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For the astronomical catalog, see VizieR. A Vizier ( - wazīr) (sometimes also spelled Vazir Vizir Vasir Wazir Vesir, or Vezir - grammatical vowel changes are common in many western Asian


A Vizier (Persian: وزير - wazīr) (sometimes also spelled Vazir, Vizir, Vasir, Wazir, Vesir, or Vezir - grammatical vowel changes are common in many oriental languages), literally "burden-bearer" or "helper", is a term, originally Persian, for a high-ranking political (and sometimes religious) advisor or minister, often to a Muslim monarch such as a Caliph, Amir, Malik (king) or Sultan. The Caliph is the Head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the leader of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah Emir ( Arabic: ar أمير;, female أميرة; emira;) ( Farsi and Urdu: امیر) Malik (ملك) as an Arabic word meaning " king " It has been adopted in various other mainly Asian languages for their ruling princes and to Sultan (سلطان is an Islamic title with several historical meanings

In modern usage the term has been used in the Middle East generally for certain important officials under the sovereign. It is also used anachronistically in a modern Islamic republic's cabinet, and to describe pre-islamic offices. Islamic Republic is the name given to several states in the Muslim world including the Islamic Republics of Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Mauritania A cabinet is a body of high-ranking members of Government, typically representing the executive branch.

Contents

Etymology

The Middle Persian ancestor of this word in Pahlavi is vichir, which in turn originated from Avestan vichira, meaning decreer or arbitrator. Middle Persian is the Middle Iranian language/ethnolect of Southwestern Iran that during Sassanid times (224-654 CE became a Prestige dialect Avestan is an Eastern Old Iranian language that was used to compose the sacred hymns and canon of the Zoroastrian Avesta. [1] Linguistically, it is related to the Latin word Vicarius. Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Vicarius is a Latin word meaning substitute or deputy. It is the root and origin of the English word " Vicar " and Cognate to the Persian This word entered English in 1562, from the Turkish vezir ("counsellor"), from the Arabic wazir, literally "one who bears (the burden of office)", whose root word is wazara "he carried", perhaps itself from the Persian vazier.

Historical ministerial titles

The Muslim office of vizier, which spread from the Persians to the Arabs, Turks, Mongols and neighbouring peoples (regardless of the style of the ruler), arose under the first Abbasid caliphs and took shape during its tenure by the Barmecides as the chief minister or representative of the caliph. The Barmakids ( Persian: برمکیان Barmakīyān; Arabic: البرامكة al-barāmika, also called Barmecides The Caliph is the Head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the leader of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah The vizier stood between sovereign and subjects, representing the former in all matters touching the latter. This withdrawal of the head of the state from direct contact with his people was unknown to the Omayyads, and was certainly an imitation of Persian usage. It has even been plausibly conjectured that the name is simply the Arabic adaptation of a pre-Islamic Persian title, vichir (Middle Persian for Vizier), who was a minister to the Shah. The Persian Empire was a series of Iranian empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau, the original Persian homeland and beyond in Western Asia Middle Persian is the Middle Iranian language/ethnolect of Southwestern Iran that during Sassanid times (224-654 CE became a Prestige dialect Shah is an Iranian term for a Monarch (leader that has been adopted in many other languages According to Klein, the Arabic word wazir is derived from Avestan vicira "arbitrator, judge" and replaced the Arabic kātib, "writer" in the sense of "secretary of state". Avestan is an Eastern Old Iranian language that was used to compose the sacred hymns and canon of the Zoroastrian Avesta. On account of Egypt's later association with Arab civilization, the term "vizier" is also retronymically applied to advisors and ministers of the Pharaoh. Ancient Egypt was an Ancient Civilization in eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now A retronym is a type of Neologism coined for an old object or concept whose original name has come to be used for something else is no longer unique or is otherwise inappropriate Pharaoh is the title given in modern parlance to the ancient Egyptian kings of all periods

However, the term has been used in two very different ways: either for a unique position, the prime minister at the head of the monarch's government (the term Grand Vizier always refers to such a post), or as a shared 'cabinet rank', rather like a British secretary of state. Grand Vizier, in Turkish Sadr-ı Azam ( Sadrazam) or Serdar-ı Ekrem (in Ottoman Turkish: صدر اعظم or وزیر اعظم Secretary of State is a commonly used title for a Government Official. If one such vizier is the prime minister, he may hold the title of Grand Vizier or another title.

In some Muslim societies, unsuccessful viziers were commonly eliminated — justifiably or as scapegoats. This was particularly common during much of Ottoman history; for example, one of the most brutal sultans, Selim I, had seven viziers executed during his eight-year rule; others were not deposed but merely demoted; and some even returned to office. Selim I ( Ottoman: سليم الأول, Turkish: ISelim; also known as "the Grim" or "the Brave" Yavuz in

In Islamic states

Modern post-monarchy use

In Pakistan, the Prime Minister (de facto ruling politician, formally under the President) is called Vazīr-e Azam (Persian for Grand vizier), other Ministers are styled vazirs. Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and Grand Vizier, in Turkish Sadr-ı Azam ( Sadrazam) or Serdar-ı Ekrem (in Ottoman Turkish: صدر اعظم or وزیر اعظم In Iran the term Vazīr is equivalent to minister, e. g. foreign/health Vazīr.

