Mixing
Mansura, Sindh
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منصورہ (in Urdu) | |
 Coins during the rule of Amirs of Sind, c. 257 -- 421 AH / c. 870 -- 1030 AD | |
  Shown within Sindh Show map of Sindh  Mansura, Sindh (Pakistan) Show map of Pakistan | |
| Location | Sanghar District, Sindh, Pakistan |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 25°52′52″N 68°46′37″E / 25.88111°N 68.77694°E / 25.88111; 68.77694Coordinates: 25°52′52″N 68°46′37″E / 25.88111°N 68.77694°E / 25.88111; 68.77694 |
| Type | Settlement/Capital City |
| Part of | Umayyad Caliphate in Sindh |
| History | |
| Periods | 8th Century |
| Cultures | Umayyad Caliphate in Sindh |
Mansura (Arabic: المنصورة, al-manṣūrah) a.k.a. Brahmnabad, was the historic capital of the Muslim Calihpate in Sindh, during the eighth century under the Umayyad Caliphate[1] from the year 711 AD to 1006 AD. The city was founded as a central garrison by the Umayyad Forces in Sindh, the city transformed into a very vibrant metropolis during the Abbasid Era surpassing the wealth of Multan in the north and Debal in the south.
The Arabs established the city of Mansura, Sindh and Debal these two cities became major cultural, economic centers in Sindh.
Mansura was built on the shores of the Indus River, it was surrounded by fertile farmland, Ibn Hauqal mentioned the wealthy local merchants who wore Baghdad Costume and were of Sindhi-Arab origins, houses were made of clay, baked bricks and plaster.
A Sindhi trade caravan
Mansura exported herbs and spices, textiles, ivory, metals and mirrors to Baghdad. There were some renowned educational institutions in the city, Mansura produced the first translation of the Quran in the Sindhi language, it was used widely throughout the Indus region. The city was the hometown of famous historical figures such as Sind ibn Ali he introduced the Arabic numerals and the Zij al-Sindhind; Abu Mashar Sindhi is described by many historians and chroniclers as a pioneer in the compilation of Hadith; Abu Raja Sindhi lived in Baghdad and engaged in scientific and literary pursuits they translated a large number of ancient books of South Asia on mathematics, astronomy, astrology, medicine, literature and ethics into Arabic.
According to geologists an earthquake struck both Debal and Mansura in the year 893.AD, the city was later ruled by the Soomro Emirs. Mansura was sacked by the forces of Mahmud of Ghazni because the inhabitants feared his reputation and refused to open the gates. The city never recovered and its Soomro Emirs were deposed.
The city now lies 8 miles (13 km) south-east of Shahdadpur, Pakistan, and 43 miles (69 km) north-east of Hyderabad.[citation needed]
Contents
1 History
2 Modern ruins
3 Etymology
4 See also
5 References
6 Further reading
History
The city was constructed by Khalid ibn Barmak (705–782), a member of the Persian Barmakids family. The city holds an important position in Muslim history as the first to be built by Arabs according to the principles of town-planning.[citation needed] Seventeen years later, lessons learned in Mansura were applied in Baghdad where there were once numerous Sindhi inspired buildings and monuments.
Mansura's history began under the Umayyad Caliphs, when Muslim Arabs attempted to conquer the frontier kingdoms of India, Kabul, Zabul, and Sindh. In the early 8th Century, with the Kingdom of Sindh convulsed by internal strife, the Arabs seized their chance and renewed their attacks. Thereafter it was captured by Muhammad ibn Qasim, nephew of al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf, the governor of Iraq and Khurasan with the Arab Muslim army now known as Arain .Qasim's successors attempted to expand from Sindh into the Punjab and other regions. Al-Masudi ascribed the foundation of the city to Governor Mansur ibn Jamhur, the last Umayyad governor of Sindh. Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, who belonged to the Banu Habar tribe, the clan of Banu Asad, was the first governor of al-Mansura. Under the Caliphate of al-Mansur, Khalid was appointed governor of Fars and, after helping obtain Prince Isa ibn Musa's renunciation of his succession to the caliphate in 765, became governor of Tabaristan. Around the same time, his son Yahya ibn Khalid, was appointed governor of Adharbayjan.
According to historians[clarification needed Who?], Mansura was a beautiful town with vast orchards of mangoes and groves of date palms. Today the ruins of Mansura are spread over an area 4 miles (6.4 km) in circumference near the modern city of Shahdadpur. The most significant ruin found in Mansura is the large courtyard of a Jamia Masjid (mosque), while the remains of temples destroyed by the Muslims were re-used to build mosques, leaving no remains other than a small temple structure called a deri (or deval).
Modern ruins
The city lies upon the open sandy plain amongst rolling heaps of brick debris, crisscrossed with the depressions of its original streets and surrounded by the ruins of its once massive walls and bastions. Shaped like a boot with the sole facing north-west and the leg stretching south-east, the whole area has a circumference of 5.75 miles (9.25 km). Apart from a considerable area towards the south-east end, the whole space is covered with billowing mounds of brick ruins. Nothing now stands above the surface, except in one place, where an unrecognizable tower-like core of brick masonry remains. There is a total absence of stone masonry of any kind, but lumps of charred wood dotted here and there indicate the former presence of woodwork. The cement used in the brickwork appears to have been mud which forms the greater mass of the present mounds.[citation needed]
As per historian Rahimdad Khan Molai Shedai,"Brahmanabad town was located within 4 miles area, where in the temple named Nu Wihar there was an idol of Buddah.In various history books on Sindh said temple was also written as Nu Bahar which is varied form of Nu Wihar. As Byblion temple priests were astrologers or fortune tellers like priests of Brahmanabad were also great astrologers.The staunch Brahaman king like Chach had to kneel before them and constrained to renovate the temple. The number of the priests in the town was around 1000'.[2]
Etymology
The name Brahmanabad too was a misnomer and is primarily based upon the assumption that it was the place where Brahmans were concentrated. It is a combination of Brahman and Abad. Abad means settled and is a Persian word. It is simply impossible that the Brahmans could have named the city Brahmanabad using a Persian suffix because the indigenous Sindhi language, or its previous regional dialects, was rich with many such words as waahn, wasti, waari, etc. In fact the city was established earlier than the Brahman occupation of, and settlement in, the site, by the Persian Sassanid King Bahmanwa. This information is based on the historical works of Maj Raverti, a prominent historian on the North Western parts of India, particularly, Sindh.
See also
- Khafif
- Barmakids
- Debal
- Multan
- Abbasid Era
- Zij al-Sindhind
- Abu Mashar Sindhi
- Sind ibn Ali
- Ibn Hauqal
- Soomro Dynasty
References
^ Hussain, Irshad. (1989). Mansurah - The First Capital of Muslims in Sindh. Journal of the Pakistan Historical Society 37(3): 293-303.
^ Rahimdad Khan Molai Shedai; Janat ul Sindh, 3rd edition, 1993, page 63;Sindhi Adbi Board, Jamshoro
Further reading
- Avari, B. (2012). Islamic civilization in South Asia: A history of Muslim power and presence in the Indian subcontinent. London: Routledge.
- Rashid, N. (1998). Al-Mansurah-The Lost City. Journal of the Pakistan Historical Society 46(4).
- Mansura Archaeological Site Photo
- Sindh Archaeology
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