Gilani, Gillani or Geelani is a toponymic surname (

nisba The Arabic language, Arabic word nisba (; also transcribed as ''nisbah'' or ''nisbat'') may refer to: * Arabic nouns and adjectives#Nisba, Nisba, a suffix used to form adjectives in Arabic grammar, or the adjective resulting from this formation **c ...

) linked to the Gilan Province in Iran. It is also used by people indicating association with the founder of the

Qadiriyya The Qadiriyya (), also transliterated Qādirīyah, ''Qadri'', ''Qadriya'', ''Kadri'', ''Elkadri'', ''Elkadry'', ''Aladray'', ''Alkadrie'', ''Adray'', ''Kadray'', ''Kadiri'', ''Qadiri'', ''Quadri'' or ''Qadri'' are members of the Sunni Qadiri ta ...

Sufi order Abdul Qadir Gilani. Some members refer to themselves as Kilani, however they maintain the same lineage. The Zoubi's also share the same lineage as the Gilani and the Kilani, owing to their ancestor Ahmad Ali Al Gilani who was later titled Al-Zoubi. Notable people with the surname (or variants) include:

People with the name

*Sayyed Abdul-Qadir Gilani (1077–1166), 12th century Muslim Saint, Scholar and Author of books on spirituality * Sayyed Abdullah Awn ibn Yala al Hashimi al Gilani (c. 1028–1099), medieval Persian Sufi, preacher and religious scholar * Abd Al-Rahman Al-Gilani (1841–1927), first Prime Minister of Iraq in 1920 * Rashid Ali al-Gilani (1892–1965), Prime Minister of Iraq in 1933 and 1941 *

Abdul Qader al-Keilani Abdul Qader Husni al-keilani al-Hasani (1874–1948) ( ar, عبدالقادر حسني الكيلاني) was a Syrian nationalist, statesman and religious authority. Lineage and early Life Sayed Abdul Qader was born in Aleppo in 1874 to the pr ...

(1874–1948), early 20th century Syrian statesman and religious authority * Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani (born 1952), Prime Minister of Pakistan from March 24, 2008, to April 26, 2012 * Ahmed Gailani (born 1932), Afghan politician * Bahadur Khan Gilani, officer of the Gujarat Sultanate in India * Benjamin Gilani (born 1946), Indian theatre and television actor * Daood Gilani, pseudonym of

David Headley David Coleman Headley (born Daood Sayed Gilani; June 30, 1960) is an American terrorist. He is currently serving a 35-year sentence in the United States after pleading guilty to 12 international terrorism charges. It has been alleged that Headl ...

, Pakistani−American convict for the 2008 Mumbai attacks * Faleh Al-Kilani (born 1944), Iraqi scholar, poet, and writer * Fatima Gailani (born 1954), Afghan political leader and women's rights activist * Fauzia Gailani (born 1971), Afghan politician * Haji Gilani (died 2003), participant in the 2001 Afghan war *

Hamid Raza Gilani Syed Hamid Raza Gilani ( ur, ; 17 August 1936 – 24 January 2004) was a former Pakistani Federal Minister and Ambassador. Early life In keeping with his family's tradition, Syed Hamid Raza Gilani received his early education at Aitchison Coll ...

, Pakistani politician *

Imtiaz Gilani Imtiaz Gilani is a Pakistani civil engineer and a vice chancellor of the University of Engineering and Technology (Peshawar), Pakistan from 2004 till 2016. Imtiaz Gilani was Minister for Education, Information, Youth, Tourism and Culture (1999 ...

(born 1947), Pakistani engineer and academic *

Jamila Gilani Jamila Gilani ( ps, ; ur, ; also spelled Jamila Gallani) is a Pashtun nationalist politician who is the spokesperson of the National Democratic Movement (NDM). She served as a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan from 2008 to 2013. S ...

(born 1960), Pakistani politician and leader of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement * Kamel al-Kilani (born 1958), minister in the Iraqi Interim Council * Manazir Ahsan Gilani, Indian Muslim philosopher from Gilan, Bihar *

Mian Ghulam Jilani Major General Mian Gulam Jilani (SQA, Imtiazi Sanad) (1 March 1913 – 1 March 2004) was a two-star general officer in the Pakistan Army who, as an Indian Army officer during the Second World War had survived a Japanese PoW camp at Singapore. ...

(1914–2004), critic of the Bhutto government * Mohammad Mohammadi Gilani (born 1928), Iranian cleric and religious authority *

Mubarak Ali Gilani Mubarik Ali Shah Gillani (August 15, 1936– May 15, 2021 in Lahore) was a Pakistani Sufi religious leader of the Qadiriyya tariqa (order). He was the founder of The Muslims of America and also founded the International Qur'anic Open University. ...

, Hanafi, Qadiri sheikh *

Nezam al-Din Ahmad Gilani Nezam al-Din Ahmad Gilani (1585 – after 1662), also known by his honorific title of Hakim al-Molk, was an Iranian peoples, Iranian philosopher and physician from Gilan, who served the Qutb Shahi dynasty, Qutb Shahi rulers in the History of India ...

(1585 – c. 1662), philosopher and physician during the Deccan Sultanate in India *

Syeda Sarwat Gilani Sarwat Gilani ( ur, ; born 22 December 1982) is a Pakistani model, film, television and voice actress. Film career Gilani made her movie debut in '' Jawani Phir Nahi Aani'' where she played a pregnant Pashtun woman opposite Vasay Chaudhary. ...

(born 1982), Pakistani actress and model *

Syed Ali Shah Geelani Syed Ali Shah Geelani (1929–2021) was an Islamist, pro-Pakistan, Sumantra BoseSyed Ali Shah Geelani: The man who fought for Kashmir’s freedom BBC News, 2 September 2021. "First, he made it clear that although a proud Kashmiri, he conside ...

, separatist leader, important member of the

All Parties Hurriyat Conference All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) is an alliance of 26 political, social and religious organizations formed on 9 March 1993, as a united political front to raise the cause of Kashmiri separatism in the Kashmir conflict. Mehmood Ahmed Sagh ...

Sayed Ishaq Gailani Sayed Ishaq Gailani (born 1954) is a politician in Afghanistan representing Paktika province in the Wolesi Jirga, Afghanistan's lower house of parliament. He is the founder and chairman of the National Solidarity Movement of Afghanistan and curre ...

(born 1954), Afghan Politician *

Syed Mumtaz Alam Gillani Syed Mumtaz Alam Gillani (also spelled ''Gilani'' and ''Geelani'') (20 January 1940 – 17 March 2020) was a Pakistani lawyer who served as federal minister of Human Rights, a new portfolio, the Ministry of Human Rights which was carved out o ...

(born 1940), Pakistani lawyer and politician *

Zahed Gilani Taj Al-Din Ebrahim ibn Rushan Amir Al-Kurdi Al-Sanjani (or Sinjani; Persian:تاج الدين ابراهيم كردی سنجانی)‎ (1218 – 1301), titled Sheikh Zahed (or Zahid) Gilani, was an Iranian Grandmaster (murshid-i kamil) of the f ...

(1216–1301), 13th century leader of the Zahediyeh Sufi order * Syed Iftikhar Hussain Gillani, Pakistani Former Federal Minister for Law and Justice

References

{{Reflist Persian-language surnames Toponymic surnames Nisbas People from Gilan Province

People with the name

See also

References