temür

Temür, also anglicized as Timur or Tamerlane, was a Turko-Mongol conqueror and the founder of the Timurid Empire in the 14th century. Born in 1336 near Kesh (present-day Shahrisabz, Uzbekistan), Temür came from the Barlas tribe and rose to power amid the fragmentation of the Ilkhanate’s successor states.

He built a vast empire through rapid, mobile warfare, subjugating much of Central Asia, Persia, and parts of the Caucasus and the Indian subcontinent. Temür captured Samarkand and established it as the capital, laying the groundwork for a centralized and bureaucratic state that his successors would expand. In 1398 he invaded northern India, sacking Delhi and exerting influence over the Delhi Sultanate. His campaigns extended into Anatolia after defeating Bayezid I at the Battle of Ankara in 1402, though his death in 1405 in or near Otrar prevented the full consolidation of his conquests.

Temür’s reign set the stage for the Timurid dynasty, with his lineage continuing to rule lands in Central Asia, Persia, and beyond. Notable successors, including his son Shah Rukh and grandson Ulugh Beg, fostered a cultural and scientific milieu that contributed to the Timurid Renaissance, particularly in cities such as Herat and Samarkand. Though the empire fragmented after his death, Temür’s legacy influenced later states in Iran and Central Asia and, through dynastic lines, the Mughal Empire in South Asia.

Etymology: Temür means “iron” in Turkic languages; in Persian sources he is referred to as Timur.