sultanate · Mesopotamia and Iran

Seljuk Sultanate of Kerman

1041 CE – 1186 CE (approx.) · capital Bardasir

A branch of the Seljuk dynasty that ruled Kerman in south-eastern Iran for nearly 150 years and extended its power across the sea to Oman.

Origins

Qavurt (Qara Arslan), elder brother of Alp Arslan, took the province of Kerman in the 1040s as the Seljuk Empire expanded across Iran. He conquered the mountain tribes of the region and crossed the Gulf to make Oman tributary. He later rebelled against his nephew Malik-Shah and was executed in 1074, but his sons kept Kerman.

Rule and society

The Kerman Seljuks ruled from Bardasir (Kerman city) with Turkish troops and Persian officials. Arslan Shah I (1101 to 1142) presided over a period of prosperity based on trade routes from the Gulf ports of Hormuz and Tiz to Khurasan, and the rulers built mosques, madrasas and caravanserais. The dynasty was largely independent of the main Seljuk line.

Decline and legacy

After Tughril Shah's death in 1170, his sons fought a long civil war, inviting outside intervention. In 1186 Oghuz Turks under Malik Dinar took Kerman, ending the dynasty.

Lineage

Seljuk Empire 1037 CE – 1194 CESeljuk Sultanate of Kerman

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Seljuk Sultanate of Kerman. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/seljuk-sultanate-of-kerman
MLA
“Seljuk Sultanate of Kerman.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/seljuk-sultanate-of-kerman. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Seljuk Sultanate of Kerman.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/seljuk-sultanate-of-kerman.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Seljuk Sultanate of Kerman’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/seljuk-sultanate-of-kerman (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