Zaynab al-Nafzawiyya
زينب النفزاوية
Zaynab bint Ishaq al-Nafzawiyya, famed for beauty and command; she married Laqut ibn Yusuf al-Maghrawi of Aghmat, then Abu Bakr ibn Umar who ceded her with the realm to Yusuf ibn Tashfin when he departed for the Sahara, and she counselled Yusuf to make his sovereignty public, standing as the hidden hand in the Almoravid state's founding.
At a glance
- Roles
- Ruler
- Counted among
- Sunni
- Era
- The Buyid, Fatimid and Seljuk Era
- Region
- Maghreb
- Review
- Draft Completeness 1/5 · Help complete it
Overview
Zaynab bint Ishaq al-Nafzawiyya, who was famed for beauty and leadership, to the point that it was said she was consulted on affairs 1.
Marriages
She married Luqut ibn Yusuf al-Maghrawi, amir of Aghmat. When he died in the war with the Almoravids, she married Abu Bakr ibn Umar. When he went off to the desert and appointed Yusuf ibn Tashfin as his deputy, he ceded her to him, and he married her. She advised him to show autocracy in his affairs. Ibn Khaldun describes her as his left hand in building the state of the Almoravids 1.
Connections
People and things also explored
استيلاء المرابطين على إشبيلية· قتل يوسف بن تاشفين للمتوكل صاحب بطليوس· تلقيب يوسف بن تاشفين بأمير المسلمين· الملحمة الكبيرة بين ابن تاشفين والفرنج· أبو بكر بن عمر اللمتوني· يوسف بن تاشفين أمير المسلمين
Sources
- Kitab al-Ibar of Ibn Khaldun
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “Zaynab al-Nafzawiyya”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/person/zaynab-al-nafzawiyya/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-16.