ʿamīd

ʿAmīd (plural ʿumadā, meaning "mainstay, support")^[1] was an Arabic title used in Greater Iran under the rule of the Samanids, Buyids, Ghaznavids and Seljukids. It was reserved for a high rank of civilian (as opposed to military) official.^[2] It was the highest civilian title under the Ghaznavids.^[1] The office of ʿāmil (governor, tax collector) was usually filled from the ranks of ʿumadā. Persons with the name Ibn al-ʿAmīd claimed descent from members of this class of officials.^[2]

The term ʿamīd was also used in compound titles. Under the Buyids, the forms ʿamīd al-dawla, ʿamīd al-dīn and ʿamīd al-juyūsh are attested. Under the Ghaznavids, the ṣāḥib al-barīd (head of the postal service) held the title ʿamīd al-mulk. This title was used as a laqab by the vizier al-Kundurī. The title ʿamīd declined in the 12th century and was not used after the fall of Baghdad to the Mongols in 1258.^[2]