el-Cezîre

el-Cezîre (Upper Mesopotamia) is the historical region located between the Fırat and Dicle rivers. It is stated that its name comes from the expression Cezîretu Aşûr, meaning "Island of Assyria," that this naming was used by Assyrian kings before Islam, and that these lands later became known as Cezîretu Aşûr; over time, the most commonly used name became "el-Cezîre" (Volume 2, p. 62).

Geographical Boundaries

The geographical boundaries of the region are meticulously drawn in the sources. Cezîre extends northwards to the source of the Dicle and Fırat rivers; to the south, it descends to the point where the Fırat approaches the Dicle, north of Baghdad (Volume 2, p. 62). The Mamluk period geographer Ebü'l-Fidâ was the one who most widely accepted these boundaries. Ebü'l-Fidâ, in addition to following the Dicle and Fırat and discussing the cities within the region's scope, notes that Cezîre is bordered to the west by a part of Ermenistan and the Rum lands, and to the south by Suriye as well as a part of Badiye (Volume 2, p. 62). Ebü'l-Fidâ dedicated many pages to the el-Cezîre region in his work titled Taḳvîmu'l-Buldân, mentioning a castle known as the Hamidiye stronghold near Musul and stating that Hamidiye was one of the tribes living in the region (Volume 2, p. 64).

Ayyubid Rule

el-Cezîre was an important part of the Ayyubid State's domain. The Ayyubid State, founded by Selâhaddîn Yûsuf b. Necmeddîn Eyyûb, shortly after seizing power in Egypt in 564/1169, brought a significant portion of el-Cezîre under its rule, along with Hicaz, Yemen, Suriye, Filistin, and North Africa (Volume 1, p. 151). It is recorded that the Ayyubid ruler el-Melikü'l-Âdil organized campaigns to the Crusader regions and el-Cezîre in 603/1206 and 606/1209, and that these campaigns were supported by the Hama ruler el-Melikü'l-Mansûr (Volume 1, p. 163).

Kurdish Population

The region also had a dense Kurdish population. el-Umerî recounts narratives concerning the Kurds living around Meyyafarikin and Amed within the context of the events of h. 628/m. 1231 and states that there was a dense Kurdish population there; among the events he recounts are narratives about Kurds who had adopted banditry as a profession in some villages (Volume 2, p. 64). Makrîzî also provided information about the Cezîre region and the Kurds living in its cities (Volume 2, p. 64).

History and Sources

el-Cezîre is a region rich in historiography, and fundamental sources, especially concerning the Ayyubid period, center on this geography. Ibnü'l-Esîr's el-Kâmil is among the primary sources for identifying political and military events, particularly those centered in el-Cezîre, during the first half of the Ayyubid period, and it also includes narratives about Selâhaddîn's campaigns (Volume 1, p. 166). The fundamental sources that must be consulted to determine the dynamics of Ayyubid history are Arabic chronicles and biographical works, a large portion of which were compiled during the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods (Volume 1, p. 202). Ibn Nazîf's work titled et-Târîhu'l-Mansûrî also addresses political developments in Suriye, el-Cezîre, Sicily, and Southern Italy, providing information based on documents and eyewitness accounts (Volume 1, p. 169).

Geographical, social, and biographical sources about the region are also available. Ibn Cübeyr's travelogue titled Rihletü İbn Cübeyr is a valuable source for the social history of el-Cezîre during the Ayyubid period, from geographical, historical, sociological, and folkloric perspectives, along his route (Volume 1, p. 162). The tenth chapter of Ibn Ebû Usaybi'a's biographical medical history titled 'Uyûnü'l-Enbâ' fî Tabakâti'l-Etibbâ is dedicated to physicians living in Irak, el-Cezîre, and Diyarbekir, and this chapter includes the biographies of 74 physicians (Volume 1, p. 180). Ibn Şeddâd, in his work titled el-A'lâkü'l-Hatîre fî Zikri Ümerâi'ş-Şâm ve'l-Cezîre, discussed the history, geography, cultural and economic situation of Bilâdüşşâm and el-Cezîre, the states that ruled in the region, and construction activities, with firsthand information based on his own testimonies (Volume 1, p. 185).