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Bohtan
Bohtan
1161/1247/1335–1855
	Botan emirate shown in 1730 Ottens Map as "Regnum Bochtanonum"
Status	Sovereign state (before 1514); Vassal of the Ottoman Empire;
Capital	Cizre
Religion	Yazidism, Sunni Islam (from 14th century)
Government	Principality
Mir
• 1821–1847	Bedir Khan Beg (last)
History
• Established	1161/1247/1335
• Disestablished	1855
Preceded by	Succeeded by
	Zengid dynasty
	Ayyubid Sultanate
Ottoman Empire
Today part of	Turkey, Al-Hasakah Governorate, Iraq

Bohtan (also Buhtan, Bokhti, Botan, Cizre-Botan, Bokhtan) was a medieval Kurdish principality in the Ottoman Empire centered on the town of Jazirah ibn 'Omar (modern Cizre also known as Cizîra Botan (Jazira Botan)) in southeastern Anatolia. The official religion of this principality was Yezidism in 14th century, although the rulers eventually converted to Islam, Bohtan constituted the third major Yezidi enclave after Shekhan and Sinjar until the 19th century.^[1]^[2]

History

Origin

It's not fully clear when the Botan Emirate was exactly established. According to Sharafnama, Botan rulers are decscandant of Suleman Khalid, the bokhti tribal chief.^[3] He was succeeded by his eldest son Abdulaziz, and appointed each of his brothers (Mir Abdal and Mir Badir) as Governor of a districts of the emirate. While there's no recorded date on when it was established, Sharafkhan wrote in Sharafnama that the eighth Botan ruler, Mir Ezzaddin Abdal in 1394 went to Mardin to swore his allegiance to Timur.^[3] Kurdish historians conflict on the exact date of Botan Emirate establishment, according to Anwar Al-Maei, the Emirate was established in 1161 by Abdulaziz succeeding the Zengids rule. While according to Muhammad Amin Zaki, the Botan Emirate was established in 1247.^[4]

Early years

Cizre was seized by the Bohtan tribe in 1336/1337 with the aid of al-Ashraf, Ayyubid Emir of Hisn Kayfa.^[5] In the 1330s, Hamdallah Mustawfi in Nuzhat Al Qulub reported that Jazirat Ibn ʿUmar had an annual revenue of 170,200 dinars.^[6] The emirate of Hisn Kayfa had aimed to control Jazirat Ibn ʿUmar through the Bohtan clan in providing military assistance to its capture and the marriage of a daughter to Izz ed-Din, Emir of Bohtan, but this was unsuccessful as the Bohtan emirate developed the city and consolidated their rule, and eventually the emir of Hisn Kayfa attempted to take Jazirat Ibn ʿUmar by force in 1384/1385, but was repelled. ^[5]

The principality ruled over an area extending from Diyarbakir to Van and from Rawanduz to Sinjar at its peak.^[7] The first governors of Bohtan, were from the Azizan family, who originally followed Yezidism^[8]^[9] later converted to Sunni Islam^[9] and were related to the Governors of the Principality of Bitlis.^[10] Following their role in the Ottoman defeat of the Safavids in the Battle of Çaldiran in 1514,^[10] Bohtan was granted the status of a Hükümet, and it became a hereditary Kurdish principality within the Ottoman Empire.^[11]

Bedirxan beg's reign

An important Mir of Bohtan was Bedir Khan Bey, who succeeded Mir Seyfeddin.^[12] Bedir Khan Bey was Mîr of the principality between 1821 and 1847.^[7] He reformed the military forces in establishing an elite force consistent with members of the several tribes within the emirate^[13] ^[14]which brought security into Bohtan.^[15] According to European diplomats in the region, he even tested if the regional chief was observant enough.^[15] He would try to raid a tribe by night, and if he succeeded he would punish the tribal chief in whose territory the robbery was successful.^[15] He then returned what he had robbed the night before.^[15]

The security standard in Bohtan was such, that it encouraged the population of neighboring provinces to move into the territory under Bedir Khans control.^[16] This led to the opposition by the Ottoman Vali of Mosul, who demanded an end to the emigration of the habitants from the Mosul province to Bohtan.^[16] Following, Bedir Khan expelled 2000 immigrants who settled into Bohtan during the Governorship of Mehmet Pasha in Mosul,^[16] but they returned after four years.^[16] The renewed emigration lead the Vali of Mosul Mehmet Şerif Pasha to file a report against Bedir Khan, who in 1847 had to agree to bring an end to the immigration of foreigners in Bohtan.^[16] Bedir Khan Bey resigned after an unsuccessful uprising against the Ottoman Empire and following, Bohtan lost its independence.^[7]