caliph
/ˈkeɪlɪf
/ /ˈkalɪf/noun historical
The chief Muslim civil and religious ruler, regarded as the successor of Muhammad. The caliph ruled in Baghdad until 1258 and then in Egypt until the Ottoman conquest of 1517; the title was then held by the Ottoman sultans until it was abolished in 1924 by Atatürk.The Omayyad dynasty of caliphs ruled from Damascus until 750, when Shiite Muslims, who descended from the caliph Ali, massacred the Omayyad family....
- In the 7th century the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad, and his successors, the Umayyad caliphs, spread Islam from India to Spain.
- The caliphs (successors of The Prophet Muhammad) ruled that couples should not be separate for more than 4 months without permission, and if they were it was grounds for divorce.
Origin
Late Middle English: from Old French caliphe, from Arabic ḵalīfa meaning 'deputy (of God') (from the title ḵalīfat Allāh), or meaning 'successor (of Muhammad)' (from the title ḵalīfat rasūl Allāh 'of the Messenger of God)', from ḵalafa 'succeed'.