The Emirate of Erzincan was a state centered around the city of

Erzincan Erzincan (; ), historically Yerznka (), is the capital of Erzincan Province in eastern Turkey. Nearby cities include Erzurum, Sivas, Tunceli, Bingöl, Elazığ, Malatya, Gümüşhane, Bayburt, and Giresun. The city is majority Turkish Sunni w ...

that controlled parts of eastern

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

and the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

in the 14th and early 15th centuries. Its first known ruler,

Ahi Ayna Ghiyath al-Din Ahi Ayna Beg (; ; ; died 2–3 July 1362) was Emir of Erzincan from 1348 until his death. Thought to be a local '' ahi'' (guild member), he gained control of the region and the city of Erzincan in northeastern Anatolia through a pu ...

(), rose to power as a vassal of the

Eretnids The Eretnids () were a dynasty that ruled a state spanning central and eastern Anatolia from 1335 to 1381. The dynasty's founder, Eretna, was an Ilkhanid officer of Uyghur origin, under Timurtash, who was appointed as the governor of Anatolia. ...

through a purchase from his unknown predecessor sometime before 1348. Ahi Ayna exercised autonomy after his overlord

Eretna Ala al-Din Eretna (Old Anatolian Turkish: ; died February–August 1352) was the first sultan of the Eretnids, reigning from 1343 to 1352 in central and eastern Anatolia. Initially an officer in the service of the Ilkhanate officer Chupan and h ...

's () demise. Ahi Ayna is known to have clashed with the neighboring

Empire of Trebizond The Empire of Trebizond or the Trapezuntine Empire was one of the three successor rump states of the Byzantine Empire that existed during the 13th through to the 15th century. The empire consisted of the Pontus, or far northeastern corner of A ...

and other emirates. In 1361, he advanced into the

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

n realm, capturing several fortresses. His potential son and the ruler of Karahisar,

Pir Husayn Pir Husayn (died late 1379) was Emir of Erzincan from 1362 until his death. Originally the ruler of Karahisar, he arrived in Erzincan on 8 June 1362 and claimed the throne that was occupied by Ahi Ayna, who died on 2–3 July. Reign Pir Husayn ...

() arrived in Erzincan in June the next year amidst a possible unrest. Ahi Ayna was killed in July and succeeded by Pir Husayn. While the latter is known to have been involved in subsequent conflicts with the neighboring local rulers in the next months, details on his reign until his death remain unknown. The nephew of Eretna,

Mutahharten Mutahharten (), also known as Taharten (; died late 1403), was Emir of Erzincan from 1379 until his death. Erzincan was previously ruled by emirs who exercised autonomy as vassals of the Eretnids. Mutahharten claimed sovereignty from the Eretnids ...

() took power following Pir Husayn's passing and declared independence, which triggered a long-lasting war with the Eretnids and their vizier

Kadi Burhan al-Din Kadi Ahmad Burhan al-Din (8 January 1345, Kayseri – 1398, Sivas) poet, scholar, and statesman. He was vizier to the Eretnid rulers of Anatolia. In 1381, he took over Eretnid lands and claimed the title of sultan for himself. He is most often ...

, who usurped the rule in 1381. Upon the advent of

Timur Timur, also known as Tamerlane (1320s17/18 February 1405), was a Turco-Mongol conqueror who founded the Timurid Empire in and around modern-day Afghanistan, Iran, and Central Asia, becoming the first ruler of the Timurid dynasty. An undefeat ...

, Mutahharten contently swore allegiance and temporarily halted his campaigns in Anatolia. Often overpowered by his enemies, Mutahharten forged alliances with various groups but did not hesitate to turn against his former allies, such as the

Aq Qoyunlu The Aq Qoyunlu or the White Sheep Turkomans (, ; ) was a culturally Persianate society, Persianate,Kaushik Roy, ''Military Transition in Early Modern Asia, 1400–1750'', (Bloomsbury, 2014), 38; "Post-Mongol Persia and Iraq were ruled by two trib ...

