Qabus

Qabus, also transliterated Kāvus or Qābus, is a medieval Persian given name that figures in several related historical subjects from the Ziyarid era in northern Iran. It is most commonly associated with Qabus ibn Voshmgir, a Ziyarid ruler who reigned around the turn of the first millennium, and with the didactic work known as the Qabus-nameh (Book of Qabus). The name also remains tied to a prominent monument built in his honor, the Gonbad-e Qabus Tower.

Qabus ibn Voshmgir was a ruler of the Ziyarid dynasty who governed in Tabaristan and the Caspian region during the late 10th and early 11th centuries (approximately 988–1012). In 1006–1007 CE, by order of Qabus, the Gonbad-e Qabus Tower was erected as a freestanding cylindrical brick structure near the city of Gonbad-e Kavous, in present-day Golestan Province, Iran. The tower is recognized as a major monument of medieval Iranian architecture, noted for its height, cylindrical form, and decorative brickwork; it has endured as an enduring symbol of the era.

The Qabus-nameh, or Book of Qabus, is an early 11th-century Persian didactic text traditionally attributed to Qabus. It consists of a collection of maxims and exhortations on ethics, governance, and social conduct, framed as advice to a prince or son. The work is regarded as an important milestone in Persian prose and has influenced later Persian literature and ethical literature throughout the Islamic world.

Together, the name Qabus links a ruler, a landmark, and a canonical literary work from the Ziyarid period, reflecting the cultural and political milieu of the era.