mangudai was the name of a 13th-century Mongol warlord who created an arduous selection process to test potential leaders. The term is used by elements of the United States Army as a name for multi-day tests of Soldiers' endurance and warrior skills.
The Nogais protected the northern borders of Astrakhan and Crimean khanates, and through organized raids to the northern steppes prevented Russian and Lithuanian settlements. Many Nogais joined the service of Crimean khan. Settling there, they contributed to the formation of the Crimean Tatars. However, Nogais were not only good soldiers, they also had considerable agricultural skills. Their basic social unit was the semi-autonomous 'ulus' or band. But Nogais were proud of their nomadic traditions and independence, which they considered superior to settled agricultural life.
At the beginning of the 17th century, the Kalmyks or the Oirats, migrated from the steppes of southern Siberia on the banks of the Irtysh River to the Lower Volga region about 1630. The Kalmyks expelled the Nogais who fled to the plains of northern Caucasus and to the Crimea under the Ottoman Empire.
In the 1700s the basins of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya passed under the control of three Uzbek khanates claiming legitimacy in their descent from Genghis Khan. These were, from west to east, the Qunggirats based on Khiva in Khwārezm (1717–1920), the Mangits in Bukhara (1753–1920), and the Mings in Kokand (Qǔqon; c. 1710–1876).
The Manghit dynasty was founded by an Uzbek family that ruled the Emirate of Bukhara from 1785 to 1920. Manġit power in the Khanate of Bukhara began to grow in the early 1700s, due to the emirs position as ataliq to the khan. The family effectively came to power after Nader Shah's death in 1747, and the assassination of the ruling Abulfayz Khan and his young son Abdalmumin by the ataliq Muhammad Rahim Bi. From the 1750s to the 1780s, the Manġits ruled behind the scenes, until the emir Shah Murad declared himself the open ruler, establishing the Emirate of Bukhara. The last emir of the dynasty, Mohammed Alim Khan, was ousted by the Russian Red Army in September, 1920, and fled to Afghanistan. The dynasty descends from the great Mongol khans of the Golden Horde.
The Manghit dynasty issued coins from 1787 up until the Soviet takeover.
A list of Emirs of the Manghit Dynasty (1785–1920) reads as follows:
* Shah Murad Khan (1785 - 13 December 1799)
* Haydar Tura Khan (13 December 1799 - January 1826)
* Husayn Khan (January - March 1826)
* 'Umar Khan (March - 22 March 1826)
* Nasr Allah Bahadur Khan (22 March 1826 - 21 September 1860)
* Muzaffar ad-Din Bahadur Khan (23 September 1860 - 12 November 1885)
* 'Abd al-Ahad Khan (12 November 1885 - 3 January 1911)
* Muhammed Alim Khan (3 January 1911 - 30 August 1920)
Manghuds see Mangits
Mangghuds see Mangits
Mangudais see Mangits
Manghits see Mangits
Nogais see Mangits
Mangits (Manghits) (Manghuds) (Mangghuds) (Mangudais) (Nogais) . Uzbek dynasty of the khans of Bukhara (r.1753 -1921). A tribe of the Nogal federation, originally settlers in the territory of the Golden Horde, the Mangits later moved to Transoxiana with the Shaybanids at the start of the sixteenth century. Their rise came under the related Jalayirids. Mir Masum Shah (r. 1785-1800), regent in Bukhara from 1770, deposed the last Jalayirids and seized power for himself. Following unrest during the early days, Mangit rule stabilized under Nasrullah Bahadur (r. 1826-1860). In 1873, under Sayid Muzaffar (r. 1860-1885), Russia occupied their territory. The last khans were ousted by the Soviets in 1921.
The Manġits (Manghuds) originally were a Mongol tribe of the Urud-Manghud federation. They established the Nogai Horde in the 14th century of the Christian calendar. The clan name was used for Mongol vanguards as well. Their descendants live in several regions of the former Mongol Empire.
According to ancient sources, the Manghuds were derived from the Kiyad Mongols. The Manghuds and the Uruuds were war-like people from the Mongolian plateau. Some notable Manghud warriors supported Genghis Khan (1162–1227) while a body of them resisted his rise to power. When the Mongol Empire began to expand westward, the Manghud people were spread westward into the Middle East along with many other Mongol tribes. In the Golden Horde, the Manghuds supported Nogai (d.1299) and established their own semi-independent horde from the khans in Sarai. After Nogai's death in 1299, the majority of Manghud warriors joined the service of Tokhta Khan. Their chieftain Edigu, the powerful warlord of the Golden Horde, officially founded Nogai Horde or Manghit Horde in the 14th-15th century. Turkish historians would record their tribal name as Manghit or Nogais, as opposed to the original Manghud or Mangudai.
The mangudai or mungadai were military units of the Mongol Empire, but sources differ wildly in their descriptions. Some sources state that references to Mongol light cavalry "suicide troops" date back to the 13th century. However, other sources assert that Mangudai was the name of a 13th-century Mongol warlord who created an arduous selection process to test potential leaders. The term is used by elements of the United States Army as a name for multi-day tests of Soldiers' endurance and warrior skills.
The Nogais protected the northern borders of Astrakhan and Crimean khanates, and through organized raids to the northern steppes prevented Russian and Lithuanian settlements. Many Nogais joined the service of Crimean khan. Settling there, they contributed to the formation of the Crimean Tatars. However, Nogais were not only good soldiers, they also had considerable agricultural skills. Their basic social unit was the semi-autonomous 'ulus' or band. But Nogais were proud of their nomadic traditions and independence, which they considered superior to settled agricultural life.
At the beginning of the 17th century, the Kalmyks or the Oirats, migrated from the steppes of southern Siberia on the banks of the Irtysh River to the Lower Volga region about 1630. The Kalmyks expelled the Nogais who fled to the plains of northern Caucasus and to the Crimea under the Ottoman Empire.
In the 1700s the basins of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya passed under the control of three Uzbek khanates claiming legitimacy in their descent from Genghis Khan. These were, from west to east, the Qunggirats based on Khiva in Khwārezm (1717–1920), the Mangits in Bukhara (1753–1920), and the Mings in Kokand (Qǔqon; c. 1710–1876).
The Manghit dynasty was founded by an Uzbek family that ruled the Emirate of Bukhara from 1785 to 1920. Manġit power in the Khanate of Bukhara began to grow in the early 1700s, due to the emirs position as ataliq to the khan. The family effectively came to power after Nader Shah's death in 1747, and the assassination of the ruling Abulfayz Khan and his young son Abdalmumin by the ataliq Muhammad Rahim Bi. From the 1750s to the 1780s, the Manġits ruled behind the scenes, until the emir Shah Murad declared himself the open ruler, establishing the Emirate of Bukhara. The last emir of the dynasty, Mohammed Alim Khan, was ousted by the Russian Red Army in September, 1920, and fled to Afghanistan. The dynasty descends from the great Mongol khans of the Golden Horde.
The Manghit dynasty issued coins from 1787 up until the Soviet takeover.
A list of Emirs of the Manghit Dynasty (1785–1920) reads as follows:
* Shah Murad Khan (1785 - 13 December 1799)
* Haydar Tura Khan (13 December 1799 - January 1826)
* Husayn Khan (January - March 1826)
* 'Umar Khan (March - 22 March 1826)
* Nasr Allah Bahadur Khan (22 March 1826 - 21 September 1860)
* Muzaffar ad-Din Bahadur Khan (23 September 1860 - 12 November 1885)
* 'Abd al-Ahad Khan (12 November 1885 - 3 January 1911)
* Muhammed Alim Khan (3 January 1911 - 30 August 1920)
Manghuds see Mangits
Mangghuds see Mangits
Mangudais see Mangits
Manghits see Mangits
Nogais see Mangits
Mangkubumi
Mangkubumi (Hamengkubuwana I) (Hamengkubuwono I) (Raden Mas Sujana) (d.1792). Founder (1755-1756) of the court of Yogyakarta and the greatest monarch of Java’s Mataram dynasty in the eighteenth century. Sultan Mangkubumi rebelled in 1746 and was proclaimed king by his followers in 1749. In 1755, he agreed with the Dutch East India Company (VOC) -- which supported King Pakubuwana III (r.1749-1788) of Surakarta but could not defeat Mangkubumi -- to partition the kingdom between Pakubuwana III and himself. Thereafter he proved himself to be a firm and able monarch who made Yogyakarta the greatest military power of Central Java in the last half of the eighteenth century.
Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono I, born Raden Mas Sujana, was the first sultan of Yogyakarta. Sujana, the Crown Prince, was known as Prince Mangkubumi prior to becoming sultan of Yogyakarta Sultanate. As a son of Sultan Sunan Prabu of Mataram, and brother of Prince Heir Apparent Pakubuwono II of Surakarta, a dispute arose concerning succession to the Mataram throne. Prince Mangkubumi challenged his brother Pakubuwono II who was aided by the Dutch East India Company seeking a more pliant VOC puppet as Central Javanese king. The war that eventuated was known as the Third Succession War in Mataram.
During the war, Prince Mangkubumi was aided by brilliant legendary army commander-in-chief Raden Mas Said who fought in a highly effective strategic manner. Mangkubumi won decisive battles at Grobogan, Demak and Bogowonto River. During the War in 1749, Pakubuwono II died and the Crown Prince Mangkubumi became Sultan. At the Battle of Bogowonto River in 1751, the Dutch Army under De Clerck was destroyed by Mangkubumi's forces. Raden Mas Said revolted in dispute with Prince Mangkubumi. The Succession War and revolt of Raden Mas Said ended with the signing of the Gyanti Treaty of 1755.
According to the Giyanti Treaty, Mataram was divided into two kingdoms, Surakarta with Pakubuwono III as ruler, and Yogyakarta Sultanate with Prince Mangkubumi as sultan with the title Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono I Senopati Ing Ngalaga Sayidin Panatagama Kalifatulah. Yogyakarta became capital and a new palace was built.
Sultan Hamengkubuwono died in 1792 and was interred in the Royal cemetery of Astana Kasuwargan in Imogiri. He was succeeded by Hamengkubuwono II, his son.
Hamengkubuwana I see Mangkubumi
Hamengkubuwono I see Mangkubumi
Raden Mas Sujana see Mangkubumi
Sujana, Raden Mas see Mangkubumi
Mangkubumi (Hamengkubuwana I) (Hamengkubuwono I) (Raden Mas Sujana) (d.1792). Founder (1755-1756) of the court of Yogyakarta and the greatest monarch of Java’s Mataram dynasty in the eighteenth century. Sultan Mangkubumi rebelled in 1746 and was proclaimed king by his followers in 1749. In 1755, he agreed with the Dutch East India Company (VOC) -- which supported King Pakubuwana III (r.1749-1788) of Surakarta but could not defeat Mangkubumi -- to partition the kingdom between Pakubuwana III and himself. Thereafter he proved himself to be a firm and able monarch who made Yogyakarta the greatest military power of Central Java in the last half of the eighteenth century.
Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono I, born Raden Mas Sujana, was the first sultan of Yogyakarta. Sujana, the Crown Prince, was known as Prince Mangkubumi prior to becoming sultan of Yogyakarta Sultanate. As a son of Sultan Sunan Prabu of Mataram, and brother of Prince Heir Apparent Pakubuwono II of Surakarta, a dispute arose concerning succession to the Mataram throne. Prince Mangkubumi challenged his brother Pakubuwono II who was aided by the Dutch East India Company seeking a more pliant VOC puppet as Central Javanese king. The war that eventuated was known as the Third Succession War in Mataram.
During the war, Prince Mangkubumi was aided by brilliant legendary army commander-in-chief Raden Mas Said who fought in a highly effective strategic manner. Mangkubumi won decisive battles at Grobogan, Demak and Bogowonto River. During the War in 1749, Pakubuwono II died and the Crown Prince Mangkubumi became Sultan. At the Battle of Bogowonto River in 1751, the Dutch Army under De Clerck was destroyed by Mangkubumi's forces. Raden Mas Said revolted in dispute with Prince Mangkubumi. The Succession War and revolt of Raden Mas Said ended with the signing of the Gyanti Treaty of 1755.
According to the Giyanti Treaty, Mataram was divided into two kingdoms, Surakarta with Pakubuwono III as ruler, and Yogyakarta Sultanate with Prince Mangkubumi as sultan with the title Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono I Senopati Ing Ngalaga Sayidin Panatagama Kalifatulah. Yogyakarta became capital and a new palace was built.
Sultan Hamengkubuwono died in 1792 and was interred in the Royal cemetery of Astana Kasuwargan in Imogiri. He was succeeded by Hamengkubuwono II, his son.
Hamengkubuwana I see Mangkubumi
Hamengkubuwono I see Mangkubumi
Raden Mas Sujana see Mangkubumi
Sujana, Raden Mas see Mangkubumi
Mangkunagaran
Mangkunagaran. Minor court established by the Surakarta prince Raden Mas Said (later Adipati Aria Mangkunagara) in 1757 after fighting against the combined forces of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) and his erstwhile ally Mangkubumi (Sultan Hamengkubuwana I of Yogyakarta, r. 1749-1792). During the end of Mangkunagara’s reign and that of his successor Mangkunagara II (1796-1835), the fortunes of the Mangkunagaran court became ever more closely allied with that of the Dutch government, especially after the reorganization of the Mangkunagaran forces along European lines by Herman Daendels. The cultural style of the court synthesized European and Javanese elements (particularly in military affairs), and the energetic entrepreneurial policies of Mangkunagara II and Mangkunagara IV (r. 1853-1881) laid the foundations of a thriving Mangkunagaran estate sector. The fourth Mangkunagara also achieved renown as a litterateur (Javanese, pujangga) and philosopher of distinction. In 1896, the Mangkunagaran became fully independent from the senior Surakarta court (Kasunanan) but lost most of its lands and income after Indonesian independence in 1945 because of its equivocal attitude to the nationalists.
