Sa'id ibn Makhlad

Sa'id ibn Makhlad (Arabic: سعيد بن مخلد‎) (died 889) was a senior official of the Abbasid Caliphate. Born a Nestorian Christian, he converted to Islam and served as a secretary in the Abbasid capital, Baghdad. He rose to prominence during the regency of al-Muwaffaq over his brother, the Caliph al-Mu'tamid (r. 870–892): between 878 and 885, he served as de facto vizier of the Caliphate, although he did not bear the title. His valuable assistance to al-Muwaffaq was recognized in 882 by the award of the honorific title Dhu'l-wizaratayn ("possessor of the two vizierates"), with which he appears even on coins. However, the activities of his brother, Abdun, who had remained a Christian and tried to obtain concessions for the Christian subjects of the Caliphate, brought about his sudden fall from power in 885. He died in 889.

Gold dinar of al-Mu'tamid, with the names of al-Muwaffaq and Sa'id (Dhu'l-Wizaratayn)

Sa'id has been erroneously considered by some writers as the brother of another Christian convert, al-Hasan ibn Makhlad al-Jarrah, who was his predecessor as vizier.

Sources

• Sourdel, Dominique (1971). "Ibn Makhlad". In Lewis, B.; Ménage, V. L.; Pellat, Ch. & Schacht, J. (eds.). The Encyclopaedia of Islam, New Edition, Volume III: H–Iram. Leiden: E. J. Brill. p. 859. OCLC 495469525.