Sultan of Sultans

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"Sultan of Sultans" is the literal English translation of the original Turkish Sultan es-Selatin or Sultan us-Selatin. It is similar to the title Great Sultan, which is translated from Arabic.

As with various other laudatory titles of Semitic origin, such as "King of Kings", Sultan of Sultans can express a claim of imperial rank up to and including universal legitimate sovereignty. Although the notion and title of an emperor is largely alien to Islamic tradition, the Ottoman dynasty which, employed the title of "Sultan of Sultans" in its official full style had perhaps the best claim to usage, due to its territorial extent and great length. The Ottomans also adopted the traditional imperial term "Kaisar" for their own ruler (the Padishah).

The Shahanshah (Persian for "King of Kings") of Iran also claimed, with slightly less legitimacy to be the "Sultan of Sultans". These claims, made against the Ottomans were tied to the conflict between the Sunni and Shiite branches of Islam.

The title has also been appropriated for local use by various minor Muslim rulers, especially in Bengal.

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Last updated on Tuesday September 12, 2006 at 05:56:45 PDT (GMT -0700)
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