A list of Mangkunegaran rulers reads as follows:
* Mangkunegara I (Raden Mas Said), 1757- 1796
* Mangkunegara II, 1796 - 1835
* Mangkunegara III, 1835 - 1853
* Mangkunegara IV, 1853 - 1881
* Mangkunegara V, 1881 - 1896
* Mangkunegara VI, 1896 - 1916
* Mangkunegara VII, 1916 -1944
* Mangkunegara VIII, 1944 - 1987
* Mangkunegara IX, 1987 -
Mangkunagaran. Minor court established by the Surakarta prince Raden Mas Said (later Adipati Aria Mangkunagara) in 1757 after fighting against the combined forces of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) and his erstwhile ally Mangkubumi (Sultan Hamengkubuwana I of Yogyakarta, r. 1749-1792). During the end of Mangkunagara’s reign and that of his successor Mangkunagara II (1796-1835), the fortunes of the Mangkunagaran court became ever more closely allied with that of the Dutch government, especially after the reorganization of the Mangkunagaran forces along European lines by Herman Daendels. The cultural style of the court synthesized European and Javanese elements (particularly in military affairs), and the energetic entrepreneurial policies of Mangkunagara II and Mangkunagara IV (r. 1853-1881) laid the foundations of a thriving Mangkunagaran estate sector. The fourth Mangkunagara also achieved renown as a litterateur (Javanese, pujangga) and philosopher of distinction. In 1896, the Mangkunagaran became fully independent from the senior Surakarta court (Kasunanan) but lost most of its lands and income after Indonesian independence in 1945 because of its equivocal attitude to the nationalists.
A list of Mangkunegaran rulers reads as follows:
* Mangkunegara I (Raden Mas Said), 1757- 1796
* Mangkunegara II, 1796 - 1835
* Mangkunegara III, 1835 - 1853
* Mangkunegara IV, 1853 - 1881
* Mangkunegara V, 1881 - 1896
* Mangkunegara VI, 1896 - 1916
* Mangkunegara VII, 1916 -1944
* Mangkunegara VIII, 1944 - 1987
* Mangkunegara IX, 1987 -
Mangu-Timur
Mangu-Timur (Mongke-Temur) (Mengu-Timur) (d. 1280). Khan of the Golden Horde (r.1267-1280). Unlike his predecessor Berke, he apparently did not embrace Islam.
Möngke Temür (Mengu-Timur) was the son of Toqoqan Khan and Buka Ujin of Oirat and the grandson of Batu Khan. He was a khan of the Golden Horde in 1266-1280.
His name literally means "Eternal Iron" in the Mongolian language.
During his reign, the Mongols together with their allied Russian princes undertook military campaigns against Byzantium (c. 1269-1271), Lithuania (1275), and Alans in Caucasus (1277). The very first yarlyk (license) found by historians was written on behalf of Mengu-Timur and contained information on the release of the Russian Orthodox Church from paying tribute to the Golden Horde. However, Mengu-Timur was a shamanist. During the reign of Mengu-Timur, the Genoese traders purchased Caffa from the Mongols. But those Italian merchants paid taxes to Mongol khans and sometimes to Nogai.
Both German crusaders and Lithuanians endangered the safety of Russian lands. In 1268, Mengu-Timur sent a Tatar-Mongol force to Novgorod, and forced Livonian Knights to withdraw. In 1274 Smolensk, the last of Russian principalities, became subject to Mengu-Timür khan of the Golden Horde. The Khan also dispatched his army along with Russian princes to Lithuania at the request of the Duke Lev of Galicia-Volhynia in 1275.
In 1277, Mengu-Timur ended the long-duration siege of the Alani city Dyadkov with the assistance of his Russian vassals and crushed the rebellion of Bulgars in Kazan.
Mengu-Timur
was originally nominated by Kublai Khan. But he sided with Kaidu who was a competitor of the latter. Kublai only stopped him to invade Ilkhanate with a large force. The Golden Horde helped Kaidu put down the force of the Chagatai Khanate. In 1265, Kaidu was defeated by the Chagatai army under Baraq. The khan of Jochid Ulus sent 30,000 armed-men headed by his uncle Berkhchir to support Kaidu's force. Their victory over the Chagatai army forced Baraq to initiate a peace treaty with them. Together they formed an alliance and demarcated borders of their realms in Talas.
Though Mengu-Timur and Kaidu urged Baraq to invade Ilkhanate, Mengu-Timur congratulated Ilkhan Abagha upon his stunning victory over the Chagatai army in order to hide his true intention. The two had been fighting with each other up until 1270's. However, by the 1270's, they had signed a peace treaty. In addition to the peace treaty, Abagha allowed Mengu-Timur to collect tax income from some of workshops in his khanate.
Although there was no serious war between the Ilkhanate and the Golden Horde, Mengu-Timur intended to restore his ancestors authority over Azerbaijan and Caucasus. He sent delegates to the Mameluke Sultan Baybars and suggested a joint attack on Abagha's khanate.
During that time, Kublai dispatched his favorite son Nomukhan against Kaidu. Nomukhan sent letters to Chingisid nobles to reassert their supports. Mengu-Timur responded that he would protect Kublai from Kaidu if Kaidu assaulted him. In 1276, Chingisid princes Shiregi and Tokhtemur defected to Kaidu's side and arrested Kublai's son. Then they sent Nomukhan and his brother Kokhcu to Mengu-Timur and his general to Kaidu. The court of the Golden Horde released Nomukhan in 1278. It appears that Mengu-Timur held Nomukhan to use as a pawn in the wars of the Mongol world.
Mengu-Timur died of a neck injury in 1280.
Mengu-Timur was the father of Tochtu Khan by Oljei Khatun of the Khunggirad clan, the great granddaughter of Genghis Khan.
His children include:
* Tochtu Khan, khan of the Golden Horde from 1291-1312
* Toghrilcha, parent of Ozbeg
Mongke-Temur see Mangu-Timur
Mengu-Timur see Mangu-Timur
Though Mengu-Timur and Kaidu urged Baraq to invade Ilkhanate, Mengu-Timur congratulated Ilkhan Abagha upon his stunning victory over the Chagatai army in order to hide his true intention. The two had been fighting with each other up until 1270's. However, by the 1270's, they had signed a peace treaty. In addition to the peace treaty, Abagha allowed Mengu-Timur to collect tax income from some of workshops in his khanate.
Although there was no serious war between the Ilkhanate and the Golden Horde, Mengu-Timur intended to restore his ancestors authority over Azerbaijan and Caucasus. He sent delegates to the Mameluke Sultan Baybars and suggested a joint attack on Abagha's khanate.
During that time, Kublai dispatched his favorite son Nomukhan against Kaidu. Nomukhan sent letters to Chingisid nobles to reassert their supports. Mengu-Timur responded that he would protect Kublai from Kaidu if Kaidu assaulted him. In 1276, Chingisid princes Shiregi and Tokhtemur defected to Kaidu's side and arrested Kublai's son. Then they sent Nomukhan and his brother Kokhcu to Mengu-Timur and his general to Kaidu. The court of the Golden Horde released Nomukhan in 1278. It appears that Mengu-Timur held Nomukhan to use as a pawn in the wars of the Mongol world.
Mengu-Timur died of a neck injury in 1280.
Mengu-Timur was the father of Tochtu Khan by Oljei Khatun of the Khunggirad clan, the great granddaughter of Genghis Khan.
His children include:
* Tochtu Khan, khan of the Golden Horde from 1291-1312
* Toghrilcha, parent of Ozbeg
Mongke-Temur see Mangu-Timur
Mengu-Timur see Mangu-Timur
Mani
Mani (Manes) (Manichaeus) (c.216-276). Founder of a religion which is now called Manichaeism. He was born in the province Babylon which was under Persian rule. His family was Persian, but his name is Aramaic. Mani may have originally belonged to a Christian sect, -- a sect now called Elkhasitts (Elkasites), a group of heretical Jewish-Christians. Between the ages of 12 and 24, Mani had visions where an angel told him that he would be the prophet of a last divine revelation. At the age of 26, Mani embarked on a long journey, where he proclaimed himself the “Messenger of Truth.” Mani traveled through the Persian Empire and reached as far as India, where he became influenced by Buddhism. Mani practiced under the protection of the Persian governor, Shapur I, most of his life. As his teaching gained followers, he elicited opposition from the Zoroastrian priests, and from the Emperor Bahram I. After 274, Mani lost his protection, and he either died in prison or was executed. The death of Mani, is retold as an incident similar to the crucifixion of Jesus.
Mani was the founder of Manicheaism, an ancient gnostic religion that was once widespread but is now extinct. Mani was born of Iranian (Parthian) parents in Assuristan, modern day Iraq, which was part of the Persian Empire during Mani's life. Mani's father, Fatik or Pattig, was from Hamadan and his mother, Maryam, was of the family of the Kamsaragan, who claimed kinship with the Parthian royal house, but the names of his father and mother are both Syriac. Although Mani's original writings have been lost, portions were preserved in Egyptian Coptic and in later Chinese Manichaean writings.
Mani's native languages are thought to have been Middle Persian and Syriac. Mani was an exceptionally gifted child. Mani first encountered religion in his early youth while living with a Jewish ascetic group known as the Elkasites. Mani was influenced by Mandaeanism. Mani followed the holy books Pusan and Kural. According to biographical accounts by al-Biruni, preserved in the tenth century encyclopedia the Fihrist of Ibn al-Nadim. Mani received a revelation in his youth from a spirit whom he later called the Syzygos or Twin, who taught him the divine truths of the religion. In his mid-twenties, Mani decided that salvation is possible through education, self-denial, vegetarianism, fasting and chastity. Mani claimed to be the Paraclete promised in the New Testament, the Last Prophet or Seal of the Prophets. The other prophets included Seth, Noah, Abraham, Shem, Nikotheos, Enoch, Zoroaster, Buddha and Jesus. Mani presented himself as a savior and an apostle of Jesus Christ. Mani wrote his seven holy books in Syriac, the main language spoken in the Near East before the Arab-Islamic conquest. Mani's most important book was called Arjang. Mani is thought to have been an extraordinary painter who illustrated Arjang with colorful objects.
During this period, the large existing religious groups, including Christianity and Zoroastrianism, were competing for political and social power. Manichaeism had fewer adherents than Zoroastrianism, but won the support of high ranking political figures. With the aid of the Persian Empire, Mani would initiate several missionary excursions. Mani's earliest missionaries were active in Turkestan, India, Mesopotamis, Persia, Palestine, Syria and Egypt. Mani's first excursion was to the Kushan Empire in northwestern India. Mani is believed to have lived and taught in India for some time, and several religious paintings in Bamiyan are attributed to Mani. Mani is said to have sailed to the Indus valley area of India in 240 or 241, and to have converted a Buddhist King, the Turan Shah of India. On that occasion Manichaeism seems to have been influenced by Buddhism. After forty years of travel Mani returned with his retinue to Persia and converted Peroz, King Shapur's brother.
Mani failed to win the favor of the next generation. The disapproval of the Zoroastrian clergy resulted in Mani being sent to prison, where he is reported to have died after several months.
Until the late twentieth century, Mani's life was known largely from remarks by his detractors and from late works. In 1969, in Upper Egypt, a Greek parchment codex from around 400 C. C. was discovered. It is now designated Codex Manichaicus Coloniensis because it is conserved at the University of Cologne. It combines a hagiographic account of Mani's career and spiritual development with information about Mani's religious teachings and contains fragments of his Living (or Great) Gospel and his Letter to Edessa.
Manes see Mani
Manichaeus see Mani
Mani (Manes) (Manichaeus) (c.216-276). Founder of a religion which is now called Manichaeism. He was born in the province Babylon which was under Persian rule. His family was Persian, but his name is Aramaic. Mani may have originally belonged to a Christian sect, -- a sect now called Elkhasitts (Elkasites), a group of heretical Jewish-Christians. Between the ages of 12 and 24, Mani had visions where an angel told him that he would be the prophet of a last divine revelation. At the age of 26, Mani embarked on a long journey, where he proclaimed himself the “Messenger of Truth.” Mani traveled through the Persian Empire and reached as far as India, where he became influenced by Buddhism. Mani practiced under the protection of the Persian governor, Shapur I, most of his life. As his teaching gained followers, he elicited opposition from the Zoroastrian priests, and from the Emperor Bahram I. After 274, Mani lost his protection, and he either died in prison or was executed. The death of Mani, is retold as an incident similar to the crucifixion of Jesus.
Mani was the founder of Manicheaism, an ancient gnostic religion that was once widespread but is now extinct. Mani was born of Iranian (Parthian) parents in Assuristan, modern day Iraq, which was part of the Persian Empire during Mani's life. Mani's father, Fatik or Pattig, was from Hamadan and his mother, Maryam, was of the family of the Kamsaragan, who claimed kinship with the Parthian royal house, but the names of his father and mother are both Syriac. Although Mani's original writings have been lost, portions were preserved in Egyptian Coptic and in later Chinese Manichaean writings.
Mani's native languages are thought to have been Middle Persian and Syriac. Mani was an exceptionally gifted child. Mani first encountered religion in his early youth while living with a Jewish ascetic group known as the Elkasites. Mani was influenced by Mandaeanism. Mani followed the holy books Pusan and Kural. According to biographical accounts by al-Biruni, preserved in the tenth century encyclopedia the Fihrist of Ibn al-Nadim. Mani received a revelation in his youth from a spirit whom he later called the Syzygos or Twin, who taught him the divine truths of the religion. In his mid-twenties, Mani decided that salvation is possible through education, self-denial, vegetarianism, fasting and chastity. Mani claimed to be the Paraclete promised in the New Testament, the Last Prophet or Seal of the Prophets. The other prophets included Seth, Noah, Abraham, Shem, Nikotheos, Enoch, Zoroaster, Buddha and Jesus. Mani presented himself as a savior and an apostle of Jesus Christ. Mani wrote his seven holy books in Syriac, the main language spoken in the Near East before the Arab-Islamic conquest. Mani's most important book was called Arjang. Mani is thought to have been an extraordinary painter who illustrated Arjang with colorful objects.
During this period, the large existing religious groups, including Christianity and Zoroastrianism, were competing for political and social power. Manichaeism had fewer adherents than Zoroastrianism, but won the support of high ranking political figures. With the aid of the Persian Empire, Mani would initiate several missionary excursions. Mani's earliest missionaries were active in Turkestan, India, Mesopotamis, Persia, Palestine, Syria and Egypt. Mani's first excursion was to the Kushan Empire in northwestern India. Mani is believed to have lived and taught in India for some time, and several religious paintings in Bamiyan are attributed to Mani. Mani is said to have sailed to the Indus valley area of India in 240 or 241, and to have converted a Buddhist King, the Turan Shah of India. On that occasion Manichaeism seems to have been influenced by Buddhism. After forty years of travel Mani returned with his retinue to Persia and converted Peroz, King Shapur's brother.
Mani failed to win the favor of the next generation. The disapproval of the Zoroastrian clergy resulted in Mani being sent to prison, where he is reported to have died after several months.