, when he saw fit. Contrary to his predecessors, Mutahharten observed friendly relations with the Empire of Trebizond and his

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

subjects. After Kadi Burhan al-Din's death, Mutahharten faced a new threat from the

Ottoman state The Ottoman Empire developed over the years as a despotism with the Sultan as the supreme ruler of a centralized government that had an effective control of its provinces, officials and inhabitants. Wealth and rank could be inherited but were ...

, when

Bayezid I Bayezid I (; ), also known as Bayezid the Thunderbolt (; ; – 8 March 1403), was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1389 to 1402. He adopted the title of ''Sultan-i Rûm'', ''Rûm'' being the Arabic name for the Eastern Roman Empire. In 139 ...

demanded he surrender Erzincan. Mutahharten instead relied on Timur's strength and found himself in the midst of the Ottoman–Timurid conflict. Bayezid took Erzincan in 1401, imprisoning Mutahharten for a short period. Mutahharten continued supporting Timur until he died in late 1403. His death signaled the nearing end for the Emirate of Erzincan, which would frequently change hands between the Aq Qoyunlu and their rival

Qara Qoyunlu The Qara Qoyunlu or Kara Koyunlu (, ; ), also known as the Black Sheep Turkomans, were a culturally Persianate, Muslim Turkoman "Kara Koyunlu, also spelled Qara Qoyunlu, Turkish Karakoyunlular, English Black Sheep, Turkmen tribal federation tha ...

History

Ahi Ayna (1348–1362)

A local '' ahī'', Ahi Ayna purchased control of Erzincan from his predecessor sometime before 1348. Ahi Ayna first appears in records as a vassal of Eretna circa 1348.

Michael Panaretos Michael Panaretos (; ) was an official of the Trapezuntine empire and a Greek historian. His sole surviving work is a chronicle of the Trapezuntine empire of Alexios I Komnenos and his successors. This chronicle not only provides a chronological f ...

wrote that in June 1348, Ahi Ayna led a joint attack against the

together with Tur Ali Beg of

Turkmens Turkmens (, , , ) are a Turkic ethnic group native to Central Asia, living mainly in Turkmenistan, northern and northeastern regions of Iran and north-western Afghanistan. Sizeable groups of Turkmens are found also in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, ...

and Muhammad Rikabdar, Emir of

Bayburt Bayburt () is a city in northeast Turkey lying on the Çoruh River. It is the seat of Bayburt Province and Bayburt District.colophon of 1355 mentions that Ahi Ayna was attacked by "Khochay Yali", likely Khoja Latif of Bayburt. In June 1361, Ahi Ayna went on an expedition in

. He captured

Akhaltsikhe Akhaltsikhe ( ka, ახალციხე ), formerly known as Lomsia ( ka, ლომსია ), is a small city in Georgia's southwestern region () of Samtskhe–Javakheti. It is the administrative center of the Akhaltsikhe Municipality and ...

, Samstskhe, and Atsquri, took 12,000 people captive, and had

Manglisi Manglisi ( ka, მანგლისი, ) is a ''Daba (settlement), daba'' (townlet) in the Tetritsqaro Municipality, Kvemo Kartli mkhare, region of Georgia (country), Georgia. As of the 2014 census, it had a population of 1,441. With a recorded h ...

pay (special tax on non-Muslims). On 6 August 1361, Ahi Ayna continued his expedition in the region of

Lazica The Kingdom of Lazica (; ; ), sometimes called Lazian Empire, was a state in the territory of west Georgia in the Roman era, Georgia in the Roman period, from about the 1st century BC. Created as a result of the collapse of the kingdom of Colc ...

, i.e., the eastern territories of the Empire of Trebizond. In October of that year, he besieged but wasn't able to capture the fortresses of Golacha and Koukos. Ahi Ayna was the suzerain of three other emirates, namely those in

Erzurum Erzurum (; ) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. It is the site of an ...

