sultan n : the ruler of a Muslim country (especially of the former Ottoman Empire) [syn: grand Turk]

see Sultan

English

Etymology

From , meaning strength and authority.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ʌltən

Noun

1. originally, a secular office, formally subordinate to -, but de facto the power behind the throne of the (theoretically universal) caliph
2. a hereditary ruler in various Muslim states (sultanate), varying from petty principalities (as in Indonesia and in Yemen), often vassal of a greater ruler, to independent realms, such as Oman, Brunei, or an empire such as the Turkish Ottoman Empire.
3. a variant of patience, played with two decks of cards.
4. the sultana bird or (African) purple swamphen, purple moorhen or purple gallinule, officially named (in Latin) porphyrio porphyrio, a bird species of the rallidae family

Translations

Bosnian

Etymology

From sultan < .

Noun

sultan s (p: sultani)

1. sultan

Croatian

Etymology

From sultan < .

Noun

sultan s (p: sultani)

1. sultan

Dutch

Noun

sultan (p: sultans)

1. sultan, a Muslim ruler title
2. a certain pastry

Derived terms

• sultana
• sultanaat
• sultane
• sultanshoen

References

French

Noun

sultan (p: sultans)

1. sultan, a Muslim ruler title
2. silk-ornated basket
3. perfume sachet, to put in a linnen coffer

Synonyms

• soudan

References

Serbian

Etymology

From sultan < .

Noun

sultan s (p: sultani)

1. sultan

Cyrillic spelling

• султан

Turkish

Etymology

Noun

sultan

1. sultan
2. king

Sultan () is an Islamic title, with several historical meanings. Originally it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", or "rulership", derived from the Arabic masdar سلطة sulṭah, meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain Muslim rulers who claimed almost full sovereignty in practical terms (i.e., the lack of dependence on any higher ruler), without claiming the overall Caliphate, or it was used to refer to a powerful governor of a province within the caliphate. It then developed some further meanings in certain contexts.

• Sultans of Great Seljuk
• Seljuk Sultanate of Rum
• Sultans (becoming Padishahs) of the Ottoman Empire, the Osmanli
• Ayyubid Sultans of Damascus (in Syria)
• in present-day Yemen, various small sultanates of the former British Aden Protectorate and South Arabia:

Audhali, Fadhli, Haushabi, Kathiri, Lahej, Lower Aulaqi, Lower Yafa, Mahra, Qu'aiti, Subeihi, Upper Aulaqi, Upper Yafa and the Wahidi sultanates

• in present-day Saudi Arabia :
  • Sultans of Nejd
  • Sultans of the Hejaz

Hami

This was the authentic style, commonly rendered as sultan, of the Islamic monarchs of the ruling house of Oman, in both its realms:

• Oman — Sultan of Oman, on the southern coast of the Arabian peninsula, still an independent sultanate, since 1784, two years before the imamate lost temporal power in 1786 (assumed the formal style of Sultan in 1861)
• Sultanate of Zanzibar two incumbents (from the Omani dynasty) since the de facto separation from Oman in 1806, the last assumed the style Sultan in 1861 at the formal separation under British auspices; since 1964 union with Tanganyika part of Tanzania)

North Africa

• in Algeria: sultanate of Tuggurt
• in (greater) Egypt:
  • Ayyubid Sultans
  • Mamluk Sultans
• in Morocco, till Mohammed V changed the style to Malik (king) on 14 August 1957, maintaining the subsidiary style Amir al-Mu´minin (Commander of the Faithful)
• in Sudan:
  • Darfur
  • Dar al-Masalit
  • Dar Qimr
  • Funj Sultanate of Sinnar (Sennar)
  • Kordofan
• in Chad:
  • Bag(u)irmi (main native title: Mbang)
  • Wada'i (main native title: Kolak), successor state to Birgu
  • Dar Sila (actually a wandering group of tribes),

Horn of Africa

• Adal Sultanate, in northwestern Somalia, southern Djibouti, and the Somali, Oromia, and Afar regions of Ethiopia
• the Afar -, Awsa - or Aussa Sultanate, in northeastern Ethiopia
• Harar Sultanate, in eastern Ethiopia
• Ifat Sultanate, in eastern Ethiopia
• Majeerteen Sultanates, in northern Somalia
• Marehan Sultanate, in northern Somalia
• Shewa Sultanate in central Ethiopia
• Warsangali Sultanates, in northern Somalia

East Africa & Indian Ocean

Sultan

• Angoche Sultanate, on the Mozambiquan coast (also several neighbouring sheikdoms)
• various Sultans on the Comoros; however on the Comoros, the normally used styles were alternative native titles, including Mfalme, Phany or Jambé and the 'hegemonic' title Sultani tibe
• the Maore (or Mawuti) sultanate on Mayotte(separated from the Comoros)

Maliki

This was the alternative native style (apparently derived from Malik, the Arabic word for King) of the Sultans of the Kilwa Sultanate, in Tanganyika (presently the continental part of Tanzania)

Swahili sultan

Mfalume is the (Ki)Swahili title of various native Muslim rulers, generally rendered in Arabic and in western languages as Sultan:

• in Kenya:
  • Pate on part of Pate island (capital also named Pate), in the Lamu Archipelago
  • Witu, came under German, then British protectorate
• in Tanganyika (presently part of Tanzania): of Hadimu, on the island of that name; also styled Jembe

Sultani

This was the native ruler's title in the Tanzanian state of Uhehe

West & Central Africa

• in Cameroon:
  • Bamoun (Bamun, 17th cent. founded uniting 17 chieftancies) 1918 becomes a Sultanate, but in 1923 re-divided into the 17 original chieftancies.
  • Bibemi 1770 founded- Rulers first style Lamido to ...., then Sultan
  • Mandara Sultanate since 1715 (replacing Wandala kingdom); 1902 Part of Cameroon
  • Rey Bouba Sultanate founded 1804
• in the Central African Republic:
  • Bangassou created ca.1878; 14 June 1890 under Congo Free State protectorate, 1894 under French protectorate; 1917 Sultanate suppressed by the French.
  • Dar al-Kuti - French protectorate since December 12, 1897
  • Rafai ca.1875 Sultanate, 8 April 8, 1892 under Congo Free State protectorate, March 31 1909 under French protectorate; 1939 Sultanate suppressed
  • Zemio ca.1872 established; December 11 1894 under Congo Free State protectorate, April 12 1909 under French protectorate; 1923 Sultanate suppressed
• in Niger: Arabic alternative title of the following autochthonous rulers:
  • the Amenokal of the Aïr confederation of Tuareg
  • the Sarkin Damagaram since the 1731 founding of the Damagaram state (later capital Zinder)
• in Nigeria most monarchies has a native title; when most in the north converted to Islam, Muslim titles were generally adopted, such as Emir- Sultan has been used in
  • Borno (alongside the native title Mai)
  • since 1817 in Sokoto, the suzerain (also styled Amir al-Mu´minin and Sarkin Musulmi) of all Fulbe jihad states and premier traditiobal Muslim leader in the Sahel (according to some once a Caliph)

Southern Asia

In India:

• Bahmani Sultanate
• Sultanate of Mysore
• Sultanate of Bengal
• the Deccan sultanates: Berar, Bidar, Bijapur, Golconda and Ahmednagar
• Sultanate of Delhi several dynasties, the last (Mughal) became imperial Padshah-i Hind
• Sultanate of Gujarat
• Sultanate of Jaunpur
• Sultanate of Kandesh
• Sultanate of Malwa

In the Maldives:

• Maldives Sultanate

Southeast & East Asia

In Brunei:

• Sultan of Brunei, Brunei (on Borneo island)

In China:

• Dali, Yunnan, capital of the short-lived Panthay Rebellion

Furthermore, the Qa´id Jami al-Muslimin (Leader of the Community of Muslims) of Pingnan Guo ("Pacified South State", a major Islamic rebellious polity in western Yunnan province) is usually referred to in foreign sources as Sultan

In Indonesia (formerly in the Dutch East Indies):

• On Borneo Island
  • Sultanate of Banjar
  • Sultanate of Berau
  • Sultanate of Bulungan
  • Sultanate of Gunung Tabur
  • Sultanate of Kubu
  • Sultanate of Kutai Kartanegara
  • Sultanate of Mempawah
  • Sultanate of Paser
  • Sultanate of Pontianak
  • Sultanate of Sambaliung
  • Sultanate of Sambas

• On Celebes Island
  • Sultanate of Buton
  • Sultanate of Bone
  • Sultanate of Gowa
  • Sultanate of Luwu
  • Sultanate of Soppeng
  • Sultanate of Wajo

• On Java Island
  • Sultanate of Banten
  • Sultanate of Cirebon- the rulers in three of the four palaces (kraton) from which fractioned Cirebon was ruled: Kraton Kasepuhan, Kraton Kanoman and Kraton Kacirebonan (only in Kraton Kaprabonan the rulers title was Panembahan)
  • Sultanate of Demak
  • Sultanate of Pajang
  • Sumedang Larang Kingdom
  • Sultanate of Mataram
  • Sultanate of Yogyakarta
  • Sultanate of Kasunanan