Until the late twentieth century, Mani's life was known largely from remarks by his detractors and from late works. In 1969, in Upper Egypt, a Greek parchment codex from around 400 C. C. was discovered. It is now designated Codex Manichaicus Coloniensis because it is conserved at the University of Cologne. It combines a hagiographic account of Mani's career and spiritual development with information about Mani's religious teachings and contains fragments of his Living (or Great) Gospel and his Letter to Edessa.
Manes see Mani
Manichaeus see Mani
Manichaeans
Manichaeans (Āyin e Māni) (Móní Jiào). Followers of a world religion founded by Mani -- Manichaeism. Manichaeism spread out over most of the known world of the first millennium of the Christian calendar, from Spain to China. However, the religion disappeared from the West around the tenth century, and from China in the fourteenth century. Today, it is moribund.
During the Roman Empire, Manichaeism attained a strong position in North Africa. Augustine was a Manichaean for nine years before his conversion to Christianity. For about 80 years, starting in 762, Manichaeism was the state religion of the Turkic Uighurs.
Manichaeism is the largest and most important example of Gnosticism. Central in the Manichaean teaching was dualism, that the world itself, and all creatures, was part of a battle between the good, represented by God, and the bad, the darkness, represented by a power driven by envy and lust.
These two powers were independent from each other. However, in the world, they were mixed. Most human beings were built from material needed to be released from the dark material of the body. In Manichaeism, creation was regarded as a cosmic catastrophe, this even applied to man.
What had happened was that the good forces had been forced to create the world, as a defense of the divine realms. The threat came from the bad powers that had discovered that there was a world of light, and this they could not resist. When the world and all creatures were created, the attacking darkness was mixed with some of the divine light.
While the battle between light and darkness had been fought in the cosmos until creation, creation made the world of man the new battleground. Everything that gives light in this world belongs to the divine realms, while everything that absorbs light, belongs to the darkness.
In this world, small pieces of light are constantly disentangled from the darkness, and the sun and the moon are two chariots bringing these pieces from the world and back to the divine world. The meaning of life is therefore the same as the meaning of the world, namely to participate on the divine side of this battle. Every man carries inside him a seed of light, and the only way to help free this seed from darkness is through gnosis. Gnosis is the insight in this process of cosmic battle and insight in how to fight envy and lust. The actual liberation happens when a human with gnosis dies.
The gnosis can be discovered by man’s intellectual capacities, but is at the same time something that is revealed, through messengers like Buddha, Jesus and Mani. Buddha and Jesus are depicted quite differently from what is the case in Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam.
There were two groups of Manichaeans, the class of elected, and the laymen. The class of elected had only male members, and they were the ones deemed to disentangle their seed of light from their bodies. They did not marry, did not eat meat, drink wine or work. All they did was preach.
The laymen lived fairly normal lives. They married, but it was considered a good act not to have many children, as an increasing number of humans would mean that the light was spread in more bodies. They had only limited access to the teachings of Manichaeism, and left much of the religious matters to the class of elected, who acted as their representatives.
The laymen attended weekly fasts, but little is known of both their and the electeds’ religious services. Central to what we believe that Mani picked up in India, is the teaching of transmigration of souls. What the laymen could hope for was that they would be re-born as elected.
It is currently unknown how the Manichaeans decided who where elected, and who were not. Schooling and family background are two possible decisive factors.
There were only few texts left after the Manichaeans, but Mani himself wrote many books. Most of these have been lost since the religion became moribund, and only fragments can be found in northwestern China and Egypt.
Ayin e Mani see Manichaeans
Moni Jiao see Manichaeans
Manichaeans (Āyin e Māni) (Móní Jiào). Followers of a world religion founded by Mani -- Manichaeism. Manichaeism spread out over most of the known world of the first millennium of the Christian calendar, from Spain to China. However, the religion disappeared from the West around the tenth century, and from China in the fourteenth century. Today, it is moribund.
During the Roman Empire, Manichaeism attained a strong position in North Africa. Augustine was a Manichaean for nine years before his conversion to Christianity. For about 80 years, starting in 762, Manichaeism was the state religion of the Turkic Uighurs.
Manichaeism is the largest and most important example of Gnosticism. Central in the Manichaean teaching was dualism, that the world itself, and all creatures, was part of a battle between the good, represented by God, and the bad, the darkness, represented by a power driven by envy and lust.
These two powers were independent from each other. However, in the world, they were mixed. Most human beings were built from material needed to be released from the dark material of the body. In Manichaeism, creation was regarded as a cosmic catastrophe, this even applied to man.
What had happened was that the good forces had been forced to create the world, as a defense of the divine realms. The threat came from the bad powers that had discovered that there was a world of light, and this they could not resist. When the world and all creatures were created, the attacking darkness was mixed with some of the divine light.
While the battle between light and darkness had been fought in the cosmos until creation, creation made the world of man the new battleground. Everything that gives light in this world belongs to the divine realms, while everything that absorbs light, belongs to the darkness.
In this world, small pieces of light are constantly disentangled from the darkness, and the sun and the moon are two chariots bringing these pieces from the world and back to the divine world. The meaning of life is therefore the same as the meaning of the world, namely to participate on the divine side of this battle. Every man carries inside him a seed of light, and the only way to help free this seed from darkness is through gnosis. Gnosis is the insight in this process of cosmic battle and insight in how to fight envy and lust. The actual liberation happens when a human with gnosis dies.
The gnosis can be discovered by man’s intellectual capacities, but is at the same time something that is revealed, through messengers like Buddha, Jesus and Mani. Buddha and Jesus are depicted quite differently from what is the case in Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam.
There were two groups of Manichaeans, the class of elected, and the laymen. The class of elected had only male members, and they were the ones deemed to disentangle their seed of light from their bodies. They did not marry, did not eat meat, drink wine or work. All they did was preach.
The laymen lived fairly normal lives. They married, but it was considered a good act not to have many children, as an increasing number of humans would mean that the light was spread in more bodies. They had only limited access to the teachings of Manichaeism, and left much of the religious matters to the class of elected, who acted as their representatives.
The laymen attended weekly fasts, but little is known of both their and the electeds’ religious services. Central to what we believe that Mani picked up in India, is the teaching of transmigration of souls. What the laymen could hope for was that they would be re-born as elected.
It is currently unknown how the Manichaeans decided who where elected, and who were not. Schooling and family background are two possible decisive factors.
There were only few texts left after the Manichaeans, but Mani himself wrote many books. Most of these have been lost since the religion became moribund, and only fragments can be found in northwestern China and Egypt.
Ayin e Mani see Manichaeans
Moni Jiao see Manichaeans
Mansa
Mansa. Title of rulers in many west African societies of the Mande culture complex. It is best known as the title for Mansa Musa.
Mansa is a Mandinka word meaning "king of kings." It is particularly associated with the Keita Dynasty of the Mali Empire, which dominated West Africa from the thirteenth to the fifteenth century. Powers of the mansa included the right to dispense justice and to monopolize trade, particularly in gold.
Sundiata was the first to assume the title of mansa (emperor), which was passed down through the Keita line with few interruptions well into the 15th century. Other notable mansas include his son Wali Keita and the powerful Mansa Musa (Kankan Musa), whose hajj helped define a new direction for the Empire. The succession of the Mali Empire is primarily known through Tunisian historian Ibn Khaldun's History of the Berbers.
King of Kings see Mansa.
Mansa. Title of rulers in many west African societies of the Mande culture complex. It is best known as the title for Mansa Musa.
Mansa is a Mandinka word meaning "king of kings." It is particularly associated with the Keita Dynasty of the Mali Empire, which dominated West Africa from the thirteenth to the fifteenth century. Powers of the mansa included the right to dispense justice and to monopolize trade, particularly in gold.
Sundiata was the first to assume the title of mansa (emperor), which was passed down through the Keita line with few interruptions well into the 15th century. Other notable mansas include his son Wali Keita and the powerful Mansa Musa (Kankan Musa), whose hajj helped define a new direction for the Empire. The succession of the Mali Empire is primarily known through Tunisian historian Ibn Khaldun's History of the Berbers.
King of Kings see Mansa.
Mansa Mahmud
Mansa Mahmud. See Niani Mansa Mamadu.
Niani Mansa Mamadu see Mansa Mahmud.
Mamadu, Niani Mansa see Mansa Mahmud.
Mahmud, Mansa see Mansa Mahmud.
Mansa Mahmud. See Niani Mansa Mamadu.
Niani Mansa Mamadu see Mansa Mahmud.
Mamadu, Niani Mansa see Mansa Mahmud.
Mahmud, Mansa see Mansa Mahmud.
Mansa Musa
Musa I (b.c. 1280, Mali Empire – d.c. 1337, Mali Empire), or Mansa Musa, was the ninth Mansa -- the ninth Emperor -- of the Mali Empire, one of the most powerful West African states in history. He has sometimes been called the wealthiest person in history, though his wealth is impossible to accurately quantify and it is difficult to meaningfully compare the wealth of historical figures. At the time of Musa's ascension to the throne, Mali in large part consisted of the territory of the former Ghana Empire, which Mali had conquered. The Mali Empire consisted of land that is now part of Guinea, Senegal, Mauritania, The Gambia and the modern state of Mali.
Musa went on hajj to Mecca in 1324, and traveled with an enormous entourage and a vast supply of gold. En route, he spent time in Cairo, where his lavish gift-giving caused a noticeable drop in the price of gold for over a decade and garnered the attention of the wider Muslim world.
Musa expanded the borders of the Mali Empire, in particular incorporating the cities of Gao and Timbuktu into its territory. He sought closer ties with the rest of the Muslim world, particularly the Mamluk Sultanate and Marinid Sultanate. He recruited scholars from the wider Muslim world to travel to Mali, such as the Andalusian poet Abu Ishaq al-Sahili, and helped establish Timbuktu as a center of Islamic learning. His reign is associated with numerous construction projects, including part of Djinguereber Mosque in Timbuktu. Musa's reign is often regarded as the zenith of Mali's power and prestige.
Mansa Musa's personal name was Musa, the Arabic form of Moses. Mansa means "ruler" or "king" in Mande, and was the title of the ruler of the Mali Empire. It has also been translated as "conqueror" and "priest-king". In oral tradition and the Timbuktu Chronicles, Musa is known as Kanku Musa. In Mandé tradition, it was common for one's name to be prefixed by their mother's name, so the name Kanku Musa means "Musa, son of Kanku", although it is unclear if the genealogy implied is literal. He is also called Hidji Mansa Musa in oral tradition in reference to his hajj.
In the Songhai language, rulers of Mali such as Musa were known as the Mali-koi, koi being a title that conveyed authority over a region: in other words, the "ruler of Mali".
Much of what is known about Musa comes from Arabic sources written after his hajj, especially the writings of Al-Umari and Ibn Khaldun. While in Cairo during his hajj, Musa befriended officials such as Ibn Amir Hajib, who learned about him and his country from him and later passed on that information to historians such as Al-Umari. Additional information comes from two 17th-century manuscripts written in Timbuktu, the Tarikh as-Sudan and Tarikh al-fattash. Oral tradition, as performed by the jeliw (sg. jeli), also known as griots, includes relatively little information about Musa compared to some other parts of the history of Mali.
Musa's father was named Faga Leye and his mother may have been named Kanku. Faga Leye was the son of Abu Bakr, a brother of Sunjata, the first mansa of the Mali Empire. Ibn Battuta, who visited Mali during the reign of Musa's brother Sulayman, said that Musa's grandfather was named Sariq Jata. Sariq Jata may be another name for Sunjata, who was actually Musa's great-uncle. The date of Musa's birth is unknown, but he still appeared to be a young man in 1324. The Tarikh al-fattash claims that Musa accidentally killed Kanku at some point prior to his hajj.
Musa ascended to power in the early 1300s under unclear circumstances. According to Musa's own account, his predecessor as mansa of Mali, presumably Muhammad ibn Qu, launched two expeditions to explore the Atlantic Ocean (200 ships for the first exploratory mission and 2,000 ships for the second). The mansa led the second expedition himself, and appointed Musa as his deputy to rule the empire until he returned. When he did not return, Musa was crowned as mansa himself, marking a transfer of the line of succession from the descendants of Sunjata to the descendants of his brother Abu Bakr. Some modern historians have cast doubt on Musa's version of events, suggesting he may have deposed his predecessor and devised the story about the voyage to explain how he took power. Nonetheless, the possibility of such a voyage has been taken seriously by several historians.
According to the Tarikh al-Fattash, Musa had a wife named Inari Konte.
Musa was a devout Muslim, and his pilgrimage to Mecca, also known as hajj, made him well known across Northern Africa and the Middle East. To Musa, Islam was "an entry into the cultured world of the Eastern Mediterranean". He would have spent much time fostering the growth of the religion within his empire.
Musa made his pilgrimage between 1324 and 1325 spanning 2,700 miles. His procession reportedly included 60,000 men, all wearing brocade and Persian silk, including 12,000 slaves, who each carried 1.8 kg (4 lb) of gold bars, and heralds dressed in silks, who bore gold staffs, organized horses, and handled bags. Musa provided all necessities for the procession, feeding the entire company of men and animals. Those animals included 80 camels which each carried 23–136 kg (50–300 lb) of gold dust. Musa gave the gold to the poor he met along his route. Musa not only gave to the cities he passed on the way to Mecca, including Cairo and Medina, but also traded gold for souvenirs. It was reported that he built a mosque every Friday.
Musa's journey was documented by several eyewitnesses along his route. These eyewitnesses invariably were in awe of his wealth and the extensive procession that followed him. Records exist in a variety of sources, including journals, oral accounts, and histories. Musa is known to have visited the Mamluk sultan of Egypt, Al-Nasir Muhammad in July 1324. Al-Umari, who visited Cairo shortly after Musa's pilgrimage to Mecca, noted that it was "a lavish display of power, wealth, and unprecedented by its size and pageantry". Musa made a major point of showing off his nation's wealth. His goal was to make his kingdom known to the outside world. He succeeded greatly in this, so much so that he landed himself and Mali on the Catalan Atlas of 1375.
During his long return journey from Mecca in 1325, Musa heard news that his army had recaptured Gao. Sagmandia, one of his generals, led the endeavor. The city of Gao had been within the empire since before Sakura's reign and was an important − though often rebellious − trading center. Musa made a detour and visited the city where he received, as hostages, the two sons of the Gao king, Ali Kolon and Suleiman Nar. Musa returned to Niani with the two boys and later educated them at his court. When Mansa Musa returned, he brought back many Arabian scholars and architects
Musa embarked on a large building program, raising mosques and madrasas in Timbuktu and Gao. Most notably, the ancient center of learning Sankore Madrasah (or University of Sankore) was constructed during his reign.
In Niani, Musa built the Hall of Audience, a building connected by an interior door to the royal palace. It was an admirable monument, surmounted by a dome and adorned with arabesques of striking colors. The wooden window frames of an upper story were plated with silver foil; those of a lower story with gold. Like the Great Mosque, a contemporaneous and grandiose structure in Timbuktu, the Hall was built of cut stone.
During the reign of Mansa Musa, there was an advanced level of urban living in the major centers of Mali. At the height of his power, Mali had at least 400 cities, and the interior of the Niger Delta was very densely populated.
It is recorded that Mansa Musa traveled through the cities of Timbuktu and Gao on his way to Mecca, and made them a part of his empire when he returned around 1325. He brought architects from Andalusia, a region in Spain, and from Cairo to build his grand palace in Timbuktu and the great Djinguereber Mosque that still stands today.
Timbuktu soon became the center of trade, culture, and Islam. Markets brought in merchants from Hausaland, Egypt, and other African kingdoms. A university was founded in the city (as well as in the Malian cities of Djenne and Segou), and Islam was spread through the markets and university, making Timbuktu a new center for Islamic scholarship. News of the Malian empire's city of wealth even traveled across the Mediterranean to southern Europe, where traders from Venice, Granada, and Genoa soon added Timbuktu to their maps to trade manufactured goods for gold.
The University of Sankore in Timbuktu was restaffed under Musa's reign with jurists, astronomers, and mathematicians. The university became a center of learning and culture, drawing Muslim scholars from around Africa and the Middle East to Timbuktu.
In 1330, the kingdom of Mossi invaded and conquered the city of Timbuktu. Gao had already been captured by Musa's general, and Musa quickly regained Timbuktu, built a rampart and stone fort, and placed a standing army to protect the city from future invaders.
While Musa's palace has since vanished, the university and mosque still stand in Timbuktu today.
By the end of Mansa Musa's reign, the Sankoré University had been converted into a fully staffed University with the largest collections of books in Africa since the Library of Alexandria. The Sankoré University was capable of housing 25,000 students and had one of the largest libraries in the world with roughly 1,000,000 manuscripts.
The date of Mansa Musa's death is not certain. Using the reign lengths reported by Ibn Khaldun to calculate back from the death of Mansa Suleyman in 1360, Musa would have died in 1332. However, Ibn Khaldun also reports that Musa sent an envoy to congratulate Abu al-Hasan Ali for his conquest of Tlemcen, which took place in May 1337, but by the time Abu al-Hasan sent an envoy in response, Musa had died and Suleyman was on the throne, suggesting that Musa died in 1337. In contrast, al-Umari, writing twelve years after Musa's hajj, in approximately 1337, claimed that Musa returned to Mali intending to abdicate and return to live in Mecca but died before he could do so, suggesting that he died even earlier than 1332. It is possible that it was actually Musa's son Maghan who congratulated Abu al-Hasan, or Maghan who received Abu al-Hasan's envoy after Musa's death. The latter possibility is corroborated by Ibn Khaldun calling Suleyman Musa's son in that passage, suggesting he may have confused Musa's brother Suleyman with Musa's son Maghan. Alternatively, it is possible that the four-year reign Ibn Khaldun credits Maghan with actually referred to his ruling Mali while Musa was away on the hajj, and he only reigned briefly in his own right. Nevertheless, 1337 is deemed to be the most likely date for Musa's death and is the one set forth here.
Musa's hajj has been regarded as the most illustrious moment in the history of West Africa. Musa's reign is commonly regarded as Mali's golden age, but this perception may be the result of his reign being the best recorded by Arabic sources, rather than him necessarily being the wealthiest and most powerful mansa of Mali.
Musa is less renowned in Mandé oral tradition as performed by the jeliw. He is criticized for being unfaithful to tradition, and some of the jeliw regard Musa as having wasted Mali's wealth. However, some aspects of Musa appear to have been incorporated into a figure in Mandé oral tradition known as Fajigi, which translates as "father of hope". Fajigi is remembered as having traveled to Mecca to retrieve ceremonial objects known as boliw, which feature in Mandé traditional religion. As Fajigi, Musa is sometimes conflated with a figure in oral tradition named Fakoli, who is best known as Sunjata's top general. The figure of Fajigi combines both Islam and traditional beliefs.
The name "Musa" has become virtually synonymous with pilgrimage in Mandé tradition, such that other figures who are remembered as going on a pilgrimage, such as Fakoli, are also called Musa.
Musa has been considered the wealthiest human ever. Though some sources have estimated his wealth as equivalent to US$400 billion, his actual wealth is impossible to accurately calculate. Contemporary Arabic sources may have been trying to express that Musa had more gold than they thought possible, rather than trying to give an exact number. Furthermore, it is difficult to meaningfully compare the wealth of historical figures such as Mansa Musa, due to the difficulty of separating the personal wealth of a monarch from the wealth of the state and the difficulty of comparing wealth in highly different societies. Musa may have brought as much as 18 tons of gold on his hajj, equal in value to over US$957 million in 2022. Musa himself further promoted the appearance of having vast, inexhaustible wealth by spreading rumors that gold grew like a plant in his kingdom.
Musa see Mansa Musa
Kankan Musa see Mansa Musa
Man Singh I
Man Singh I (Raja Shri Man Singh Ji Saheb) (May 9 [December 21], 1550 - July 6, 1614). Maharaja of Amber, Rajasthan district, India, and an outstanding general under the Mughal Emperor Akbar.
Man Singh I was the Kacchwaha Rajah Saheb of Amber, a state later known as Jaipur. He was a trusted general of the Mughal emperor Akbar, who included him among the Navranas, or the nine gems of the royal court. However, he was a devotee of Shri Krishna, and not an adherent of Akbar's religion, Din-i-Ilahi.
Man Singh was the son of Rani Sa Bhagawati Ji Sahiba at Amber. Initially known as Kumwar (prince), Man Singh received the title of Mirza Raja and the mansab (rank) of 5000 after the death of his father on December 10, 1589 from Akbar. On August 26, 1605, Man Singh became a mansabdar of 7,000; a commander of 7,000 cavalry in the Mughal forces, which was the maximum command for anyone other than a son of the Mughal emperor and the guardian of Khusrau, the eldest son Jahangir. Akbar called him "Farzand" (son). He fought many important campaigns for Akbar. Kunwar Man Singh led the mughal army in the well-known Battle of Haldighati fought in 1576 between the Mughal Empire and Maharana Pratap.
Man Singh was sent by Akbar to persuade Rana Pratap to make a treaty with Akbar and accept Mughal sovereignty. However, Rana Pratap, as a grandson of Rana Sanga, considered the Mughals invaders and intruders on Indian territory. He declined to accept Akbar's sovereignty. The great grandfather of Man Singh, Raja Prithviraj, was married to Rana Sanga's niece (Rana Raimal's daughter). Thus, Rana Pratap was his relative.
On the day of their meeting Rana Pratap invited Man Singh for dinner. Rana Pratap deliberately avoided attending the dinner in person and sent his son "Kunwar" Amar Singh to dine with "Kunwar" Man Singh (as a custom Rajput men are called "Kunwar" in the life time of their father). The attitude of other Rajput nobles was also discouraging. They were secretly making mockery of Man Singh as his aunt Hira kunwar or Jodhabai was married to Akbar. Man Singh took this as an insult to Akbar and himself. He knew Rana Pratap was making an excuse to avoid him. He refused to dine with Amar Singh. Man Singh remarked, "I will come again and then will have a dinner." Understanding the hidden meaning, a noble of Pratap remarked, "Well don't forget to bring your uncle Akbar." This exchange of insults laid the foundation of war between the Mughals and Rana Pratap, who already had many decades of rivalry and enmity.
Appointed by Akbar to lead the Mughal Army against Rana Pratap, Kunwar
Raja Shri Man Singh Ji Saheb see Man Singh I
Man Singh I (Raja Shri Man Singh Ji Saheb) (May 9 [December 21], 1550 - July 6, 1614). Maharaja of Amber, Rajasthan district, India, and an outstanding general under the Mughal Emperor Akbar.
Man Singh I was the Kacchwaha Rajah Saheb of Amber, a state later known as Jaipur. He was a trusted general of the Mughal emperor Akbar, who included him among the Navranas, or the nine gems of the royal court. However, he was a devotee of Shri Krishna, and not an adherent of Akbar's religion, Din-i-Ilahi.
Man Singh was the son of Rani Sa Bhagawati Ji Sahiba at Amber. Initially known as Kumwar (prince), Man Singh received the title of Mirza Raja and the mansab (rank) of 5000 after the death of his father on December 10, 1589 from Akbar. On August 26, 1605, Man Singh became a mansabdar of 7,000; a commander of 7,000 cavalry in the Mughal forces, which was the maximum command for anyone other than a son of the Mughal emperor and the guardian of Khusrau, the eldest son Jahangir. Akbar called him "Farzand" (son). He fought many important campaigns for Akbar. Kunwar Man Singh led the mughal army in the well-known Battle of Haldighati fought in 1576 between the Mughal Empire and Maharana Pratap.
Man Singh was sent by Akbar to persuade Rana Pratap to make a treaty with Akbar and accept Mughal sovereignty. However, Rana Pratap, as a grandson of Rana Sanga, considered the Mughals invaders and intruders on Indian territory. He declined to accept Akbar's sovereignty. The great grandfather of Man Singh, Raja Prithviraj, was married to Rana Sanga's niece (Rana Raimal's daughter). Thus, Rana Pratap was his relative.
On the day of their meeting Rana Pratap invited Man Singh for dinner. Rana Pratap deliberately avoided attending the dinner in person and sent his son "Kunwar" Amar Singh to dine with "Kunwar" Man Singh (as a custom Rajput men are called "Kunwar" in the life time of their father). The attitude of other Rajput nobles was also discouraging. They were secretly making mockery of Man Singh as his aunt Hira kunwar or Jodhabai was married to Akbar. Man Singh took this as an insult to Akbar and himself. He knew Rana Pratap was making an excuse to avoid him. He refused to dine with Amar Singh. Man Singh remarked, "I will come again and then will have a dinner." Understanding the hidden meaning, a noble of Pratap remarked, "Well don't forget to bring your uncle Akbar." This exchange of insults laid the foundation of war between the Mughals and Rana Pratap, who already had many decades of rivalry and enmity.
Appointed by Akbar to lead the Mughal Army against Rana Pratap, Kunwar
Raja Shri Man Singh Ji Saheb see Man Singh I
Mansur
Mansur (d. c. 1624). Painter of miniatures at the court of the Mughal Emperor Jahangir. He was the only artist who made his reputation by nature painting. Jahangir made animal portraiture one of his primary interests and, having a strong scientific curiosity, he demanded from his artists realistic renderings of a very high standard.
Mansur (d. c. 1624). Painter of miniatures at the court of the Mughal Emperor Jahangir. He was the only artist who made his reputation by nature painting. Jahangir made animal portraiture one of his primary interests and, having a strong scientific curiosity, he demanded from his artists realistic renderings of a very high standard.
Mansur, Abu Ja‘far ‘Abd Allah al-
Mansur, Abu Ja‘far ‘Abd Allah al- (Abu Ja‘far ‘Abd Allah al-Mansur) (Almanzor) (Al-Mansur) (712/714-775). ‘Abbasid caliph (r.754-775), who began the construction of Baghdad. He was challenged by Abu Muslim who wished that eastern Persia should be effectively independent, and by Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allah al-Nafs al-Zakiyya. A politician of genius, he established the ‘Abbasid caliphate as a centralized state under the caliph’s control.
Al-Mansur was the second 'Abbasid caliph. He was born at al-Humaymah, the home of the 'Abbasid family after their emigration from the Hijaz in 687-688. His father, Muhammad, was a great-grandson of 'Abbas. His mother was a Berber woman. He reigned from 754 until 775. In 762, he founded as the new imperial residence and palace city Madinat as-Salam, which became the core of the imperial capital Baghdad.
Al-Mansur was concerned with the unity of his regime after the death of his brother, Abu'l 'Abbas, who later became known as-Saffah (the bloodshedder). In 755, he arranged the assassination of Abu Muslim. Abu Muslim was a loyal freed man from the eastern Iranian province of Khorasan who had led the 'Abbasid forces to victory over the Umayyads during the Third Islamic Civil War in 749-750. At the time of al-Mansur he was the subordinate, but undisputed ruler of Iran and Transoxiana. The assassination seems to have been made to preclude a power struggle in the empire.
Al-Mansur certainly saw himself as a universal ruler with religious and secular authority. His victory against Nafs az-Zakiya, a Shi'ite rebel in Southern Iraq and in the Arabian Peninsula further alienated certain Shi'ite groups. They had been hoping that an 'Abbasid victory would restore the caliphate to the Imamate, and that the rule of the "Al Muhammad", the family of the prophet would begin. However, they were disappointed.
During the reign of al-Mansur, literature and scholarly work in the Islamic world began to emerge in full force, supported by new 'Abbasid tolerances for Persians and other groups suppressed by the Umayyads. Although the Umayyad caliph Hisham ibn 'Abd al-Malik had adopted Persian court practices, it was not until al-Mansur's reign that Persian literature and scholarship were truly appreciated in the Islamic world. The emergence of Shu'ubiya was a literary movement among Persians expressing their belief that Persian art and culture was superior to that of the Arabs. The movement served to catalyze the emergence of Arab-Persian dialogues in the eighth century. Al-Mansur also founded the House of Wisdom in Baghdad.
Perhaps more importantly than the emergence of Persian scholarship was the conversion of many non-Arabs to Islam. The Umayyads actively tried to discourage conversion in order to continue the collection of the jizya, or the tax on non-Muslims. The inclusiveness of the 'Abbasid regime, and that of al-Mansur, saw the expansion of Islam among its territory. In 750, roughly 8% of residents in the Caliphate were Muslims. This would double to 15% by the end of al-Mansur's reign.
Al-Mansur died in 775 while on his way to Mecca to make hajj. He was buried somewhere along the way in one of the hundreds of graves that had been dug in order to hide his body from the Umayyads. He was succeeded by his son, el-Mahdi.
According to Shi'ite sources, the scholar Abu Hanifa an-Nu'man was imprisoned by al-Mansur and tortured. He also had Imam Malik, the founder of another school of law, flogged.
