At a glance
- Era
- Abbasid Fragmentation · The Buyid, Fatimid and Seljuk Era
- Region
- Persia & Central Asia
Politics, governance and authority
Summary
"Khwarazmshah" was the title of the kings of Khwarazm. Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov reports from al-Biruni that 22 Afrighid rulers bore it, and notes that four houses are known to have held it between the fourth and early thirteenth centuries: the Afrighids, the Ma'munids, the Altuntashids and the Anushtegins. 3 1
The title on coins
- On the old Khwarazmian coins the king's name stands with a phrase read as "ruler king" in Old Khwarezmian script; the word Khwarazmshah does not appear. 4
- The first coin to write "Khwarazmshah" in Arabic is the dirham of the Afrighid Ahmad ibn Muhammad of 348/959; on his fulus the titles "shah" and "Khwarazmshah" alternate. 5 6
- On Ma'munid coins the title is joined to others such as "the just king" and "the noble king". 7 8
- The Oghuz ruler Shah Malik struck dirhams as Khwarazmshah in 1041–1043, so the author counts five houses that held the title. 9 2
- The Altuntashids, installed by Mahmud of Ghazna after 1017, have left no known coins. 10
Decline of the title
The author says the title Khwarazmshah appears on no Anushtegin ruler's coin after Il-Arslan: rulers were styled "sultan" because the state had outgrown the geographical limits of Khwarazm, and the title was now given at a provincial level to governing princes. 11 The title "sultan" itself first appears on Khwarazmian coins under Atsiz. 12
Connections
People and things also explored
Qur'anic inscriptions on Islamic coins· Coins of the Khwarazmshah Era (Ismoilov)· Arab-Byzantine and Arab-Sasanian coinage· Coinage of Islamic Khwarazm (8th–13th century)· Agra Fort (Red Fort of Agra)· The leader's eight roles and training in general leadership· Ahl al-Diwan (those paid from the state register of soldiers and officers, and the rules of their conditions and distribution)· Ahl al-Hall wa al-Aqd (those who loose and bind: the men of power whose choice confirms the imam)
Sources
- Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov, Xorazmshohlar davri tangalari (VIII–XIII asr boshlarida) [Coins of the Khwarazmshah era, 8th–early 13th century], Bukhara: Durdona, 2025 , p. 32
- Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov, Xorazmshohlar davri tangalari (VIII–XIII asr boshlarida) [Coins of the Khwarazmshah era, 8th–early 13th century], Bukhara: Durdona, 2025 , p. 224
- Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov, Xorazmshohlar davri tangalari (VIII–XIII asr boshlarida) [Coins of the Khwarazmshah era, 8th–early 13th century], Bukhara: Durdona, 2025 , p. 9
- Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov, Xorazmshohlar davri tangalari (VIII–XIII asr boshlarida) [Coins of the Khwarazmshah era, 8th–early 13th century], Bukhara: Durdona, 2025 , p. 33
- Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov, Xorazmshohlar davri tangalari (VIII–XIII asr boshlarida) [Coins of the Khwarazmshah era, 8th–early 13th century], Bukhara: Durdona, 2025 , p. 10
- Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov, Xorazmshohlar davri tangalari (VIII–XIII asr boshlarida) [Coins of the Khwarazmshah era, 8th–early 13th century], Bukhara: Durdona, 2025 , p. 49
- Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov, Xorazmshohlar davri tangalari (VIII–XIII asr boshlarida) [Coins of the Khwarazmshah era, 8th–early 13th century], Bukhara: Durdona, 2025 , p. 73
- Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov, Xorazmshohlar davri tangalari (VIII–XIII asr boshlarida) [Coins of the Khwarazmshah era, 8th–early 13th century], Bukhara: Durdona, 2025 , p. 76
- Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov, Xorazmshohlar davri tangalari (VIII–XIII asr boshlarida) [Coins of the Khwarazmshah era, 8th–early 13th century], Bukhara: Durdona, 2025 , p. 80
- Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov, Xorazmshohlar davri tangalari (VIII–XIII asr boshlarida) [Coins of the Khwarazmshah era, 8th–early 13th century], Bukhara: Durdona, 2025 , p. 11
- Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov, Xorazmshohlar davri tangalari (VIII–XIII asr boshlarida) [Coins of the Khwarazmshah era, 8th–early 13th century], Bukhara: Durdona, 2025 , p. 117
- Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov, Xorazmshohlar davri tangalari (VIII–XIII asr boshlarida) [Coins of the Khwarazmshah era, 8th–early 13th century], Bukhara: Durdona, 2025 , p. 98
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “Khwarazmshah (title)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/concept/khwarazmshah-title/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-11-04.
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