• on Madura island: Pamekasan

• In the Moluccas Archipelago
  • Kerajaan Tanah Hitu
  • Sultanate of Bacan
  • Sultanate of Ternate
  • Sultanate of Tidore

• In the Nusa Tenggara
  • Sultanate of Bima on Sumbawa island

• on the Riau archipelago: sultanate of Lingga-Riau by secession in 1818 under the expelled sultan of Johore (on Malaya) Sultan Abdul Rahman Muadzam Syah ibni al-Marhum Sultan Mahmud

• In the Sumatra Island
  • Sultanate of Aceh (full style Sultan Berdaulat Zillullah fil-Alam) , which had many vassal states
  • Sultanate of Asahan
  • Awak Sungai, established 17th entury at the split in four of Minangkabau, in 1816 extinguished by Netherlands East Indies colonial government
  • Sultanate of Deli since 1814, earlier Aceh's vassal as Aru
  • Sultanate of Indragiri
  • Sultanate of Langkat since 1817 (previous style Rajah)
  • Sultanate of Palembang (Darussalam), also holding the higher title of Susuhunan
  • Sultanate of Pagaruyung
  • Sultanate of Pelalawan
  • Sultanate of Perlak
  • Sultanate of Riau-Lingga
  • Sultanate of Samudera Pasai
  • Sultanate of Serdang
  • Sultanate of Siak Sri Inderapura

In Malaysia, 9 states out of 13 states are sultanates, all on the Malay peninsula:

• Sultanate of Malacca
• Sultanate of Johor
• Sultanate of Kedah
• Sultanate of Kelantan
• Sultanate of Pahang
• Sultanate of Perak
• Sultanate of Selangor
• Sultanate of Terengganu
• Furthermore, the ruler of Luak Jelebu, one of the constitutive states of the Negeri Sembilan confederation, had the style Sultan in addition to his principal title Undang Luak Jelebu

In the Philippines:

• Sultanate of Buayan
• Sultanate of Maguindanao
• Sultanate of Sulu (Basilan, Palawan and Tawi-Tawi islands and part of -now Malaysian- Sabah on North Borneo)

In Thailand (Siam):

• Sultanate of Pattani

Contemporary sultanates

• Brunei
• Indonesia — Sultan of Yogyakarta Special Region is governor of that province
• Malaysia
  • Note: Sultan is the title of seven (Johor, Kedah, Kelantan, Pahang, Perak, Selangor and Terengganu) of the nine rulers of the Malay states. The federal head of state for all Malaysia, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, is elected (de facto rotated) for five years by and among the hereditary state rulers, but is usually styled "king" in foreign countries; political power, however, lies with the prime minister. See also: Malay titles
• Oman, an Arabian nation, formerly sultanate of Muscat and Oman

Princely and aristocratic titles

In the Ottoman dynastic system, male descendants of the ruling Padishah (in the West also known as Great Sultan), enjoyed a style including Sultan, so this normally Monarchic title is used equivalent to a western prince of the blood: Daulatlu Najabatlu Shahzada Sultan (given name) Hazretleri Effendi; for the Heir Apparent however, the style was Daulatlu Najabatlu Vali Ahad-i-Sultanat (given name) Effendi Hazlatlari, i.e. Crown Prince of the sultanate.

• The sons of Imperial Princesses, excluded from the Ottoman imperial succession, were only styled Sultanzada (given name) Bey-Effendi, i.e. Son of a Prince[ss] of the dynasty.

In certain Muslim states, Sultan was also an aristocratic title, as in the Tartar Astrakhan Khanate

The Sultan Valide'' was the title reserved for the mother of the ruling sultan.

Military rank

In a number of post-caliphal states under Mongol or Turkic rule, there was a feudal type of military hierarchy, often decimal (mainly in larger empires), using originally princely titles (Khan, Malik, Amir) as mere rank denominations.

In the Persian empire, the rank of Sultan was roughly equivalent to a western Captain, socially in the fifth rank class, styled 'Ali Jah

Use in Western Popular Culture

The term Sultan is also used in modern pop vernacular to describe someone who has reached the peak of their profession, the elite of their class.

See also

Other Islamic titles

• Emir (Amir)
• Atabeg
• Bey
• Caliph
• Datu
• Khan, Ilkhan and Khaqan
• Malik
• Mir
• Padishah
• Shah and Shahanshah

Further

• HMS Sultan (Royal Navy)
• Sultan, a GWR Iron Duke Class steam locomotive
• Sultanism (despotism)
• Sultans of Swing

Sources and references

• RoyalArk - see each modern nation, e.g. here the former Persian Empire
• WorldStatesmen - see each present nation