Abu Ja'far 'Abd Allah al-Mansur see Mansur, Abu Ja‘far ‘Abd Allah al-
Almanzor see Mansur, Abu Ja‘far ‘Abd Allah al-
Al-Mansur see Mansur, Abu Ja‘far ‘Abd Allah al-
Mansur, Abu Ja‘far ‘Abd Allah al- (Abu Ja‘far ‘Abd Allah al-Mansur) (Almanzor) (Al-Mansur) (712/714-775). ‘Abbasid caliph (r.754-775), who began the construction of Baghdad. He was challenged by Abu Muslim who wished that eastern Persia should be effectively independent, and by Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allah al-Nafs al-Zakiyya. A politician of genius, he established the ‘Abbasid caliphate as a centralized state under the caliph’s control.
Al-Mansur was the second 'Abbasid caliph. He was born at al-Humaymah, the home of the 'Abbasid family after their emigration from the Hijaz in 687-688. His father, Muhammad, was a great-grandson of 'Abbas. His mother was a Berber woman. He reigned from 754 until 775. In 762, he founded as the new imperial residence and palace city Madinat as-Salam, which became the core of the imperial capital Baghdad.
Al-Mansur was concerned with the unity of his regime after the death of his brother, Abu'l 'Abbas, who later became known as-Saffah (the bloodshedder). In 755, he arranged the assassination of Abu Muslim. Abu Muslim was a loyal freed man from the eastern Iranian province of Khorasan who had led the 'Abbasid forces to victory over the Umayyads during the Third Islamic Civil War in 749-750. At the time of al-Mansur he was the subordinate, but undisputed ruler of Iran and Transoxiana. The assassination seems to have been made to preclude a power struggle in the empire.
Al-Mansur certainly saw himself as a universal ruler with religious and secular authority. His victory against Nafs az-Zakiya, a Shi'ite rebel in Southern Iraq and in the Arabian Peninsula further alienated certain Shi'ite groups. They had been hoping that an 'Abbasid victory would restore the caliphate to the Imamate, and that the rule of the "Al Muhammad", the family of the prophet would begin. However, they were disappointed.
During the reign of al-Mansur, literature and scholarly work in the Islamic world began to emerge in full force, supported by new 'Abbasid tolerances for Persians and other groups suppressed by the Umayyads. Although the Umayyad caliph Hisham ibn 'Abd al-Malik had adopted Persian court practices, it was not until al-Mansur's reign that Persian literature and scholarship were truly appreciated in the Islamic world. The emergence of Shu'ubiya was a literary movement among Persians expressing their belief that Persian art and culture was superior to that of the Arabs. The movement served to catalyze the emergence of Arab-Persian dialogues in the eighth century. Al-Mansur also founded the House of Wisdom in Baghdad.
Perhaps more importantly than the emergence of Persian scholarship was the conversion of many non-Arabs to Islam. The Umayyads actively tried to discourage conversion in order to continue the collection of the jizya, or the tax on non-Muslims. The inclusiveness of the 'Abbasid regime, and that of al-Mansur, saw the expansion of Islam among its territory. In 750, roughly 8% of residents in the Caliphate were Muslims. This would double to 15% by the end of al-Mansur's reign.
Al-Mansur died in 775 while on his way to Mecca to make hajj. He was buried somewhere along the way in one of the hundreds of graves that had been dug in order to hide his body from the Umayyads. He was succeeded by his son, el-Mahdi.
According to Shi'ite sources, the scholar Abu Hanifa an-Nu'man was imprisoned by al-Mansur and tortured. He also had Imam Malik, the founder of another school of law, flogged.
Abu Ja'far 'Abd Allah al-Mansur see Mansur, Abu Ja‘far ‘Abd Allah al-
Almanzor see Mansur, Abu Ja‘far ‘Abd Allah al-
Al-Mansur see Mansur, Abu Ja‘far ‘Abd Allah al-
Mansur, al-Malik Muhammad ibn ‘Umar al-
Mansur, al-Malik Muhammad ibn ‘Umar al- (1171-1220). Member of the Ayyubid family, local ruler of Hamat, historian and patron of letters. Among other works, he wrote a chronicle of his time.
Malik Muhammad ibn 'Umar al-Mansur, al- see Mansur, al-Malik Muhammad ibn ‘Umar al-
Mansur, al-Malik Muhammad ibn ‘Umar al- (1171-1220). Member of the Ayyubid family, local ruler of Hamat, historian and patron of letters. Among other works, he wrote a chronicle of his time.
Malik Muhammad ibn 'Umar al-Mansur, al- see Mansur, al-Malik Muhammad ibn ‘Umar al-
Mansur al-Yaman Abu’l-Qasim
Mansur al-Yaman Abu’l-Qasim (Ibn Hawshab) (d. 914). Founder of the Isma‘ili missionary activity in Yemen. From there he sent missionaries to Egypt, Bahrain, Sind and Gujarat.
Ibn Hawshab see Mansur al-Yaman Abu’l-Qasim
Abu'l-Qasim, Mansur al-Yaman see Mansur al-Yaman Abu’l-Qasim
Mansur al-Yaman Abu’l-Qasim (Ibn Hawshab) (d. 914). Founder of the Isma‘ili missionary activity in Yemen. From there he sent missionaries to Egypt, Bahrain, Sind and Gujarat.
Ibn Hawshab see Mansur al-Yaman Abu’l-Qasim
Abu'l-Qasim, Mansur al-Yaman see Mansur al-Yaman Abu’l-Qasim
Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
Mansur bi-‘llah, al- (Almanzor) (Ibn Abi ‘Amir al-Ma‘afiri) (Abu Aamir Muhammad Ibn Abdullah Ibn Abi Aamir) (Al-Hajib Al-Mansur) (Muhammad Ibn Abi Aamir) (938 - August 8, 1002). Vizier of the Spanish Umayyad Hisham II al-Mu’ayyad (r.978-1002). He was de facto the real master of al-Andalus. He purged the splendid library of the Spanish Umayyad Caliph al-Hakam II and conducted 52 expeditions against the Christian states.
Almanzor, was the de facto ruler of Muslim Al-Andalus in the late 10th to early 11th centuries. His rule marked the peak of power for Moorish Iberia. He was born Muhammad Ibn Abi Aamir, into a noble Arab family from the area of Algeciras. He arrived at the Court of Cordoba as a student studying law and literature. He became manager of the estates of Prince Hisham II.
In a few years, he schemed his way from this humble position to considerable heights of influence, eliminating his political rivals in the process. Caliph Al-Hakam II died in 976 and Almanzor was instrumental in securing the succession of the young Hisham II, aged twelve, to the throne. Almanzor had a great influence on Subh, ruler as mother of the young Hisham II. Two years later he became Hajib (a title similar to that of Grand Vizier in the Muslim East), or Chancellor. During the next three years, he consolidated his
power with the building of his new palace on the outskirts of Córdoba, al-Madina az-Zahira (Medina Azahara), while at the same time completely isolating the young Caliph, who became a virtual prisoner in Medina Azahara.
In 981, upon his return to Cordoba from the Battle of Torrevicente, in which he crushed his last remaining rival (and father-in-law, Ghalib Al-Nasiri), he assumed the title of Al-Mansur bi-llah, Victorious by Grace of God. In Christian Europe, he was referred to as Almanzor.
Almanzor's grip on power within Al-Andalus was now absolute. He dedicated himself to military campaigns against the Christian states of the peninsula. He organized and took part in 57 campaigns, and was victorious in all of them. To wage these campaigns against the Christian states, he brought in many Berber mercenaries, which upset the political order over time.
Although he mainly fought against León and Castile, in 985 he sacked Barcelona and in 997 Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, although he spared the tomb of James, son of Zebedee. He also waged several campaigns against the Kingdom of Navarra, including his longest, in which he defeated a Castilian army at the Battle of Cervera.
He married Abda, daughter of Sancho Garcés king of Navarra, who bore him a son by the name of Abd al-Rahman. He was commonly known as Sanchuelo (Little Sancho, in Arabic: Shanjoul).
The consequence of his victories in the north was to prompt the Christian rulers of the Peninsula into an alliance against him (c. 1000). He was succeeded by his son Abd al-Malik al-Muzaffar, who continued to rule Al-Andalus as Hajib until his death in 1008.
After Abd al-Malik, his ambitious half brother Abd al-Rahman Sanchuelo took over. He however tried to take the Caliphate for himself from Hisham as al-Mansur had effectively made the caliph a figurehead ruler. This plunged the country into a civil war. The Caliphate disintegrated it into rival Taifa kingdoms. This proved disastrous for Muslim Iberia as, being divided, the Christian Kingdoms were able to conquer the Taifas one by one.
Almanzor see Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
Ibn Abi 'Amir al-Ma'afiri see Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
Abu Aamir Muhammad Ibn Abdullah Ibn Abi Aamir see Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
Al-Hajib Al-Mansur see Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
Muhammad Ibn Abi Aamir see Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
Victorious by Grace of God see Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
In 981, upon his return to Cordoba from the Battle of Torrevicente, in which he crushed his last remaining rival (and father-in-law, Ghalib Al-Nasiri), he assumed the title of Al-Mansur bi-llah, Victorious by Grace of God. In Christian Europe, he was referred to as Almanzor.
Almanzor's grip on power within Al-Andalus was now absolute. He dedicated himself to military campaigns against the Christian states of the peninsula. He organized and took part in 57 campaigns, and was victorious in all of them. To wage these campaigns against the Christian states, he brought in many Berber mercenaries, which upset the political order over time.
Although he mainly fought against León and Castile, in 985 he sacked Barcelona and in 997 Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, although he spared the tomb of James, son of Zebedee. He also waged several campaigns against the Kingdom of Navarra, including his longest, in which he defeated a Castilian army at the Battle of Cervera.
He married Abda, daughter of Sancho Garcés king of Navarra, who bore him a son by the name of Abd al-Rahman. He was commonly known as Sanchuelo (Little Sancho, in Arabic: Shanjoul).
The consequence of his victories in the north was to prompt the Christian rulers of the Peninsula into an alliance against him (c. 1000). He was succeeded by his son Abd al-Malik al-Muzaffar, who continued to rule Al-Andalus as Hajib until his death in 1008.
After Abd al-Malik, his ambitious half brother Abd al-Rahman Sanchuelo took over. He however tried to take the Caliphate for himself from Hisham as al-Mansur had effectively made the caliph a figurehead ruler. This plunged the country into a civil war. The Caliphate disintegrated it into rival Taifa kingdoms. This proved disastrous for Muslim Iberia as, being divided, the Christian Kingdoms were able to conquer the Taifas one by one.
Almanzor see Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
Ibn Abi 'Amir al-Ma'afiri see Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
Abu Aamir Muhammad Ibn Abdullah Ibn Abi Aamir see Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
Al-Hajib Al-Mansur see Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
Muhammad Ibn Abi Aamir see Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
Victorious by Grace of God see Mansur bi-‘llah, al-
Mansur bi-‘llah al-Qasim ibn Muhammad, al-
Mansur bi-‘llah al-Qasim ibn Muhammad, al- (b. 1559). Eponymous founder of the Qasimi line of the Zaydi Imams in Yemen (r.1597-1620). In 1597, he started the revolt against the Ottomans who had established themselves in Yemen in the wake of their conquest of Mameluke Egypt.
Mansur bi-‘llah al-Qasim ibn Muhammad, al- (b. 1559). Eponymous founder of the Qasimi line of the Zaydi Imams in Yemen (r.1597-1620). In 1597, he started the revolt against the Ottomans who had established themselves in Yemen in the wake of their conquest of Mameluke Egypt.
Mansur bi-‘llah, Isma‘il al-
Mansur bi-‘llah, Isma‘il al- (Isma‘il al-Mansur bi-‘llah) (Ismāʿīl al-Manṣūr) ( (913/914 - March 19, 953). Caliph of the Fatimid dynasty in Ifriqiya (r.946-953). He defeated the Khariji rebel Abu Yazid and re-established order in Sicily where rule was entrusted to the Kalbids.
Ismāʿīl al-Manṣūr was the third Caliph of the Fatimids in Ifriqiya (r. 946-953). Ismāʿīl was born in Raqqada near Kairouan and succeeded his father Abū l-Qāṣim al-Qā'im (934-946) in 946. The Fatimid realm found itself deep in crisis due to the revolt of Abū Yazīd (943-947). However, after the unity of the rebels began to crack, Ismāʿīl managed to put down the revolt with the help of the Berber Zirids. Following this victory he took the epithet al-Mansur, and built a new residence at al-Manṣūriyyah near Kairouan.
Al-Manṣūr concerned himself with the reorganization of the Fatimid state until the end of his reign. He resumed the struggle with the Umayyads of Córdoba in Morocco, and reoccupied Sicily, from where raids into Italy were recommenced. Rule in Sicily was reinforced through the installation of the Kalbids as Emirs.
Al-Manṣūr died after a severe illness on March 19, 953 and left his realm to his son al-Mu‘izz (r. 953-975).
Isma'il al-Mansur bi-'llah see Mansur bi-‘llah, Isma‘il al-
Ismāʿīl al-Manṣūr see Mansur bi-‘llah, Isma‘il al-
Mansur bi-‘llah, Isma‘il al- (Isma‘il al-Mansur bi-‘llah) (Ismāʿīl al-Manṣūr) ( (913/914 - March 19, 953). Caliph of the Fatimid dynasty in Ifriqiya (r.946-953). He defeated the Khariji rebel Abu Yazid and re-established order in Sicily where rule was entrusted to the Kalbids.
Ismāʿīl al-Manṣūr was the third Caliph of the Fatimids in Ifriqiya (r. 946-953). Ismāʿīl was born in Raqqada near Kairouan and succeeded his father Abū l-Qāṣim al-Qā'im (934-946) in 946. The Fatimid realm found itself deep in crisis due to the revolt of Abū Yazīd (943-947). However, after the unity of the rebels began to crack, Ismāʿīl managed to put down the revolt with the help of the Berber Zirids. Following this victory he took the epithet al-Mansur, and built a new residence at al-Manṣūriyyah near Kairouan.
Al-Manṣūr concerned himself with the reorganization of the Fatimid state until the end of his reign. He resumed the struggle with the Umayyads of Córdoba in Morocco, and reoccupied Sicily, from where raids into Italy were recommenced. Rule in Sicily was reinforced through the installation of the Kalbids as Emirs.
Al-Manṣūr died after a severe illness on March 19, 953 and left his realm to his son al-Mu‘izz (r. 953-975).
Isma'il al-Mansur bi-'llah see Mansur bi-‘llah, Isma‘il al-
Ismāʿīl al-Manṣūr see Mansur bi-‘llah, Isma‘il al-
Mansur ibn al-Nasir, al-
Mansur ibn al-Nasir, al-. Ruler of the Hammadid dynasty (r.1088 -1105). He re-established Hammadid power in Ifriqiya.
Mansur ibn al-Nasir, al-. Ruler of the Hammadid dynasty (r.1088 -1105). He re-established Hammadid power in Ifriqiya.
