Ghurid Dynasty

Ghurid Sultanate
Shansabānī
before 879–1215
Map of the Ghurid dynasty at its greatest extent under Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad
Capital		Firozkoh Herat Ghazni (1170s–1215) Lahore (1186–1215; winter)
Languages		Persian (court)
Religion		Before 1011: Buddhism From 1011: Sunni Islam
Government		Hereditary monarchy
Malik/Sultan
•	9th-century–10th-century	Amir Suri (first)
•	1214–1215	Ala al-Din Ali (last)
History
•	Established	before 879
•	Disestablished	1215
Preceded by Succeeded by Ghaznavids Great Seljuq Empire Delhi Sultanate Khwarazmian dynasty
Today part of		Afghanistan  Bangladesh  India  Iran  Pakistan  Tajikistan  Turkmenistan  Uzbekistan

The Ghurids or Ghorids (Persian: سلسله غوریان‎‎; self-designation: شنسباني, Shansabānī) were a dynasty of Eastern Iranian descent (presumably Tajik, but the exact ethnic origin is uncertain), from the Ghor region of present-day central Afghanistan. The dynasty converted to Sunni Islam from Buddhism, after the conquest of Ghor by the Ghaznavid emperor Mahmud of Ghazni in 1011. Abu Ali ibn Muhammad (reigned 1011–1035) was the first Muslim king of the Ghurid dynasty to construct mosques and Islamic schools in Ghor.

The dynasty overthrew the Ghaznavid Empire in 1186, when Sultan Mu'izz ad-Din Muhammad of Ghor conquered the last Ghaznavid capital of Lahore. At their zenith, the Ghurid empire encompassed Khorasan in the west and reached northern India as far as Bengal in the east. Their first capital was Firozkoh in Mandesh, Ghor, which was later replaced by Herat, while Ghazni and Lahore were used as additional capitals, especially during winters. The Ghurids were patrons of Persian culture and heritage.

The Ghurids were succeeded in Khorasan and Persia by the Khwarezmian dynasty, and in northern India by the Mamluk dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate.