Lord Saladin : Kurdish or Cuman ?

Originally posted by Urungu Han He was clearly Turkic,His uncle was a Turkic chief anmed Nureddin Mahmud Zengi.

Saladin was a Kurd of a Kurdish dynasty. He did not really come from a distinguished background, but his uncle Shirkuh served as a general under the Turkic Nur ad-Din, son of the infamous Zengi and thus a  member of what we term the Zengid dynasty, a dynasty that rose to prominence from their positions as atabegs of Mosul and Aleppo. Shirkuh and Saladin however, were from what we term the Ayyubid dynasty, a Kurdish dynasty that gained power through their role as commanders of Kurdish heavy cavalry under Turkic generals like the Zengids.

Let me explain how it transpired. Egypt, at this time ruled by the Fatimids, was hard pressed by the Kingdom of Jerusalem. During the reign of king Baldwin III the Fatimid Caliph had agreed to pay the king of Jerusalem tribute, but all of a sudden this tribute was no longer forthcoming, and the present king, Amalric I, invaded Egypt. The Fatimids appealed to Nur ad-din for help, at this time the most powerful potentate in the middle east. Nur ad-Din sent his Kurdish general Shirkuh to take care of the matter, which he did, forcing Amalric I to retreat while at the same time securing full control of Egypt for Nur ad-Din. Saladin, Shirkuh's nephew, was the man chosen to act as Vizier for the newly acquired province on Nur ad-Din's behalf. Saladin wasn't as loyal as his uncle however, and once he had Egypt in his power he saw no reason to just hand it over to Nur Ad-Din. Nur ad-Din saw this as a declaration of war of course, preparing to invade Egypt personally and oust Saladin, but before he could do anything about it he was seized by a severe fever and died. Saladin then, sitting safely as the new ruler of Egypt, soon managed to marry Nur ad-Din's widow. Now he emerged as the new leader of Islam, fulfilling Nur ad-Din's vision of Syria and Egypt in an united muslim front against the crusader states, but led by a Kurdish dynasty, the Ayyubids.

ayyubid dyntasy is kurdish? this is not true.all dynasties in that era were Turkic.Kuman or Oghuz Turks.Mameluks were Turkic.you dont deny this right?
 Saladin was also a Mameluk !!!

Man you guys need some real hard evidence and sources to backup the claim he was turk.

Most reputable sources already say hes Kurdish, from Tekrit. Also if hes really a turk, why are all the current Al Ayubi family all kurds?

Don't waste your time arguing with these people.  Records in Arabic state exactly the origins of the ayyubids.  Certain groups make up any myth to deny all things Kurdish in history due to their extremist views against them, part and parcel of seeking to deny their prominence on the land which they have always inhabited.

Edited by Zagros - 10-Sep-2006 at 17:39

Just like Skanderbeg, eh? Nobody can agree, everyone cites yards of figures to "proove" that their hero was 100% of their own extraction.

I am tired of hearing claims without any evidence and reliable sources. In every source I saw about Saladin, he has been clearly mentioned Kurdish.

He wasn't an American? Next you guys will tell me he wasn't even Christian...

yeah, He was an African American. Didn't you know that ?

Edited by sirius99 - 08-Mar-2007 at 01:57

i dont know if he was a turk or a kurd but i know that he would be nothing without turkish soldiers.

Originally posted by Batu ayyubid dyntasy is kurdish? this is not true.all dynasties in that era were Turkic.Kuman or Oghuz Turks.Mameluks were Turkic.you dont deny this right?  Saladin was also a Mameluk !!!