, Bayburt, and Karahisar. His core territory stretched from the Erzincan Plain southwards to Upper Euphrates Valley near Çaltı. Kemah was under the administration of a governor instead of a vassal emir like Ahi Ayna. Although Ahi Ayna acted semi-independently during the reign of

Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad I Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad I (died October 1365) was the second Sultan of the Eretnids in central and eastern Anatolia, ruling from 1352 until his death. He was enthroned at a young age and struggled to maintain his authority over the state his fat ...

of the Eretnid Sultanate, an Eretnid coin minted in Erzincan from the year 1359 indicates that Ahi Ayna's subordinate position continued and he never declared independence. Ahi Ayna died on 2–3 July 1362 reportedly as a '' shahīd'' (martyr), suggesting a violent death.

Pir Husayn (1362–1379)

Pir Husayn, who was originally the ruler of Karahisar, arrived in Erzincan on 8 June 1362 and succeeded Ahi Ayna Beg. In Abu Bakr Qutbi's ''Ta'rīkh-i taqwīm'', he is mentioned as an () following the statement about Ahi Ayna's demise, hinting at the possibility he was Ahi Ayna's son. Pir Husayn's ascendance to the throne was not straightforward as Erzincan was in the midst of a civil war. He "gained independence" on 10 July, having clashed with emirs opposing his rule, who eventually fled to

Bayburt Bayburt () is a city in northeast Turkey lying on the Çoruh River. It is the seat of Bayburt Province and Bayburt District.Tercan Tercan (formerly Mama Hatun, and Derzene; , in the Byzantine era; ; ) is a town and seat of Tercan District of Erzincan Province in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey. It had a population of 4,846 in 2021. Located on the north bank of the ...

. On 11 September, he gained control of Bayburt after a 32-day siege. Although there is a coin specimen minted in Erzincan for Ala al-Din Ali dating back to 1366, Pir Husayn most likely exercised further autonomy, especially following the temporary political vacuum caused by Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad I's death in 1365. However, there aren't any sufficient accounts of the period until Pir Husayn's death in 1379.

Mutahharten (1379–1403)

Mutahharten took power upon Pir Husayn's death in 1379. He struck his own coins and had the (sermon) read in his name as a declaration of his sovereignty. Although the Eretnid

vizier A vizier (; ; ) is a high-ranking political advisor or Minister (government), minister in the Near East. The Abbasids, Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was at first merely a help ...

opposed an immediate campaign, the Eretnid sultan Ali began marching towards Erzincan in the summer of the same year. Mutahharten initially faced defeat in a bloody battle and retreated but still resisted coming under Eretnids, who subsequently faced a major loss. Kadi Burhan al-Din's () rise to power as the regent of Ali's successor

Muhammad II Chelebi Muhammad II Chelebi () was the fourth and last Sultan of the Eretnids. He was crowned when he was 7 years old, after his father died in August 1380 from the plague. His regent was Kadi Burhan al-Din, who proclaimed himself as the ruler by January ...

(), and his aim at re-imposing authority over the region, prompted Mutahharten to form alliances with Burhan al-Din's rivals and other claimants to the Eretnid throne, such as

Shadgeldi Hajji Sayf al-Din Shadgeldi Padishah (Old Anatolian Turkish: ; died 1381) was Emir of Amasya from 1359 until his death. He was the second oldest son of Hajji Kutlu Shah and became the emir of Amasya in August–September 1359. He received his educ ...

, Emir of

Amasya Amasya () is a city in northern Turkey, in the Black Sea Region. It was called Amaseia or Amasia in antiquity."Amasya" in ''Encyclopædia Britannica, The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol ...

(). However, their 2,000-strong force was soon overpowered by Burhan al-Din, who sent latter's head to Erzincan in 1381 as a warning to Mutahharten. The same year, Kadi Burhan al-Din formally declared his sultanate. Allied with several

Mongol Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, China (Inner Mongolia and other 11 autonomous territories), as well as the republics of Buryatia and Kalmykia in Russia. The Mongols are the principal member of the large family of M ...

