Seljuk Empire

Turkmenistan, 1037–1194. Draft, not yet reviewed

The Seljuk Empire was a high medieval, culturally Turco-Persian empire established and ruled by the Qïnïq branch of Oghuz Turks. The Seljuk Empire was founded in 1037 by Tughril (990–1063) and his brother Chaghri (989–1060), both of whom co-ruled over its territories. Contemporary sources place them in Dehistan/Mishrian, Gyzylarbat, and Nisa, as well as Sarakhs, all in present-day Turkmenistan. The Seljuks were eventually supplanted in the east by the Khwarazmian Empire in 1194 and in the west by the Zengids and Ayyubids.

Seat of power: Merv

No rulers documented for this era yet.

Culture

• In the 11th–12th centuries, Merv was the capital of the Great Seljuk Empire and remained so until its fall.
• Merv turned into a chief centre of Islamic science and culture, attracting as well as producing renowned poets, musicians, physicians, mathematicians and astronomers.
• The great Persian polymath Omar Khayyam, among others, spent a number of years working at the observatory in Merv.

Picture

Merv, also called the Merve Oasis, was a major Iranian city in Central Asia, located on the historical Silk Road, near today's Mary, Turkmenistan.

Image: Kalpak Travel, CC BY-SA 4.0, file

Sources

• Seljuk Empire (Wikipedia)
• Seljuk Empire (Wikidata)
• About the picture (Wikipedia)

Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.