caliph
n.n. a leader of the Muslim world who is considered to be the political and religious successor to the prophet Muhammad. This title was used by the leaders of the Islamic empire for many centuries.
n. the supreme political and religious leader of the Islamic world, regarded as the successor to the Prophet Muhammad. Historically used to denote the head of state in various Islamic caliphates.
The caliph ruled over a vast empire that stretched across three continents.
Historians often study the caliphate to understand how Islamic law and governance evolved during the medieval period.
The decline of the caliphate marked a significant shift in the political landscape of the Middle East, leading to the rise of various regional dynasties and the eventual fragmentation of the empire.
From Middle English calife, caliphe, from Old French caliphe, from Medieval Latin calipha, from Arabic خَلِيفَة (ḵalīfa, “caliph”) and خَلِيف (ḵalīf, “successor”).