Emir
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2008-07-13T14:03:18Z
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[[Image:Sher Ali Khan of Afghanistan in 1869.jpg|thumb|200px|[[Sher Ali Khan]], [[List of leaders of Afghanistan|Emir of Afghanistan]], posing for a portrait in 1869.]]
{{otheruses|Amir (disambiguation)}}
'''Emir''' ([[Arabic language|Arabic]]: '''{{lang|ar|أمير}}'''; ''{{ArabDIN|amīrah}}'', ''{{ArabDIN|ãmir}}'', ([[Persian Language|Persian]]/[[Urdu language|Urdu]]: ''' امیر ''') "commander" or "general", also "prince" ; also transliterated as '''amir''', '''aamir''' or '''ameer''') is a high [[Nobility|title of nobility]] or office, used throughout the [[Arab World]], and, historically, in some [[Turkic peoples|Turkic]] states. Emirs are usually considered high-ranking sheiks, but in monarchical states the term is also used for princes, with "Emirate" being analogous to [[principality]] in this sense.
While ''emir'' is the predominant spelling in English and many other languages (for example, [[United Arab Emirates]]), ''amir'', closer to the original Arabic, is more common for its numerous compounds (e.g., admiral) and in individual names. Spelling thus differs depending on the sources consulted.
==Origins==
''Amir'', meaning "chieftain" or "commander", is derived from the Arabic [[triconsonantal|root]] ''{{ArabDIN|Amr}}'', "command". Originally simply meaning commander or leader, usually in reference to a group of people, it came to be used as a title of governors or rulers, usually in smaller states, and in modern Arabic usually renders the English word "prince." The word entered English in 1595, from the [[French language|French]] ''émir''. <ref>http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=amir&searchmode=none EtymologyOnLine</ref> It was one of the titles or names of the [[Islamic]] prophet [[Muhammad]].
==Princely, ministerial and noble titles==
[[Image:Prokudin-Gorskii-19-v2.png|thumb|[[Mohammed Alim Khan]], Emir of Bukhara, taken in 1911 by [[Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky]].]]
[[Image:AleppoEmirMudhem.jpg|thumb|Emir Mejhem ibn Meheid and sons, 1920.]]
*The [[caliph]]s first used the title '''[[Amir al-Muminin]]''' ("Commander of the Faithful"), stressing their leadership over all Islam, especially in the military form of [[jihad]]; both this command and the title have been assumed by various other Muslim rulers, including sultans and emirs.
*The Abbasid (in theory still universal) Caliph [[Ar-Radi]] created the post of [[Amir al-Umara]] ("Amir of the Amirs") for his – in fact governing – [[Wasir]] (chief minister) [[Ibn Raik]]; the title was used in various Islamic monarchies; cfr. infra for military use
*In [[Lebanon]], the ruling Emir formally used the style '''al-Amir al-[[Hakim]]''' since, specifying it was still a ruler's title, but now as part of the Ottoman Empire; unchanged when in 1698 the Banu Shihab replaced the Banu Ma'n dynasty and on 27 May 1832 was annexed by [[khedival]] Egypt (both nominally Ottoman), but Ottoman rule was restored on October 10, 1840, until the Mount Lebanon emirate ended on January 16, 1842, as the Ottoman Sultans divided their Lebanese province administratively, creating a Christian district in the north and an area under [[Druze]] control in the south.
*The word Emir is also used less formally for leaders in certain contexts, for example the leader of a group of pilgrims to [[Mecca]] is called an ''emir hadji'', a style sometimes used by ruling princes (as a mark of Muslim piety), sometimes awarded in their name. Where an adjectival form is necessary, "emiral" suffices.
*''Amirzada'', the son (hence the Persian patronymic suffix ''-zade'') of a [[prince]], hence the Persian princely title ''[[Mirza]]''.
==Military ranks and titles==
[[Image:Bokhara1909.jpg|thumb|right|Entrance to the Amir's palace in [[Bukhara]]. From a photograph taken ca. 1912 by [[Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii]].]]
From the start, Emir has been a military title, roughly meaning "general" or "commander."
The Western naval rank "[[admiral]]" comes from the Arabic naval title ''amir al-bahr'', ''general at sea'', which has been used for naval commanders and occasionally the [[Minister of Marine|Ministers of Marine]].
In certain decimally-organized Muslim armies, Amir was an officer rank; e.g. in [[Mughal India]] Amirs commanded 1000 horsemen (divided into ten units, each under a [[Sipah salar]]), ten of them under one [[Malik]].
In the imperial army of Qajar Persia:
*''Amir-i-Nuyan'', [[Lieutenant general]]
*''Amir Panj'', "Commander of 5,000" ([[Brigadier general]])
*''Amir-i-Tuman'', "Commander of 10,000' ([[Major general]])
*''Amir ul-Umara'', "Amir of Amirs" (cfr. supra) or 'Commander of Commanders'
In the former [[History of Afghanistan|Kingdom of Afghanistan]], ''Amir-i-Kabir'' was a title meaning "great prince" or "great commander."
==Other uses==
*'''Amir-i-Il''' designates the head of an [[Il (tribe)|Il]] (tribe) in imperial Persia.
*Amir is a Jewish name. Emir is also a common Muslim male name for Arab and non-Arab Muslims (Bosnia, Iran), taken from [[Arabic language|Arabic]] just as the Western name Rex ("king") is borrowed from [[Latin]]. In [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] female-name [[Emira]] – often interpreted as "princess" – is a derivative of male-name Emir.
==See also==
===Specific emirates of note===
*[[List of emirs of Harar]]
*[[List of emirs of Kuwait]]
*[[List of emirs of Qatar]]
* Emirs d'Armènia [[http://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Categoria:Emirs_d%27Arm%C3%A8nia]]
===Islamic titles===
*[[Amir al-Muminin]]
*[[Bey]]
*[[Caliph]]
*[[Mahdi]]
*[[Mir (title)|Mir]], itself used in various compounds
*[[Mirza]], literally "son of an Emir"
*[[Sheikh]]
*[[Sayyid]]
*[[Sultan]]
*[[Umrao]]
===Emirs in fiction===
*[[Abdul Abulbul Amir]] character & song
==Sources and references==
<references />
*[http://www.worldstatesmen.org/Religious_Organizations.html#Caliphate WorldStatesmen] Here Religious Organisations - see also many present Muslim countries
[[Category:Emirs|*]]
[[Category:Executive ministers]]
[[Category:Gubernatorial titles]]
[[Category:Heads of state]]
[[Category:Sharia]]
[[Category:Military ranks]]
[[Category:Noble titles]]
[[Category:Religious leadership roles]]
[[Category:Royal titles]]
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[[Category:Turkish surnames]]
[[Category:Urdu names]]
[[Category:Persian surnames]]
[[Category:Court titles]]
[[Category:Titles in Afghanistan]]
[[Category:Titles in Pakistan]]
[[Category:Titles in Iran]]
[[Category:Turkish titles]]
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