Vizier


A vizier is a high-ranking political advisor or minister in the Muslim world. The Abbasid caliphs gave the title wazir to a minister formerly called katib, who was at first merely a helper but afterwards became the representative and successor of the dapir of the Sassanian kings.
In modern usage, the term has been used for government ministers in much of the Middle East and beyond.
Several alternative spellings are used in English, such as vizir, wazir, and vezir.

Etymology

The word entered into English in 1562 from the Turkish vezir, derived from the Arabic وزير wazīr . Wazir itself has two possible etymologies:
The office of vizier arose under the first Abbasid caliphs, and spread across the Muslim world.
The vizier stood between sovereign and subjects, representing the former in all matters touching the latter. The 11th-century legal theorist al-Mawardi defined two types of viziers: wazīr al-tanfīdh, who had limited powers and served to implement the caliph's policies, and the far more powerful wazīr al-tafwīd, with authority over civil and military affairs, and enjoyed the same powers as the caliph, except in the matter of the succession or the appointment of officials. Al-Mawardi stressed that the latter, as an effective viceroy, had to be a Muslim well versed in the Shari'a, whereas the former could also be a non-Muslim or even a slave, although women continued to be expressly barred from the office.
Historically, the term has been used to describe two very different ways: either for a unique position, the prime minister at the head of the monarch's government, or as a shared 'cabinet rank', rather like a British secretary of state. If one such vizier is the prime minister, he may hold the title of Grand Vizier or another title.

In Islamic states

Wazīr is the standard Arabic word for a government minister. Prime ministers are usually termed as Ra'īs al-Wuzara or al-Wazīr al-'Awwal. The latter term is generally found in the Maghreb, while the former is typical of usage in the Mashriq. Thus, for example, the Prime Minister of Egypt is in Arabic a wazīr.
In Brunei the vizier is known as Pengiran Bendahara.
In Iran the ministers of government are called Vazīr in Persian, and prime minister of state before the removal of the post, was called as Nokhost Vazīr.
In Pakistan, the prime minister is called Vazīr-e Azam, other Ministers are styled vazirs.
In India, Vazīr is the official translation of minister in the Urdu language, and is used in ministerial oath taking ceremonies conducted in Urdu.
In East Africa – Kenya and Tanzania, ministers are referred to as Waziri in Swahili and prime ministers as Waziri Mkuu.
In the Nation of Islam, Louis Farrakhan is sometimes given the honorific title of Wazir
In Brunei, Viziers are divided into 5 titles, although two remain vacant since Brunei independence.
It is common, even among historians, to apply relatively contemporary terms to cultures whose own authentic titles are insufficiently known, in this case to pre-Islamic antiquity.
In the rare case of the Indian princely state of Jafarabad, ruled by Thanadars, in 1702 a state called Janjira was founded, with rulers styled wazir; when, in 1762, Jafarabad and Janjira states entered into personal union, both titles were maintained until the higher style of Nawab was assumed.

Art

In contemporary literature and pantomime, the "Grand Vizier" is a character stereotype and is usually portrayed as a scheming backroom plotter and the clear power behind the throne of a usually bumbling or incompetent monarch. A well-known example of this is the sinister character of Jafar in the Disney animated film Aladdin, who plots and uses magic to take over the entire Kingdom of Agrabah under the nose of the nation's naïve sultan, just as Jaffar in the 1940 movie The Thief of Bagdad dethroned his master, caliph Ahmad. Others include Zigzag from The Thief and the Cobbler, the comic book character Iznogoud, Prince Sinbad's advisor Yusuf in the DC Vertigo series Fables, and the villains of the video games Prince of Persia and .
Perhaps the origin of this character archetype is the biblical account of Esther. The book details the rise of a Jewish woman to Queen of Persia, and her role in stopping the plot of Haman, chief advisor to the Persian king, to wipe out all Jews living in Persia.
Throughout history the notion of the sinister Grand Vizier has often been invoked when a political leader appears to be developing a cozy relationship with a spiritual advisor of questionable scruples or talents. This stereotype is frequently mentioned in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, as for example in both Sourcery and Interesting Times. Another instance of a sinister Grand Vizier in entertainment can be found in the science fiction series Lexx, the primary antagonist in the second season being Mantrid, the self-proclaimed "greatest Bio-Vizier of all time."

Some famous viziers in history

In Shatranj, from which modern chess developed, the piece corresponding to the modern chess "queen" was often called Wazīr.
Up to the present, the word for the queen piece in chess is still "vazīr" in Persian, "vezir" in Turkish, "wazir" in Arabic, "vezér" in Hungarian, and "ferz' " in Russian.