Mansuriyya
Mansuriyya. Shi‘a sect of the eighth century named after its founder Abu Mansur al-‘Ijli from Kufa.
Mansuriyya. Shi‘a sect of the eighth century named after its founder Abu Mansur al-‘Ijli from Kufa.
Mansur Syah
Mansur Syah (Mansur Shah). Sixth sultan of Melaka (r. 1459-1477). During his reign Melaka came to dominate most of the important tin-, gold-, and pepper-producing areas of the Malay Peninsula, East Sumatra, and the intervening islands. Mansur successfully opposed Thai influence in the peninsula by mounting an expedition against Pahang. His chief minister (bendahara), Tun Perak, probably inspired these expansionist policies and personally led many of the expeditions.
Mansur Shah ruled Malacca (Melaka) from 1459 to 1477. He ascended the throne after the death of his father, Muzaffar Shah.
Mansur Shah implemented a policy of expansionism during his rule. Many territories in
Peninsular Malaysia and eastern Sumatra and the surrounding islands were under the control of Malacca during his rule such as Selangor, Bernam, Kampar, Siak, Manjung, Rupat, Singapore, and Bintan. Mansur Shah also ordered the attack of Pahang by Tun Perak, the Bendahara of Malacca, to secure the defense of Malacca on the east coast. Siantan and Inderagiri in Sumatra were also given to Malacca as dowry for his marriage to the princess of Majapahit.
Mansur Shah also used marriage alliances between princesses of Malacca and the rulers of conquered states to strengthen Malacca's control over those states. This was one of the ways of Islam's expansion in the Malay archipelago.
An example of these marriage alliances is the marriage between the king of Siak to Mansur Shah's daughter, Princess Mahadewi.
Besides that, princesses of those conquered states were also married to sons of Malaccan ministers. For example, Princess Wanang Seri of Pahang and Raden Galoh Candra Kirana were married to sons of ministers like Tun Putih Nur Pualam.
Mansur Shah also married concubines who were foreign princesses such as Hang Li Po and daughters of merchants from India and Pasai to strengthen trade relationships. These princesses were also converted to Islam. following the lead of the sultan, others married foreigners as well making foreign marriage customs a not uncommon sight in Malacca.
Mansur Shah reduced taxes on trade items during his reign. This increased the interest of merchants to trade in the port of Malacca. The Preferential Tariff System was introduced. Merchants from the west of Malacca such as Arabia and India were subjected to a six percent (6%) tax on trade items while merchants from around the Malay archipelago were subjected to a three percent (3%) tax. However, merchants from China, Japan and Java were not taxed at all. Another economic advantage of Malacca was the easy access to laborers.
Mansur Shah, who had a great interest in Islam, encouraged scholarship in Islamic theological studies. He studied tasawuf himself. He also studied under Maulana Abu Bakar, who brought the Ab Darul Manzum scriptures to Malacca. He also ordered the translation of the scripture to Malay by Makhdum Patakan. Mansur Shah referred to scholars from Pasai on religious issues due to their expertise.
Mansur Shah see Mansur Syah
Mansur Shah also used marriage alliances between princesses of Malacca and the rulers of conquered states to strengthen Malacca's control over those states. This was one of the ways of Islam's expansion in the Malay archipelago.
An example of these marriage alliances is the marriage between the king of Siak to Mansur Shah's daughter, Princess Mahadewi.
Besides that, princesses of those conquered states were also married to sons of Malaccan ministers. For example, Princess Wanang Seri of Pahang and Raden Galoh Candra Kirana were married to sons of ministers like Tun Putih Nur Pualam.
Mansur Shah also married concubines who were foreign princesses such as Hang Li Po and daughters of merchants from India and Pasai to strengthen trade relationships. These princesses were also converted to Islam. following the lead of the sultan, others married foreigners as well making foreign marriage customs a not uncommon sight in Malacca.
Mansur Shah reduced taxes on trade items during his reign. This increased the interest of merchants to trade in the port of Malacca. The Preferential Tariff System was introduced. Merchants from the west of Malacca such as Arabia and India were subjected to a six percent (6%) tax on trade items while merchants from around the Malay archipelago were subjected to a three percent (3%) tax. However, merchants from China, Japan and Java were not taxed at all. Another economic advantage of Malacca was the easy access to laborers.
Mansur Shah, who had a great interest in Islam, encouraged scholarship in Islamic theological studies. He studied tasawuf himself. He also studied under Maulana Abu Bakar, who brought the Ab Darul Manzum scriptures to Malacca. He also ordered the translation of the scripture to Malay by Makhdum Patakan. Mansur Shah referred to scholars from Pasai on religious issues due to their expertise.
Mansur Shah see Mansur Syah
Mantu, Sa’adat Hasan
Mantu, Sa’adat Hasan (Sa'adat Hasan Mantu) (Saadat Hassan Manto) (May 11, 1912 – January 18, 1955). Urdu short-story writer, was born in Sambalpur, in the Amritsar district of Panjab, India, and educated at Amritsar and later at the Muslim University, Aligarh. Mantu then worked in Lahore, Bombay and Delhi in journalism, films and broadcasting. His literary activity began early. His first works included translations from Victor Hugo, Tolstoy, Gorki, Oscar Wilde and other Europeans. But most of his work was original.
Short stories comprise the greater part of Mantu’s work. From 1940 until his death, Mantu published more than 20 collections of short stories. However, Mantu also wrote numerous radio dramas, sketches and essays.
Mantu’s preoccupation with sexual themes and with eccentricities of behavior led to prosecutions for obscenity, but most were unsuccessful. There is little which European taste would find obscene. His best writing is frank, realistic and informed by a deep but unobtrusive sympathy. After the formation of Pakistan, Mantu settled in Lahore. Heavy drinking in his later years hastened Mantu’s death.
Saadat Hassan Manto migrated to Pakistan after the Partition of India. He is best known for his Urdu short stories, Bu (Odor), Khol Do (Open It), Thanda Gosht (Cold Meat), and his magnum opus, Toba Tek Singh.
Saadat Hasan Manto was also a film and radio scriptwriter, and journalist. In his short life, he published twenty-two collections of short stories, one novel, five collections of radio plays, three collections of essays, two collections of personal sketches.
Saadat Hasan Manto was tried for obscenity half-a-dozen times, thrice before 1947 and thrice after 1947 in Pakistan, but was never convicted. Some of his works have been translated into other languages.
Combining psychoanalysis with human behavior, he was arguably one of the best short story tellers of the 20th century of the Christian calendar, and one of the most controversial as well. When it comes to chronicling the collective madness that prevailed, during and after the Partition of India in 1947, the work of Saadat Hassan Manto is most profound.
Manto started his literary career translating works of literary giants, like Victor Hugo, Oscar Wilde and many Russian masters like Chekov and Gorky. The collective influence of these writers made Manto search for his own moorings. This search resulted in his first story, Tamasha, based on the Jallianwala Bagh massacre at Amritsar.
Though his earlier works, influenced by the progressive writers of his times, Manto showed marked leftist and socialist leanings, his later work progressively became stark in portraying the darkness of the human psyche, as humanist values progressively declined around the Partition. His final works that came out in the dismal social climate and his own financial struggles reflected an innate sense of human impotency towards darkness that prevailed in the larger society, cultivating in satirism that verged on dark comedy, as seen in his final great work, Toba Tek Singh, that not just showed a direct influence of his own stay in a veritable mental asylum, but also a reflection of collective madness that he saw in the ensuing decade of his life. To add to it, his numerous court cases and societal rebukes, deepened his cynical view of society, from which he felt ever so isolated. No part of human existence remain untouched or taboo for him. He sincerely brought out stories of prostitutes and pimps alike, just as he highlighted the subversive sexual slavery of the women of his times. To many contemporary women writers, his language far from being obscene brought out the women of the times in realism, seen as never before, and provided them with the human dignity they long deserved. Unlike his fellow luminaries, he never indulged in didacticism or romanticized his character, nor offered any judgment on his characters. No matter how macabre or immoral they might seem, he simply presented the characters in a realistic light, and left the judgment on to the reader's eyes. This allows his works to be interpreted in myriad ways, depending on the viewpoint of the reader. They would appear sensationalist or prurient to one, while exceedingly human to another. Yet it was this very non-judgmental and rather unhindered truism of his pen that put him in an opposite camp from the media censors, social prejudices and the legal system of his times, so much so that he remained banned for many years and lost out on many opportunities to earn a healthy living. He is still known for his scathing insight into human behavior as well as his revelation of the macabre animalistic nature of an enraged people.
Saadat Hasan Manto is often compared with D. H. Lawrence, and like Lawrence he also wrote about the topics considered social taboos in Indo-Pakistani Society. His topics range from the socio-economic injustice prevailing in the pre- and post- colonial era, to the more controversial topics of love, sex, incest, prostitution and the typical hypocrisy of a traditional male. In dealing with these topics, he doesn't take any pains to conceal the true state of the affair - although his short stories are often intricately structured, with vivid satire and a good sense of humor. In chronicling the lives and tribulations of the people living in the lower depths of the human existence, no writer of 20th century, came close to Manto. His concerns on the socio-political issues, from the local to the global level are revealed in his series, Letters to Uncle Sam, and those to Pandit Nehru.
In many ways, Manto's writings can be considered a precursor to the minimalist writing movement. Instead of focusing on composition, Manto created literary effect through narration of facts, often mini-stories, often gritty. Characters are not defined exclusively by the way they look, but by what they have done in their lives. Places are not described as a collection of sensory observations but as settings for events, sad, poignant, happy or otherwise.
Saadat Hassan Manto was born in a Kashmiri Muslim family of barristers. He received his early education at Muslim High School in Amritsar, but he remained a misfit throughout in school years, rapidly losing motivation in studies, ending up failing twice in matriculation. His only love during those days, was reading English novels, for which he even stole a book, once from a Book-Stall in Amritsar Railway Station.
In 1931, he finally passed out of school and joined Hindu Sabha College in Amritsar, which was already volatile due to the independence movement, soon it reflected in his first story, 'Tamasha', based on the Jallianwala Bagh massacre
After his father died in 1932, he sobered up a bit to support his mother. The big turning point in his life came, when in 1933 at age 21, he met Abdul Bari Alig, a scholar and polemic writer, in Amritsar who encouraged to him find his true talents and read Russian and French authors.
Within a matter of months, Manto produced an Urdu translation of Victor Hugo's The Last Days of a Condemned Man, which was published by Urdu Book Stall, Lahore as Sarguzasht-e-Aseer (A Prisoner's Story). Soon afterwards, he joined the editorial staff of Masawat, a daily published from Ludhiana. His 1934 Urdu translation of Oscar Wilde's Vera won him due recognition amongst the literary circles. At the continued encouragement of Abdul Bari, he published a collection of Urdu translations of Russian stories as Russi Afsane.
This heightened enthusiasm pushed Manto to pursue graduation at Aligarh Muslim University, which he joined in February 1934, and soon became associated with the Indian Progressive Writers' Association (IPWA). It was here that he met writer Ali Sardar Jafri and found a new impetus to his writing. His second story 'Inqlaab Pasand' was published in Aligarh magazine in March 1935.
His first collection of original short stories in Urdu, Atish Pare (Sparks; also Quarrel-Provokers), was published in 1936, at age 24.
Manto left Aligarh within a year, initially for Lahore and ultimately for Bombay.
After 1936, he moved to Bombay where he stayed for the next few years editing Musawwir, a monthly film magazine. He also started writing scripts and dialogues for Hindi films, including Kishan Kanhaya (1936) and Apni Nagariya (1939). Soon he was making enough money, though by the time he married Safia on April 26, 1939, he was once again in dire financial crisis. Despite financial ups and downs he continued writing for films until he left for Delhi in January 1941.
Saadat Hasan Manto had accepted the job of writing for the Urdu Service of All India Radio in 1941. This proved to be his most productive period as in the next eighteen months he published over four collections of radio plays, Aao (Come), Manto ke Drame (Manto's Dramas), Janaze (Funerals) and Teen Auraten (Three women). He continued to write short stories and his next short story collection Dhuan (Smoke) came out soon followed by Manto ke Afsane and his first collection of topical essays, Manto ke Mazamin. This period culminated with the publication of his mixed collection Afsane aur Drame in 1943. Meanwhile, due to a quarrel with the then director of the All India Radio, poet N. M. Rashid, he left his job and returned to Bombay in July 1942 and again started working with the film industry. He entered his best phase in screenwriting giving films like Aatth Din, Chal Chal Re Naujawan and Mirza Ghalib, which was finally released in 1954. Some of his best short stories also came from this phase including Kaali Shalwar, Dhuan (1943) and Bu which was published in Qaumi Jang (Bombay) in February 1945. Another highlight of his second phase in Bombay was the publication of an important collection of his stories, Chugad, which also included the story Babu Gopinath. Manto continued to stay in Bombay until he moved to Pakistan in January 1948 much after the partition of India in 1947.
Saadat Hassan Manto arrived in Lahore sometime in early 1948. In Bombay his friends had tried to stop him from migrating to Pakistan because he was quite popular as a film writer and was making reasonably good money. Among his friends there were top actors and directors of that age — many of them Hindus — who were trying to prevail upon him to forget about migrating. They thought that he would be unhappy in Pakistan because the film industry of Lahore stood badly disrupted with the departure of Hindu film-makers and studio owners. But the law and order situation post-partition of British India was such that many Muslims felt insecure in India, just as many Hindus felt insecure in newly created Pakistan. That was the reason that Manto had already sent his family to Lahore and was keen to join them. Manto and his family were among the millions of Muslims who left present-day India for the newly created Muslim-majority nation of Pakistan.
Manto had at least one consolation. His nephew Hamid Jalal had already settled his family in a flat next to his own in Lakshmi Mansions near the main mall. The complex was centrally located. From there every place of importance was at a stone's throw. These flats were occupied by families of some of the people who were destined to become important in the intellectual and academic fields. Manto's next door neighbor was his nephew Hamid Jalal who later became an important mediaman. In another flat, lived Professor G. M. Asar who taught Urdu at Government College, Lahore. Hailing from Madras, he wrote and spoke excellent English as well. Then there was Malik Meraj Khalid who was to play an important role in the politics of Pakistan. Thus when Manto arrived in Lahore from Bombay he found an intellectual atmosphere around him. His only problem was how to care for his family. Sadly for him, Lahore of that period did not have many economic opportunities to offer.
