v24_0834 - SAMANIDS - ABD AL MALIK Dinar

SAMANIDS - ABD AL MALIK

(954-961/ A.H. 343-350)

The founder of the dynasty, Saman, was governor of the district of Balk (between Samarkand and Kabul). His successors theoretically remained under the suzerainty of the Caliph of Baghdad, but were practically independent. The Samanid dynasty became the greatest power in Central Asia, ensuring a period of economic wealth and a cultural life rivaling that of Baghdad: among its proteges, Avicenna and Razi (Rhazes). Signs of weakening appeared in the middle of the tenth century CE and the dynasty was easily eliminated (1005) by the Ghaznavids of Afghanistan and the Karakhanids of Turkestan.