Caliph and caliphate up to 1517 - Encyclopaedia of Islam, THREE
[Article]
Yücesoy, Hayrettin
Leiden
Brill
(7,891 words)
This entry examines the title, conventions, periodisation, and institutions of the caliphate up to 923/ 1517 , when the Ottomans conquered Egypt and relocated the last ʿAbbāsid caliph, al-Mutawakkil III, to Istanbul, their capital. The Arabic word khalīfa (pl. khulafāʾ or khalāʾif ) means literally "successor," "deputy," "vice-gerent," "inheritor," and "substitute." It is used as a title of the leader of the Muslim community after the death of the prophet Muḥammad (10/632). Various forms of the word were used to denote not only the ruler ( khalīfa ) but also his