Afaqis and Dakhnis
Also called: Foreigners and Deccanis · Topic: Vijayanagara and the Deccan · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Afaqis and Dakhnis were two rival groups of nobles at the court of the Bahmani Sultanate in the Deccan, in the 15th century. The Afaqis ("foreigners", also called gharibs) were newcomers from Iran, Iraq and Central Asia. The Dakhnis ("Deccanis") were Muslims whose families had settled in the Deccan earlier, and they were often allied with Abyssinians (Habshis). The two groups fought for posts and power, and this feud weakened the sultanate from inside.
Example
Mahmud Gawan, the great Afaqi minister of the Bahmanis, was executed in 1481 after a plot by his Dakhni rivals. After his death the sultanate quickly broke into the five Deccan Sultanates.
Don't confuse with
- Amara-nayakas: these were military chiefs of Vijayanagara who were given land to govern. They were not court factions of the Bahmani Sultanate.
Related concepts
- Vijayanagara Empire
- Harihara and Bukka
- Vidyaranya
- Bahmani Sultanate
- Alauddin Hasan Bahman Shah
- Mahmud Gawan
- Bahmani madrasa, Bidar
- Deccan sultanates
- Adil Shahi dynasty
- Ibrahim Adil Shah II