The Iranian Samanid Dynasty of Central Asia and Khorasan

Compiled by: Syed Ali Shahbaz
On 10th of the Islamic month of Zil-Qa'dah in 389 AH, the Iranian Samanid Dynasty of Central Asia and Khorasan collapsed with the fall of its capital Bukhara (currently in Uzbekistan) to the Turkic chieftain Ilak Khan son of Bughra Khan Qarakhanid, after a rule of 185 years. The Samanid realm, founded by four Iranian brothers who were appointed governors in different parts of northeastern Iran by the Abbasid caliph, Mamoun, was finally split up between the Ghaznavids, who had already gained Khorasan and Afghanistan under Alpatigin the Turk, and the Karakhanids, who took control of Transoxania; thereby making the Oxus River the boundary between the two rival Turkic empires. Abdul- Malik, Ibrahim, and Ya'qoub, the sons of the last ruler, Nouh bin Mansour Samani, managed to flee, but the fourth son who styled himself Isma'il II al-Muntasir was captured by the Qarakhanids.
He, however, escaped from captivity and went to Khwarezm to gather support for reclaiming Bukhara, but was killed some six years later. The Samanids revived Persian culture by patronizing poets and scholars such as Rudaki, Bal'ami and Daqiqi. They also propagated the Sunni jurisprudence, repressed Ismailis, and were rather tolerant of Ithna Ash'ari or Twelver Shi'ite Muslims.
Islamic architecture and Islamo-Persian culture was spread deep into the heart of Central Asia by them. Following the first complete translation of the Qur'an into Persian, people in the Samanid realm began accepting Islam in significant numbers. Through zealous missionary work as many as 30,000 tents of Turks came to profess Islam and later under the Ghaznavids more than 55,000 tents of Turks became Muslim. The mass conversion of the Turks to Islam eventually led to a growing influence of the Ghaznavids, who would later rule the region.