Shah Mir

Shams-ud-Din Shah Mir (Urdu: شَمسُ الدین شاہ میر) (reigned 1339–42) was a ruler of Kashmir; and the founder of the Shah Miri dynasty, which is named after him. Shah Mir is believed to have come to Kashmir during the rule of Suhadeva (1301–1320), where he rose to prominence. After the death of Suhadeva and his brother Udayanadeva, Shah Mir established his own kingship, founding the Shah Mir dynasty in 1339, which lasted till 1561.

There are two theories regarding Shah Mir's origin. Historian A. Q. Rafiqi states that some Persian chronicles of Kashmir describe Shah Mir as a descendent of the rulers of Swat. He thinks it more likely that he was a descedent of Turkish or Persian immigrants to Swat. It has also been suggested that he belonged to a Sufi or Qadiri family.

On the other hand, the 15th century Kashmiri historian Jonaraja, writing in the court of Shah Mir's descendant Budshah, states that Shah Mir came to Kashmir along with his tribe from the country of Panchagahvara (identified as the Panjgabbar valley between Rajouri and Budhal). He was said to belong to the family of an ancestor called Partha, who was described as a second Partha (an allusion to the Mahabharata hero Arjuna). Some scholars state that the Panjgabbar valley was peopled by Khasas and so ascribe a Khasa ethnicity to Shah Mir.

Most modern historians accept the Swati origins of Shah Mir. Kashmiri scholar N. K. Zutshi, having critically examined the sources, reconciles the two versions by noting that the Persian chronicles mentions Swadgir rather than Swat, which he interprets as Swadgabar, meaning "suburbs of Gabar", which coincides with Jonaraja's description of Panchagahvara-Simani (on the borders of Panchagagvara).

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