Furthermore, wazīr is the standard Arabic word for a minister (itself a Latin word for 'servant', originally of the monarch, later of the state eitherway); Prime Ministers are usually termed Ra'īs al-Wuzara (Head of the Ministers) or Wazīr al-Kabīr (Great Minister). Arabic (ar الْعَرَبيّة (informally ar عَرَبيْ) in terms of the number of speakers is the largest living member of the Semitic language Thus, for example, the Prime Minister of Egypt is in Arabic a wazīr. The Prime Minister of Egypt ( Arabic: رئيس الوزراء المصرى, رئيس الحكومة is the head of the Egyptian government

In the Nation of Islam, Louis Farrakhan is sometimes given the honorific of Wazir. The Nation of Islam ( NOI) (أمة الإسلام Ummah al-Islāmu) is a group founded in Detroit, Michigan, Louis Farrakhan (born Louis Eugene Walcott, May 11, 1933) is the Supreme Minister of the Nation of Islam as the National Representative

Anachronistic historical use

It is common, even among historians, to apply 'modern' terms to cultures whose own authentic titles are (or were when the habit took root) insufficiently known, in this case to pre-Islamic Antiquity.

Thus in modern language-translations of the Bible, in Genesis chapter 41, Joseph, the eleventh son of Jacob, is called Vizier to Pharaoh. Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word bible is from Latin biblia, traced from the same word through Medieval Latin and Late Latin Jacob ( Hebrew: יַעֲקֹב, Standard   Yaʿaqov Tiberian   Yaʿăqōḇ; Pharaoh is the title given in modern parlance to the ancient Egyptian kings of all periods In this same chapter of Genesis, Pharaoh changed his newly appointed Vizier's name to Zaphenath-paneah. Joseph or Yosef (יוֹסֵ Standard Yosef Tiberian Yôsēp̄, يوسف Yusuf; "He

Princely title

In the rare case of the Indian princely state of Jafarabad (Jafrabad, founded c. 1650), ruled by Thanadars, in 1702 a state called Janjira was founded, with rulers (six incumbents) styled wazir; when, in 1762, Jafarabad and Janjira states entered into personal union, both titles were maintained until (after 1825) the higher style of Nawab was assumed. Murud-Janjira is the local name for a fort situated at the coastal village of Murud in the Raigad district of Maharashtra, India. A Nawab or Nawaab ( Urdu: نواب Hindi: नवाब was originally the Subedar (provincial governor or viceroy of a

Art

In contemporary literature and pantomime, the "Grand Vizier" is a character stereotype and is usually portrayed as a scheming backroom plotter and the clear power behind the throne of a usually bumbling or incompetent monarch. Pantomime (informally panto) (not to be confused with a Mime artist, referring to a theatrical performer of mime is a performance genre traditionally found A stereotype (from Greek: stereo + týpos = "solid impression" is a generalized perception of first impressions behaviors presumed by a group The phrase power behind the throne refers to a person or group that informally exercises the real power of an office A well-known example of this is the sinister character of Jafar in the Disney animated film Aladdin, who plots and uses magic to take over the entire Kingdom of Agrabah under the nose of the nation's naïve sultan, just as Jaffar in the 1940 movie The Thief of Bagdad dethroned his master, caliph Ahmad. Jafar ( Arabic: جعفر) is a Fictional character, voiced by Jonathan Freeman, and is featured as the primary Antagonist in the Aladdin is a 1992 animated feature produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation, and released by Walt Disney Pictures on November 25 The Thief of Bagdad is a British 1940 fantasy film directed by Ludwig Berger, Michael Powell and Tim Whelan, with uncredited contributions by Others include Zigzag from The Thief and the Cobbler (the original inspiration for the character of Jafar in Disney's Aladdin), the comic book character Iznogoud, Prince Sinbad's advisor Yusuf in the DC Vertigo series Fables, and the villains of the video games Prince of Persia and King's Quest VI. "Arabian Knight" redirects here For other uses see Arabian Nights (disambiguation. Iznogoud (pronounced "is no good" with a French accent) is a French Comics series featuring an Eponymous character Vertigo is an Imprint of the American Comic-book publisher DC Comics. A video game is a Game that involves interaction with a User interface to generate visual feedback on a video device. Prince of Persia is an action-adventure Video game series created by Jordan Mechner. King's Quest VI Heir Today Gone Tomorrow is the sixth installment in the King's Quest series of Adventure games produced by Sierra Entertainment

Perhaps the origin of this character archetype is the biblical account of Esther. Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word bible is from Latin biblia, traced from the same word through Medieval Latin and Late Latin Esther ( born Hadassah, is a queen of Persian Empire in the Hebrew Bible, the queen of Ahasuerus (traditionally identified with Artaxerxes The book details the rise of a Jewish woman to Queen of Persia, and her role in stopping the plot of Haman, chief advisor to the Persian king, to wipe out all Jews living in Persia. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ List of current queens regnant A queen regnant (plural "queens regnant" is qualifying reference to a female Monarch possessing and exercising all of the monarchal The Persian Empire was a series of Iranian empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau, the original Persian homeland and beyond in Western Asia Haman (or Haman the Agagite המן האגגי is an individual who according to Old Testament tradition was a 4th Century BC Persian noble

Throughout history the notion of the sinister Grand Vizier has often been invoked when a political leader appears to be developing a cozy relationship with a spiritual advisor of questionable scruples or talents. This stereotype is frequently mentioned in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, as for example in both Sourcery and Interesting Times. Discworld is a comedic Fantasy Book series by the British author Terry Pratchett, set on the Discworld, a flat Sourcery is the fifth Discworld novel by Terry Pratchett, published in 1988 Interesting Times is the seventeenth Novel in the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett.

Fictional Grand Viziers

Some famous viziers in history

See also

Sources and references

  1. ^ Dehkhoda Dictionary

Dictionary

vizier

-noun

  1. A high-ranking official or minister in an Islamic government, especially in the Ottoman Empire.
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