What is Seljuk dynasty?
[[File:Flag of the Seljuks.svg|thumb|The Double-headed eagle, used as a symbol by the Seljuks]] [[File:Seljuq1071.png|thumb|Seljuk Empire in 1071]] The '''Seljuks''' (also '''Seldjuk''', '''Seldjuq''', '''Seljuq''', sometimes also '''Seljuk Turks''') were a [[Turkic peoples|Turkic]] [[Sunni Muslim]] [[dynasty]]. They ruled parts of [[Central Asia]] and the [[Middle East]] from the [[11th century|11th]] to [[14th century|14th centuries]]. Their [[empire]] was known as [[Seljuk Empire|Great Seljuk Empire]] that stretched from [[Anatolia]] and the [[Levant]] to [[Afghanistan]]. The Seljuks also fought the [[Europe]]an [[Christian]] [[Crusaders]] in the [[First Crusade]]. The [[Shia Muslims]] and other non-Sunnis (such as [[Zoroastrians]]) were heavily oppressed under Seljuk rule as the Seljuks were devout [[Sunni]]s and saw themselves as the protectors of the [[Abbasid Caliphate]] and [[Sunni Islam]]. Culturally, the Seljuks were a Persianate empire as they focused heavily on Persianate culture and [[Persian language]]. The Seljuk dynasty was founded by Tughril, a [[Turkmen people|Turkmen]] chief. The Seljuks were one of the cultural ancestors of the Western Turks, the present-day inhabitants of [[Azerbaijan]], [[Turkey]], and [[Turkmenistan]]. Originally, the House of Seljuq was a branch of the ''Kinik'' [[Oghuz Turks]] who in the [[9th century]] lived in the [[steppe]]s north of the [[Caspian Sea|Caspian]] and [[Aral Sea]]s in modern-day [[Turkmenistan]]. ==Rulers of Seljuk Dynasty 1037-1157== * [[Toğrül]] (Toğrül Beg) [[1037]]-[[1063]] * [[Alp Arslan]] bin Chaghri [[1063]]-[[1072]] * Jalal ad-Dawlah [[Malik Shah I]] [[1072]]-[[1092]] * Nasir ad-Din [[Mahmud I of Great Seljuk|Mahmud I]] [[1092]]-[[1093]] * Rukn ad-Din [[Barkiyaruq]] [[1093]]-[[1104]] * Mu'izz ad-Din [[Malik Shah II]] [[1105]] * Ghiyath ad-Din [[Muhammad I of Great Seljuk|Muhammad]] Tapar [[1105]]-[[1118]] * [[Mahmud II of Great Seljuk|Mahmud II]] [[1118]]-[[1131]] * Mu'izz ad-Din [[Ahmed Sanjar]] [[1131]]-[[1157]] ==Seljuk Rulers of Kerman 104