After the writers who had migrated from various Indian cities settled in Lahore, they started their literary activities. Soon Lahore saw a number of newspapers and periodicals appearing. Manto initially wrote for some literary magazines. These were the days when his controversial stories like Khol Do (Open it) and Thanda Gosht (Cold Meat) created a furor among the conservatives. People like Choudhry Muhammad Hussain played a role in banning and prosecuting the writer as well as the publishers and editors of the magazines that printed his stories. Among the editors were such amiable literary figures as Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi, Hajira Masroor and Arif Abdul Matin. Soon the publishers who were more interested in commercial aspects of their ventures, slammed their doors shut to Manto's writings. He, therefore, started contributing stories to the literary supplements of some newspapers. Even this practice could not go on for long. Masood Ashar who was then editing the literary page of Daily Ehsan published some of his stories but the conservative owner of the paper soon asked him to refrain from the practice.
During those days, Manto also tried his hand at newspaper column writing. he started off with writing under the title Chashm-e-Rozan for daily Maghribi Pakistan on the insistence of his friends of Bombay days Ehsan BA and Murtaza Jillani who were editing that paper. But after a few columns one day the space appeared blank under the column saying that due to his indisposition Manto could not write the column. Actually Manto was not indisposed, the owner was not favorably disposed to some of the sentences in the column.
The only paper that published Manto's articles regularly for quite some time was Daily Afaq, for which he wrote some of his well known sketches. These sketches were later collected in his book Ganjay Farishtay (Bald Angels). The sketches include those of famous actors and actresses like Ashok Kumar, Shyam, Nargis, Noor Jehan and Naseem (mother of Saira Banu). He also wrote about some literary figures like Meera Ji, Hashar Kashmiri and Ismat Chughtai. Manto's sketch of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah was also first published in Afaq under the title Mera Sahib. It was based on an interview with Haneef Azad, Quaid-e-Azam's driver of Bombay days who after leaving his job as driver became a well known actor. The article included some of the remarks related to the incident when Dina Jinnah married Wadia. Later when the sketch was included in the book these lines were omitted.
Manto created a new tell-all style of writing sketches. He would mince no words, writing whatever he saw.
Manto once tried to present the sketch of Maulana Chiragh Hasan Hasrat in a literary gathering organized in YMCA Hall Lahore to celebrate the Maulana's recovery from a heart attack. The sketch entitled Bail Aur Kutta was written in his characteristic style exposing some aspects of Maulana's life. The presiding dignitary stopped him from reading the article and ordered him to leave the rostrum. Manto, however, was in high spirits. He refused to oblige and squatted on the floor, and only with difficulty was he prevailed upon by his wife, Safia, to leave the stage.
Those days Manto was writing indiscriminately in order to provide for his family and to be able to drink every evening. For everything he wrote, he would demand cash in advance. In later days, he started writing for magazines like Director. He would go to its office, ask for pen and paper, write his article, collect the remuneration and go away. This Manto was different from the one who arrived in Lahore in 1948.
The necessity to earn his livelihood consumed Manto very fast. In a few years, his complexion became pale and his hair turned grey.
Manto lived in Laxmi Mansion, The Mall Lahore for seven years. For him those years were full of a continuous struggle for his survival. In return, he produced some of his best writings. It was in Lahore that he wrote his masterpieces that include Thanda Gosht, Khol Do, Toba Tek Singh, Iss Manjdhar Mein, Mozalle, Babu Gopi Nath.
Simultaneously, he had embarked on a journey of self-destruction. The substandard alcohol that he consumed destroyed his liver and in the winter of 1955 he fell victim to liver cirrhosis. During all the years in Lahore he waited for the good old days to return, never to find them again.He was 42 years old at the time of his death. He was survived by his wife Safiyah and three daughters.
On January 18, 2005, the fiftieth anniversary of his death, Manto was commemorated on a Pakistani postage stamp.
The works of Manto include:
* Atishparay -1936 (Nuggets Of Fire)
* Manto Ke Afsanay (Stories of Manto)-1940
* Dhuan (Smoke) -1941
* Afsane Aur Dramay (Fiction and Drama)-1943
* Lazzat-e-Sang-1948 (The Taste Of Rock)
* Siyah Hashiye-1948 (Black Borders)
* Badshahat Ka Khatimah (The End of Kingship)-1950
* Khali Botlein (Empty Bottles)-1950
* Nimrud Ki Khudai (Nimrod The God)-1950
* Thanda Gosht (Cold Meat)-1950
* Yazid-1951
* Pardey Ke Peechhey (Behind The Curtains)-1953
* Sarak Ke Kinarey (By the Roadside)- 1953
* Baghair Unwan Ke (Without a Title)-1954
* Baghair Ijazit (Without Permission)-1955
* Burquey-1955
* Phunduney-1955 (Tassles)
* Sarkandon Ke Peechhey-1955 (Behind The Reeds)
* Shaiytan (Satan)-1955
* Shikari Auratein - 1955 (Women Of Prey)
* Ratti, Masha, Tolah-1956
* Kaali Shalwar (Black Pants)-1961
* Manto Ki Behtareen Kahanian (Best Stories of Manto)-1963
* Tahira Se Tahir (From Tahira to Tahir)-1971
Saadat Hassan Manto see Mantu, Sa’adat Hasan
Manto, Saadat Hassan see Mantu, Sa’adat Hasan
Sa'adat Hasan Mantu see Mantu, Sa’adat Hasan
Mantu, Sa’adat Hasan (Sa'adat Hasan Mantu) (Saadat Hassan Manto) (May 11, 1912 – January 18, 1955). Urdu short-story writer, was born in Sambalpur, in the Amritsar district of Panjab, India, and educated at Amritsar and later at the Muslim University, Aligarh. Mantu then worked in Lahore, Bombay and Delhi in journalism, films and broadcasting. His literary activity began early. His first works included translations from Victor Hugo, Tolstoy, Gorki, Oscar Wilde and other Europeans. But most of his work was original.
Short stories comprise the greater part of Mantu’s work. From 1940 until his death, Mantu published more than 20 collections of short stories. However, Mantu also wrote numerous radio dramas, sketches and essays.
Mantu’s preoccupation with sexual themes and with eccentricities of behavior led to prosecutions for obscenity, but most were unsuccessful. There is little which European taste would find obscene. His best writing is frank, realistic and informed by a deep but unobtrusive sympathy. After the formation of Pakistan, Mantu settled in Lahore. Heavy drinking in his later years hastened Mantu’s death.
Saadat Hassan Manto migrated to Pakistan after the Partition of India. He is best known for his Urdu short stories, Bu (Odor), Khol Do (Open It), Thanda Gosht (Cold Meat), and his magnum opus, Toba Tek Singh.
Saadat Hasan Manto was also a film and radio scriptwriter, and journalist. In his short life, he published twenty-two collections of short stories, one novel, five collections of radio plays, three collections of essays, two collections of personal sketches.
Saadat Hasan Manto was tried for obscenity half-a-dozen times, thrice before 1947 and thrice after 1947 in Pakistan, but was never convicted. Some of his works have been translated into other languages.
Combining psychoanalysis with human behavior, he was arguably one of the best short story tellers of the 20th century of the Christian calendar, and one of the most controversial as well. When it comes to chronicling the collective madness that prevailed, during and after the Partition of India in 1947, the work of Saadat Hassan Manto is most profound.
Manto started his literary career translating works of literary giants, like Victor Hugo, Oscar Wilde and many Russian masters like Chekov and Gorky. The collective influence of these writers made Manto search for his own moorings. This search resulted in his first story, Tamasha, based on the Jallianwala Bagh massacre at Amritsar.
Though his earlier works, influenced by the progressive writers of his times, Manto showed marked leftist and socialist leanings, his later work progressively became stark in portraying the darkness of the human psyche, as humanist values progressively declined around the Partition. His final works that came out in the dismal social climate and his own financial struggles reflected an innate sense of human impotency towards darkness that prevailed in the larger society, cultivating in satirism that verged on dark comedy, as seen in his final great work, Toba Tek Singh, that not just showed a direct influence of his own stay in a veritable mental asylum, but also a reflection of collective madness that he saw in the ensuing decade of his life. To add to it, his numerous court cases and societal rebukes, deepened his cynical view of society, from which he felt ever so isolated. No part of human existence remain untouched or taboo for him. He sincerely brought out stories of prostitutes and pimps alike, just as he highlighted the subversive sexual slavery of the women of his times. To many contemporary women writers, his language far from being obscene brought out the women of the times in realism, seen as never before, and provided them with the human dignity they long deserved. Unlike his fellow luminaries, he never indulged in didacticism or romanticized his character, nor offered any judgment on his characters. No matter how macabre or immoral they might seem, he simply presented the characters in a realistic light, and left the judgment on to the reader's eyes. This allows his works to be interpreted in myriad ways, depending on the viewpoint of the reader. They would appear sensationalist or prurient to one, while exceedingly human to another. Yet it was this very non-judgmental and rather unhindered truism of his pen that put him in an opposite camp from the media censors, social prejudices and the legal system of his times, so much so that he remained banned for many years and lost out on many opportunities to earn a healthy living. He is still known for his scathing insight into human behavior as well as his revelation of the macabre animalistic nature of an enraged people.
Saadat Hasan Manto is often compared with D. H. Lawrence, and like Lawrence he also wrote about the topics considered social taboos in Indo-Pakistani Society. His topics range from the socio-economic injustice prevailing in the pre- and post- colonial era, to the more controversial topics of love, sex, incest, prostitution and the typical hypocrisy of a traditional male. In dealing with these topics, he doesn't take any pains to conceal the true state of the affair - although his short stories are often intricately structured, with vivid satire and a good sense of humor. In chronicling the lives and tribulations of the people living in the lower depths of the human existence, no writer of 20th century, came close to Manto. His concerns on the socio-political issues, from the local to the global level are revealed in his series, Letters to Uncle Sam, and those to Pandit Nehru.
In many ways, Manto's writings can be considered a precursor to the minimalist writing movement. Instead of focusing on composition, Manto created literary effect through narration of facts, often mini-stories, often gritty. Characters are not defined exclusively by the way they look, but by what they have done in their lives. Places are not described as a collection of sensory observations but as settings for events, sad, poignant, happy or otherwise.
Saadat Hassan Manto was born in a Kashmiri Muslim family of barristers. He received his early education at Muslim High School in Amritsar, but he remained a misfit throughout in school years, rapidly losing motivation in studies, ending up failing twice in matriculation. His only love during those days, was reading English novels, for which he even stole a book, once from a Book-Stall in Amritsar Railway Station.
In 1931, he finally passed out of school and joined Hindu Sabha College in Amritsar, which was already volatile due to the independence movement, soon it reflected in his first story, 'Tamasha', based on the Jallianwala Bagh massacre
After his father died in 1932, he sobered up a bit to support his mother. The big turning point in his life came, when in 1933 at age 21, he met Abdul Bari Alig, a scholar and polemic writer, in Amritsar who encouraged to him find his true talents and read Russian and French authors.
Within a matter of months, Manto produced an Urdu translation of Victor Hugo's The Last Days of a Condemned Man, which was published by Urdu Book Stall, Lahore as Sarguzasht-e-Aseer (A Prisoner's Story). Soon afterwards, he joined the editorial staff of Masawat, a daily published from Ludhiana. His 1934 Urdu translation of Oscar Wilde's Vera won him due recognition amongst the literary circles. At the continued encouragement of Abdul Bari, he published a collection of Urdu translations of Russian stories as Russi Afsane.
This heightened enthusiasm pushed Manto to pursue graduation at Aligarh Muslim University, which he joined in February 1934, and soon became associated with the Indian Progressive Writers' Association (IPWA). It was here that he met writer Ali Sardar Jafri and found a new impetus to his writing. His second story 'Inqlaab Pasand' was published in Aligarh magazine in March 1935.
His first collection of original short stories in Urdu, Atish Pare (Sparks; also Quarrel-Provokers), was published in 1936, at age 24.
Manto left Aligarh within a year, initially for Lahore and ultimately for Bombay.
After 1936, he moved to Bombay where he stayed for the next few years editing Musawwir, a monthly film magazine. He also started writing scripts and dialogues for Hindi films, including Kishan Kanhaya (1936) and Apni Nagariya (1939). Soon he was making enough money, though by the time he married Safia on April 26, 1939, he was once again in dire financial crisis. Despite financial ups and downs he continued writing for films until he left for Delhi in January 1941.
Saadat Hasan Manto had accepted the job of writing for the Urdu Service of All India Radio in 1941. This proved to be his most productive period as in the next eighteen months he published over four collections of radio plays, Aao (Come), Manto ke Drame (Manto's Dramas), Janaze (Funerals) and Teen Auraten (Three women). He continued to write short stories and his next short story collection Dhuan (Smoke) came out soon followed by Manto ke Afsane and his first collection of topical essays, Manto ke Mazamin. This period culminated with the publication of his mixed collection Afsane aur Drame in 1943. Meanwhile, due to a quarrel with the then director of the All India Radio, poet N. M. Rashid, he left his job and returned to Bombay in July 1942 and again started working with the film industry. He entered his best phase in screenwriting giving films like Aatth Din, Chal Chal Re Naujawan and Mirza Ghalib, which was finally released in 1954. Some of his best short stories also came from this phase including Kaali Shalwar, Dhuan (1943) and Bu which was published in Qaumi Jang (Bombay) in February 1945. Another highlight of his second phase in Bombay was the publication of an important collection of his stories, Chugad, which also included the story Babu Gopinath. Manto continued to stay in Bombay until he moved to Pakistan in January 1948 much after the partition of India in 1947.
Saadat Hassan Manto arrived in Lahore sometime in early 1948. In Bombay his friends had tried to stop him from migrating to Pakistan because he was quite popular as a film writer and was making reasonably good money. Among his friends there were top actors and directors of that age — many of them Hindus — who were trying to prevail upon him to forget about migrating. They thought that he would be unhappy in Pakistan because the film industry of Lahore stood badly disrupted with the departure of Hindu film-makers and studio owners. But the law and order situation post-partition of British India was such that many Muslims felt insecure in India, just as many Hindus felt insecure in newly created Pakistan. That was the reason that Manto had already sent his family to Lahore and was keen to join them. Manto and his family were among the millions of Muslims who left present-day India for the newly created Muslim-majority nation of Pakistan.
