'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 ''sulá¹ah'', 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.
Sultan Bayezid: Ottoman Empire - Oil on Canvas by
Haydar Hatemi-1999
The dynasty and lands ruled by the Sultan is called 'Sultanate' (
Arabic: سلطنة).
Muslim ruler under the terms of ''shariah''
Hussein Kamel, Sultan of
Egypt, 1914-1917.
The title carries moral weight and religious authority, as the ruler's role was defined in the
Qur'an. The Sultan however is not a religious teacher himself. Of course in constitutional monarchies, the sultanship can be reduced to a more limited role.
The first to carry the title of 'Sultan' was the Turkmen chief
Mahmud of Ghazni (ruled
998 -
1030). Later, 'Sultan' became the usual title of rulers of
Seljuk and
Ottoman Turks and
Ayyubid and
Mamluk rulers in
Egypt. In the later stages Sultan was used mostly for the wives of the emperor. The religious validation of the title was illustrated by the fact that the shadow
Caliph in
Cairo bestowed the title "Sultan" on
Murad I, the third ruler of the emerging Ottoman Empire in
1383; its earlier sovereigns had been (protocollary 'mere')
Beys or
Emirs.
At later stages, lesser rulers assumed the style "sultan", as was the case for the earlier leaders of today's royal family of
Morocco. Today, only the
Sultan of Oman, the
Sultan of Brunei (both sovereign nations), the Sultans of
Johor,
Kedah,
Kelantan,
Pahang,
Perak,
Selangor and
Terengganu (of constitutive states of the federation) in
Malaysia, and some titular sultans in Insulinde, a few on the
southern Philippines and
Java (Indonesia) still use the title. The sultan's domain is properly called a 'sultanate'. A feminine form, used by Westerners, is
sultana or sultanah; the very styling misconstrues the roles of wives of sultans. In a similar usage, the wife of a German Field-Marshal might be styled ''Feldmarschallin'' (in French, similar constructions of the type ''madame la maréchalle'' are quite common).
Among those modern hereditary rulers who wish to emphasize their secular authority under the
rule of law, the term is gradually being replaced by 'king' (e.g.
Malik in Arabic).
Compound ruler titles
These are generally secondary titles, either lofty 'poetry' or with a message; e.g.:
★ 'Mani Sultan = Manney Sultan', meaning 'the Pearl or rulers', or less poetically Honoured Monarch, was a subsidiary title, part of the full style of the
Maharaja of
Travancore
★
Sultan of Sultans is the 'sultanic equivalent' of
King of Kings
★ certain secondary titles have a devout Islamic connotation, e.g.
Sultan ul-Mujahidin as champion of
jihad bis saif (holy war to establish Islamic rule)
Former Sultans and Sultanates
Middle East & Central Asia
★
Ghaznavid Sultanate
★
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),
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)
East Africa & Indian Ocean
title Sultan
★
Adal Sultanate, in Eastern Ethiopia (also in Western
Somaliland)
★
Afar Sultanate of
Awsa, in northeastern
Ethiopia
★
Angoche Sultanate, on the Mozambiquan coast (also several neighbouring sheikdoms)
★
Harar Sultanate
★
Ifat Sultanate in Eastern Ethiopia.
★
Northern Somali sultanates
★
Shewa Sultanate in Central Ethiopia
★ 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
Maliki
This was the alternative native style (apparently derived from
Malik, the
Arabic word for King) of the Sultans of
Kilwa Kisiwani, 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
Far East
In
China:
★
Dali, Yunnan province, 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
''Most sultanates were however in the ethnically predominantly Malay countries'':
★
Sultan of Brunei, Brunei (on Borneo island)
In
Malaysia, 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
Indonesia (formerly in the
Dutch East Indies):
★ many on
Sumatra, including
★
★
Sultanate of Aceh (full style Sultan Berdaulat Zillullah fil-Alam) , which had many vassal states
★
★
Asahan
★
★
Awak Sungai, established 17th entury at the split in four of
Minangkabau, in 1816 extinguished by Netherlands East Indies colonial government
★
★
Deli since 1814, earlier Aceh's vassal Aru
★
★
Indragiri
★
★
Langkat since 1817 (previous style Rajah)
★
★
Palembang Darussalam, also holding the higher title of
Susuhunan
★
★
Serdang
★
★
Siak Seri Indrapura
★ some of the many states on populous
Java, including
★
★
Banten
★
★ 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 Mataram,
★ in the
Moluccan archipelago:
★
★
Sultanate of Ternate, in
North Maluku
★
★
Sultanate of Tidore, in North Maluku
★ on
Madura island:
Pamekasan
★ 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
★ on
Sumbawa:
Bima sultanate
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
South Asia
★
Maldives Sultanate
In
India:
★
Bahmani Sultanate
★
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
★
Sultanate of Mysore
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 Mascat (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 'Sultan''zada''' (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
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. For example, the premiere adult film star of the 1970's and 1980's,
John C. Holmes was known as "The Sultan of Smut".
See also
Other Islamic titles
★
Emir (Amir)
★
Atabeg
★
Bey
★
Caliph
★
Datu
★
Ilkhan
★
Khan
★
Khaqan
★
Malik
★
Mir
★
Padishah
★
Shah
★
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
العربية
ä¸å›½
Français
Deutsch
Ελληνική
हिनà¥à¤¦à¥€
Italiano
日本語
Português
РуÑÑкий
Español
