Sulaiman al-Tajir

Sulaiman or Soleiman al-Tajir (Arabic for "Soloman the Merchant") was a 9th-century Muslim merchant, traveler and writer initially from Siraf in modern-day Iran. He traveled to India and China and wrote an account of his voyages around AD 850.

China

During his stay in the city of Canton (now known as Guangzhou) he noted that the Chinese used fingerprint records to maintain the identities of newly arrived foreigners, charged extortionate rates for imported goods and that the route to China by sea was dangerous due to piracy and frequent rain. He mentions that the local Muslim populace of Guangzhou had their own Mosque and bazaars. He mentioned that the Muslim community had its own Imam and Judge (appointed by Emperor Xuānzong of Tang). He also observes the manufacturing of porcelain, the granary system of Guangzhou, and how its municipal administration functioned.

After arriving home from China with goods he landed at Basra and then traveled to Baghdad.

References

Sulaiman

Sulaiman was the scriptural figure identified as either the Jewish king of Israel or a Muslim prophet.

Sulaiman is an English transliteration of the Arabic name سليمان that means "man of peace" and corresponds to the English name Solomon.

Sulaiman may also refer to:

People with the given name Sulaiman

Sulaiman (Brunei)

Sultan Sulaiman was the fifth Sultan of Brunei, ruling from 1432 until his abdication in 1485 to allow his son Bolkiah to become Sultan. He died in 1511.

Uncertainties

The earliest historical record of the Sultans of Brunei is not clearly known due to the poor early documentation of Brunei history. In addition there has been an effort to Islamise the history, with the "official history" not matching up with verifiable foreign sources The Batu Tarsilah - the genealogical record of the kings of Brunei - was not started until 1807. Therefore, much of the intepretation on history relied on earlier Chinese sources and legends. It seems that the early Sultanate of Brunei was dependent on Chinese support, and perhaps early Sultans were of Chinese origin. Furthermore the earliest Sultans may have been practising the Hindu or Buddhist religions, with early names indicating this origin.

See also

References