Sarjun ibn Mansur

Sarjun (Sargun) ibn Mansur was a high Christian official living in the 7th century at the court of the Umayyads . He is referred to as Sergios, son of Mansur in the Greek Chronicle of Theophanes , one of the most important sources for the second half of the 7th century regarding the Arab conquest in the eastern Mediterranean .

There are relatively few sources about Sarjun's life. He came from a respected Syrian family and was evidently a Christian, but nonetheless a high official at the court of the Caliph Muʿāwiya I. After the conquests from the middle of the 7th century, the Arabs were dependent on the effective administration in the former Byzantine areas, where the majority of the population was Christian for a long time; For this reason, the caliphs initially relied on suitably qualified officials.

Sarjun enjoyed the trust of Muʿāwiyas, as his secretary ( katib ) and probably the chief financial officer he acted. He also served Yazid I , with whom he was probably known for a long time, as he and the well-known Umayyad court poet al-Akhtal (who was also a Christian) were table companions of the later caliph. It can be assumed that Sarjun's family was familiar with or worked for the Eastern Roman administration as early as the end of late antiquity . He apparently had considerable influence at the court of the caliphs and campaigned for the interests of the Christian population in the caliphate's empire. He was involved in preventing Abd al-Malik from using parts of the columns from Gethsemane for an Islamic shrine. Theophanes, who narrates this, further reports that Sarjun also had good contacts with Abd al-Malik.

Sarjun is represented positively in the Chronicle of Theophanes, who could indirectly rely on the important chronicle of Theophilos of Edessa for these descriptions . The portrayal of Sarjun's father Mansur in other Christian sources is, however, more unfavorable, for example in the annals of Eutychios of Alexandria ; there Mansur is accused of treason against the Christians of the city of Damascus when he was involved in the surrender of the city (see Conquest of Damascus (635) ).

Sarjun's family was apparently very wealthy; he himself owned properties in Syria, Palestine and Arabia, among others. His son was later known as John of Damascus . Sarjun also had him educated as a Christian and Johannes also served as a high-ranking secretary to the caliph for some time. Around 700, however, many Christian officials lost their previously influential posts in the caliphate when new regulations apparently prescribed for people of the Muslim faith, although this was not always implemented consistently.

literature

• Sidney H. Griffith: The Mansur Family and Saint John of Damascus. Christians and Muslims in Umayyad Times. In: Antoine Borrut, Fred M. Donner (Eds.): Christians and Others in the Umayyad State. The Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, Chicago 2016, pp. 29–51.
• Sarğūn ibn Manṣūr ar-Rūmī, No. 6510. In: Prosopography of the Middle Byzantine Period Online ( online article ).

Remarks

1. ↑ See also the general contributions in Antoine Borrut, Fred M. Donner (Ed.): Christians and Others in the Umayyad State. Chicago 2016.
2. ↑ See for life Sarjuns and his family background summary Sidney H. Griffith: The Mansur Family and Saint John of Damascus. Christians and Muslims in Umayyad Times. In: Antoine Borrut, Fred M. Donner (Eds.): Christians and Others in the Umayyad State. Chicago 2016, pp. 30-32.
3. ↑ Cf. Andreas Kaplony: Konstantinopel and Damascus. Embassies and treaties between emperors and caliphs 639-750. Berlin 1996, pp. 137-139.
4. ^ Theophanes, AM 6183.
5. ↑ See Sidney H. Griffith: The Mansur Family and Saint John of Damascus. Christians and Muslims in Umayyad Times. In: Antoine Borrut, Fred M. Donner (Eds.): Christians and Others in the Umayyad State. Chicago 2016, p. 29f.
6. ↑ Wolfgang Kallfelz: Non-Muslim subjects in Islam. Wiesbaden 1995, p. 49f.