(Encyclopedia) Hakam II, al-Hakam II, al-äl-häkämˈ [key], 914–76, Umayyad caliph of Córdoba (961–76), son and successor of Abd ar-Rahman III. In the early part of his reign he successfully waged war…
(Encyclopedia) Habash al-HasibHabash al-Hasibhäbäshˈ äl-häsēbˈ [key], d. c.870, Arab mathematician and astronomer. Habash al-Hasib was born in what is now Mary, Turkmenistan, and worked in Baghdad.…
(Encyclopedia) Ghitani, Gamal al-, 1945–2015, Egyptian novelist and journalist. He studied Oriental carpet design and apprenticed as a carpet maker before turning to journalism. A strong supporter of…
(Encyclopedia) Amru al-KaisAmru al-Kaisämˈr&oomacr; äl-kīs [key], fl. 6th cent., Arabic poet. His verse, like much of the poetry of the pre-Islamic period, is intensely subjective and…
(Encyclopedia) Kadhimi, Mustafa al-, 1967–, Iraqi journalist, human-rights activist, government official, and political leader, b. as Mustafa Abdul-Latif Mishatat. A Shia Muslim, he opposed President…
(Encyclopedia) Nizam al-MulkNizam al-Mulknĭzˈəm äl mûlk [key], c.1018–92, vizier (1063–92) under two Seljuk (see Turks) sultans. Of Persian descent, he was early educated in administration, serving…
(Encyclopedia) Mahdi, Sadiq al-, 1936–2020, Sudanese political and religious leader. A descendent of Muhammad Ahmad (see Mahdi), Mahdi succeeded (1964) to the leadership of the Ansar, the Sufi order…
(Encyclopedia) Assad, Bashar al- Assad, Bashar al- bäshärˈ äl-äsˈsäd [key], 1965–, Syrian political leader, son of Hafez al-Assad. A medical doctor, he left Syria (1992) for an…
