The Inclination of the Kurdish Ardalan Clan Towards Shiism; From the Period of the Safavids to the Qajar Dynasty (1205 - 1284 A.H.)

The clan of Ardalan is among other Kurd clans who ruled before the Safavids for a long time, till towards the end of the Qajar dynasty, over some Kurdish regions of Iran. Like other Kurdish clans, this clan was also initially Sunni, but in the middle of Safavid era and due to a marriage between Khan Ahmad Khan, a prince of the Ardalan clan, and the sister of Shah 'Abbas, by which their position was elevated from local governors to the position of Wali Nishin, an important position in the Safavid dynasty, the leaders of this family showed tendency to Shi’ism in order to share in power and get closer to the Safavid court. This conversion was superficial at first, however, after some time, the loyalty and commitment to Shiism became very deep among a number of their leaders and great figures, to the extent that most of them took up Shi’ism during the Safavid dynasty. This survey examines this trend and the causes of their inclination to Shiism by referring to authentic sources.