Manto had at least one consolation. His nephew Hamid Jalal had already settled his family in a flat next to his own in Lakshmi Mansions near the main mall. The complex was centrally located. From there every place of importance was at a stone's throw. These flats were occupied by families of some of the people who were destined to become important in the intellectual and academic fields. Manto's next door neighbor was his nephew Hamid Jalal who later became an important mediaman. In another flat, lived Professor G. M. Asar who taught Urdu at Government College, Lahore. Hailing from Madras, he wrote and spoke excellent English as well. Then there was Malik Meraj Khalid who was to play an important role in the politics of Pakistan. Thus when Manto arrived in Lahore from Bombay he found an intellectual atmosphere around him. His only problem was how to care for his family. Sadly for him, Lahore of that period did not have many economic opportunities to offer.
After the writers who had migrated from various Indian cities settled in Lahore, they started their literary activities. Soon Lahore saw a number of newspapers and periodicals appearing. Manto initially wrote for some literary magazines. These were the days when his controversial stories like Khol Do (Open it) and Thanda Gosht (Cold Meat) created a furor among the conservatives. People like Choudhry Muhammad Hussain played a role in banning and prosecuting the writer as well as the publishers and editors of the magazines that printed his stories. Among the editors were such amiable literary figures as Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi, Hajira Masroor and Arif Abdul Matin. Soon the publishers who were more interested in commercial aspects of their ventures, slammed their doors shut to Manto's writings. He, therefore, started contributing stories to the literary supplements of some newspapers. Even this practice could not go on for long. Masood Ashar who was then editing the literary page of Daily Ehsan published some of his stories but the conservative owner of the paper soon asked him to refrain from the practice.
During those days, Manto also tried his hand at newspaper column writing. he started off with writing under the title Chashm-e-Rozan for daily Maghribi Pakistan on the insistence of his friends of Bombay days Ehsan BA and Murtaza Jillani who were editing that paper. But after a few columns one day the space appeared blank under the column saying that due to his indisposition Manto could not write the column. Actually Manto was not indisposed, the owner was not favorably disposed to some of the sentences in the column.
The only paper that published Manto's articles regularly for quite some time was Daily Afaq, for which he wrote some of his well known sketches. These sketches were later collected in his book Ganjay Farishtay (Bald Angels). The sketches include those of famous actors and actresses like Ashok Kumar, Shyam, Nargis, Noor Jehan and Naseem (mother of Saira Banu). He also wrote about some literary figures like Meera Ji, Hashar Kashmiri and Ismat Chughtai. Manto's sketch of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah was also first published in Afaq under the title Mera Sahib. It was based on an interview with Haneef Azad, Quaid-e-Azam's driver of Bombay days who after leaving his job as driver became a well known actor. The article included some of the remarks related to the incident when Dina Jinnah married Wadia. Later when the sketch was included in the book these lines were omitted.
Manto created a new tell-all style of writing sketches. He would mince no words, writing whatever he saw.
Manto once tried to present the sketch of Maulana Chiragh Hasan Hasrat in a literary gathering organized in YMCA Hall Lahore to celebrate the Maulana's recovery from a heart attack. The sketch entitled Bail Aur Kutta was written in his characteristic style exposing some aspects of Maulana's life. The presiding dignitary stopped him from reading the article and ordered him to leave the rostrum. Manto, however, was in high spirits. He refused to oblige and squatted on the floor, and only with difficulty was he prevailed upon by his wife, Safia, to leave the stage.
Those days Manto was writing indiscriminately in order to provide for his family and to be able to drink every evening. For everything he wrote, he would demand cash in advance. In later days, he started writing for magazines like Director. He would go to its office, ask for pen and paper, write his article, collect the remuneration and go away. This Manto was different from the one who arrived in Lahore in 1948.
The necessity to earn his livelihood consumed Manto very fast. In a few years, his complexion became pale and his hair turned grey.
Manto lived in Laxmi Mansion, The Mall Lahore for seven years. For him those years were full of a continuous struggle for his survival. In return, he produced some of his best writings. It was in Lahore that he wrote his masterpieces that include Thanda Gosht, Khol Do, Toba Tek Singh, Iss Manjdhar Mein, Mozalle, Babu Gopi Nath.
Simultaneously, he had embarked on a journey of self-destruction. The substandard alcohol that he consumed destroyed his liver and in the winter of 1955 he fell victim to liver cirrhosis. During all the years in Lahore he waited for the good old days to return, never to find them again.He was 42 years old at the time of his death. He was survived by his wife Safiyah and three daughters.
On January 18, 2005, the fiftieth anniversary of his death, Manto was commemorated on a Pakistani postage stamp.
The works of Manto include:
* Atishparay -1936 (Nuggets Of Fire)
* Manto Ke Afsanay (Stories of Manto)-1940
* Dhuan (Smoke) -1941
* Afsane Aur Dramay (Fiction and Drama)-1943
* Lazzat-e-Sang-1948 (The Taste Of Rock)
* Siyah Hashiye-1948 (Black Borders)
* Badshahat Ka Khatimah (The End of Kingship)-1950
* Khali Botlein (Empty Bottles)-1950
* Nimrud Ki Khudai (Nimrod The God)-1950
* Thanda Gosht (Cold Meat)-1950
* Yazid-1951
* Pardey Ke Peechhey (Behind The Curtains)-1953
* Sarak Ke Kinarey (By the Roadside)- 1953
* Baghair Unwan Ke (Without a Title)-1954
* Baghair Ijazit (Without Permission)-1955
* Burquey-1955
* Phunduney-1955 (Tassles)
* Sarkandon Ke Peechhey-1955 (Behind The Reeds)
* Shaiytan (Satan)-1955
* Shikari Auratein - 1955 (Women Of Prey)
* Ratti, Masha, Tolah-1956
* Kaali Shalwar (Black Pants)-1961
* Manto Ki Behtareen Kahanian (Best Stories of Manto)-1963
* Tahira Se Tahir (From Tahira to Tahir)-1971
Saadat Hassan Manto see Mantu, Sa’adat Hasan
Manto, Saadat Hassan see Mantu, Sa’adat Hasan
Sa'adat Hasan Mantu see Mantu, Sa’adat Hasan
Manucihri, Abu’l-Najm
Manucihri, Abu’l-Najm (d. c. 1041). Third and last (after ‘Unsuri and Farrukhi) of the major panegyrists of the early Ghaznavid court. Unlike his contemporary Persian writing poets, he was enthusiastic for Arabic poetry, and his engaging lyricism is remarked upon by all commentators.
Manucihri, Abu’l-Najm (d. c. 1041). Third and last (after ‘Unsuri and Farrukhi) of the major panegyrists of the early Ghaznavid court. Unlike his contemporary Persian writing poets, he was enthusiastic for Arabic poetry, and his engaging lyricism is remarked upon by all commentators.
Mappila
Mappila. Name generally used to identify the Muslims who reside along the Malabar coast of southwestern India. The word Mappila is of uncertain origin and is not used by these people to refer to themselves, they prefer to be known simply as Muslims. The Hindus of Malabar originally employed the term as a label for the three foreign mercantile communities of Jews, Christians, and Muslims who permanently settled in the area, but during the European colonial period the term came to be applied exclusively to Muslims.
Mappila is the name of the dominant Muslim community of southwest India, located mainly in the state of Kerala, primarily in its northern area, popularly known as Malabar. The Mappilas comprise what may be the oldest Islamic community in the South Asian subcontinent, one that was founded by Arab-speaking Muslim traders perhaps as early as the end of the seventh century of the Christian calendar. These Muslims initially settled in port towns such as Calicut, where some of them intermarried with and/or converted local Hindus. By 1500 of the Christian calendar, the Mappilas were estimated to make up twenty percent of the population of the northern Malabar coast.
The Muslims of Malabar, estimated at ten percent (10%) of the population by the middle of the sixteenth century, lived generally in harmony with the surrounding Hindus until the arrival of the Portuguese in Calicut in 1498. During the ensuing period of “pepper politics,” the Portuguese were replaced by the Dutch (1656), the British (1662) and the French (1725), the position of the Mappilas deteriorating rapidly. The British assumed full power in 1792, which was continued until 1947. In 1921, the Malabar Rebellion, frequently called the Mappila Rebellion, broke out with disastrous results. Theological reform was inaugurated by Wakkom Muhammad Abdul Khader Maulavi (d. 1932), devotion to Islam remaining the key element in Mappila character. At present, many Mappilas are employed in the oil production centers of Southwest Asia.
In post-independence India, they represent more than eleven percent (11%) of the population of the entire coast, which is now incorporated into the modern Kerala State. The contemporary Mapilla community is made up of both merchants and agriculturalists. The majority of the population speaks Malayalam, although some still know the hybrid Arabi-Malayalam dialect, a mixture of Arabic, Malayalam, Tamil, and Sanskrit that uses a modified Arabic script. The community is especially well-known for its long resistance to European commercial imperialism and for its turbulent history during the colonial period, culminating in the Mappila Rebellion of 1921-1922, one of the most serious outbreaks of violence in British Indian history.
The Muslims of Kerala along the Malabar coast in south India are known as Mappilla, often transliterated into English as Mopiah. The term is variously interpreted, but is taken by Kerala Muslims as deriving from maha pillai, “great person”, referring to the respected status of the early Muslim settlers. The nearly 5.8 million Mappilla traditionally trace their origin in Kerala to the ninth century when Arab traders brought Islam to the west coast of India. The community has been characterized as consisting of those of pure Arab ancestry, of the descendants of Arabs and Hindu women of the country and of converts to Islam, mainly from among the lower castes.
At the beginning of the sixteenth century, when Portuguese and Arab chronicles provide the first descriptions of the Malabar coast, the Mappilla were largely a mercantile community concentrated along the coast of what is now northern Kerala in urban centers, dominating inter-coastal and overseas trade. Segregated from the Hindu population in separate settlements, the Mappilla had considerable autonomy, and under the patronage of the Zamorin of Calicut, they enjoyed prestige as well as economic power. With the rise of Portuguese power in challenge to Mappilla commercial interests, many Mappilla moved inland in search of new economic opportunities, and in time, through intermarriage and conversion (especially from the most depressed Hindu castes), they increasingly came to be agricultural tenants, low in status and desperately poor. Reduced to insecure tenancy and vulnerable to rack renting and eviction at the hands of Hindu landlords, the Mappilla responded in a series of violent outbreaks during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, culminating in 1921 in the Mappilla Rebellion. Extending over some 2,000 square miles of Malabar District, the rebellion, nurtured by the ideology of the Khilafat movement, was carried on for six months by peasant bands in what was described by British authorities as open war against the king.
The Mappilla today remain concentrated in those areas of northern Kerala which were the scene of the rebellion. In 1969, in response to the demands of the Muslim League in Kerala and as a reward for its political support, the government of the state redrew district boundaries so as to carve out the new, predominantly Muslim district of Malappuram.
Mappila. Name generally used to identify the Muslims who reside along the Malabar coast of southwestern India. The word Mappila is of uncertain origin and is not used by these people to refer to themselves, they prefer to be known simply as Muslims. The Hindus of Malabar originally employed the term as a label for the three foreign mercantile communities of Jews, Christians, and Muslims who permanently settled in the area, but during the European colonial period the term came to be applied exclusively to Muslims.
Mappila is the name of the dominant Muslim community of southwest India, located mainly in the state of Kerala, primarily in its northern area, popularly known as Malabar. The Mappilas comprise what may be the oldest Islamic community in the South Asian subcontinent, one that was founded by Arab-speaking Muslim traders perhaps as early as the end of the seventh century of the Christian calendar. These Muslims initially settled in port towns such as Calicut, where some of them intermarried with and/or converted local Hindus. By 1500 of the Christian calendar, the Mappilas were estimated to make up twenty percent of the population of the northern Malabar coast.
The Muslims of Malabar, estimated at ten percent (10%) of the population by the middle of the sixteenth century, lived generally in harmony with the surrounding Hindus until the arrival of the Portuguese in Calicut in 1498. During the ensuing period of “pepper politics,” the Portuguese were replaced by the Dutch (1656), the British (1662) and the French (1725), the position of the Mappilas deteriorating rapidly. The British assumed full power in 1792, which was continued until 1947. In 1921, the Malabar Rebellion, frequently called the Mappila Rebellion, broke out with disastrous results. Theological reform was inaugurated by Wakkom Muhammad Abdul Khader Maulavi (d. 1932), devotion to Islam remaining the key element in Mappila character. At present, many Mappilas are employed in the oil production centers of Southwest Asia.
In post-independence India, they represent more than eleven percent (11%) of the population of the entire coast, which is now incorporated into the modern Kerala State. The contemporary Mapilla community is made up of both merchants and agriculturalists. The majority of the population speaks Malayalam, although some still know the hybrid Arabi-Malayalam dialect, a mixture of Arabic, Malayalam, Tamil, and Sanskrit that uses a modified Arabic script. The community is especially well-known for its long resistance to European commercial imperialism and for its turbulent history during the colonial period, culminating in the Mappila Rebellion of 1921-1922, one of the most serious outbreaks of violence in British Indian history.
The Muslims of Kerala along the Malabar coast in south India are known as Mappilla, often transliterated into English as Mopiah. The term is variously interpreted, but is taken by Kerala Muslims as deriving from maha pillai, “great person”, referring to the respected status of the early Muslim settlers. The nearly 5.8 million Mappilla traditionally trace their origin in Kerala to the ninth century when Arab traders brought Islam to the west coast of India. The community has been characterized as consisting of those of pure Arab ancestry, of the descendants of Arabs and Hindu women of the country and of converts to Islam, mainly from among the lower castes.
At the beginning of the sixteenth century, when Portuguese and Arab chronicles provide the first descriptions of the Malabar coast, the Mappilla were largely a mercantile community concentrated along the coast of what is now northern Kerala in urban centers, dominating inter-coastal and overseas trade. Segregated from the Hindu population in separate settlements, the Mappilla had considerable autonomy, and under the patronage of the Zamorin of Calicut, they enjoyed prestige as well as economic power. With the rise of Portuguese power in challenge to Mappilla commercial interests, many Mappilla moved inland in search of new economic opportunities, and in time, through intermarriage and conversion (especially from the most depressed Hindu castes), they increasingly came to be agricultural tenants, low in status and desperately poor. Reduced to insecure tenancy and vulnerable to rack renting and eviction at the hands of Hindu landlords, the Mappilla responded in a series of violent outbreaks during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, culminating in 1921 in the Mappilla Rebellion. Extending over some 2,000 square miles of Malabar District, the rebellion, nurtured by the ideology of the Khilafat movement, was carried on for six months by peasant bands in what was described by British authorities as open war against the king.
The Mappilla today remain concentrated in those areas of northern Kerala which were the scene of the rebellion. In 1969, in response to the demands of the Muslim League in Kerala and as a reward for its political support, the government of the state redrew district boundaries so as to carve out the new, predominantly Muslim district of Malappuram.
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