Ayyubid Sultanate

The Ayyubid Sultanate (Arabic: الأيوبيون al-Ayyūbīyūn; Kurdish: ئەیووبیەکان, Eyûbiyan) was a Sunni Muslim dynasty of Kurdish origin that ruled Egypt, Syria, the Jazira and the Yemen in the 12th and 13th centuries. The name of the dynasty is attributed to Ayyub b. Shadhi, the father of Saladin. The Ayyūbids played a significant role in the history of the region, notably ending Fatimid, uniting Syria and Egypt, and defeating the Crusaders.    

Saladin, founder of the dynasty, was Kurdish and the former vizier of Fatimid Caliphate.

 Kurd or Arab? 
Bosworth states that the Ayyubids belonged to the Hadhbani tribe of the Kurds, but argues that the Ayyubids were considerably Arabized. 

Humphreys also identifies Saladin as a Kurd and the Ayyubids as a Kurdish family. He argues that the Ayyubids were not specifically a Kurdish state, and that at the level of political structure, the governing attitudes of the Ayyubid confederation were not significantly different from those of previous Arab states such as the Abbasids and Fatimids, which can certainly be attributed to the political institutions of their original homeland. Humphreys takes into account Minorsky's speculations on the "Arab origins" of the Ayyubids. 

Tabaa, on the other hand, argues that over time the Ayyubids drastically moved away from their Kurdish origins and became decidedly Arabized. 

 Medieval historiography 
Various medieval historians spoke of Saladin's Kurdishness:

Minhaj-i Siraj Juzjani (1193–1266) at Tabaqat-i Nasiri:  

The Chronography of Bar Habraeus (1225–1286):

Ibn Khallikan (1211–1282) at Wafayat al-Ayan:

 References 

 Sources 








 Notes 

Category:History of Islam
Category:Kurdistan
Category:History of the Middle East
Category:Royal dynasties
Category:Former countries in the Middle East
Category:Former countries in Africa
Category:1170s establishments
Category:12th-century establishments in Asia
Category:12th-century establishments in Africa
Category:1260s disestablishments
Category:History of Nubia
Category:13th-century disestablishments in Asia
Category:2nd-millennium disestablishments in Africa
Category:1340s disestablishments