and Turkmen chieftains, Mutahharten went on another campaign on Sivas. However, Burhan al-Din reached Erzincan and razed parts of the city to the ground but was unable to capture the city with winter creeping in (1384–5). Burhan al-Din's return to Sivas marked the end of the long war between him and Mutahharten. They agreed to recognize each other's sovereignty and to refrain from getting involved in each other's internal relations. Mutahharten was further obliged to send military aid to Kadi Burhan al-Din in times of war. In late 1386,

(), a

Turco-Mongol The Turco-Mongol or Turko-Mongol tradition was an ethnocultural synthesis that arose in Asia during the 14th century among the ruling elites of the Golden Horde and the Chagatai Khanate. The ruling Mongol elites of these khanates eventually ass ...

warlord who attempted to invoke the legacy of

Genghis Khan Genghis Khan (born Temüjin; August 1227), also known as Chinggis Khan, was the founder and first khan (title), khan of the Mongol Empire. After spending most of his life uniting the Mongols, Mongol tribes, he launched Mongol invasions and ...

invaded An invasion is a military offensive of combatants of one geopolitical entity, usually in large numbers, entering territory controlled by another similar entity, often involving acts of aggression. Generally, invasions have objectives of co ...

west

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

and was planning his invasion of the

Armenian highlands The Armenian highlands (; also known as the Armenian upland, Armenian plateau, or Armenian tableland)Robert Hewsen, Hewsen, Robert H. "The Geography of Armenia" in ''The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: ...

from his military camp in

Karabakh Karabakh ( ; ) is a geographic region in southwestern Azerbaijan and eastern Armenia, extending from the highlands of the Lesser Caucasus down to the lowlands between the rivers Kura and Aras. It is divided into three regions: Highland Kara ...

. When Timur's embassy arrived in Erzincan, Mutahharten swiftly agreed to refrain from joining opposition forces and to abide by Timur's rule, which reduced his fears of a direct Timurid attack. Timur recognized Mutahharten's domains through an exchange of gifts. Although Mutahharten halted his campaigns in Anatolia during this time, Timur's presence was favored by him and other enemies of Burhan al-Din. When Timur's focus shifted away from the region, Mutahharten used the

Turkomans who took refuge in his territory in an expedition in Burhan al-Din's lands, taking advantage of Burhan al-Din's absence. Burhan al-Din returned to Sivas when he learned that Mutahharten was marching there, prompting Mutahharten to stop the campaign in the winter of 1387–8. In 1387, Mutahharten reported Burhan al-Din to the Mamluk Sultan

Barquq Al-Malik Az-Zahir Sayf ad-Din Barquq (; born ) was the first Sultan of the Circassians, Circassian Mamluk Burji dynasty of Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo), Egypt ruling from 1382 to 1389 and 1390 to 1399. Born to a Christianity, Christian father in Cir ...

() as an ally of Timur, which initiated a joint campaign with the Mamluks on Sivas that lasted until the Mamluks retreated from the region in 1389. Upon the news of another Timurid expedition in 1393–4, Mutahharten reaffirmed his allegiance to Timur. He acted as an ambassador during Timur's siege of Avnik. The author of ''

Bazm u Razm ''Bazm u Razm'' () was a Persian work of history composed by Aziz ibn Ardashir Astarabadi on the life, background, and the relations of Kadi Burhan al-Din, a ruler in northeastern Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a penins ...

'', Astarabadi, who was hostile to Mutahharten, described his actions during this period as cowardly. Astarabadi claimed that Mutahharten stopped administering his region altogether. After allegedly kissing Timur's

stirrup A stirrup is a light frame or ring that holds the foot of a rider, attached to the saddle by a strap, often called a ''stirrup leather''. Stirrups are usually paired and are used to aid in mounting and as a support while using a riding animal ...

, Mutahharten changed the name on his coins and the to Timur's and tried to provoke him to invade all of Anatolia and

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

. However, Timur left Mutahharten without a liege when he departed for Georgia to subdue

Tokhtamysh Tokhtamysh ( Turki/ Kypchak and Persian: توقتمش; ; ; – 1406) was Khan of the Golden Horde from 1380 to 1395. He briefly succeeded in consolidating the Blue and White Hordes into a single polity. Tokhtamysh belonged to the House of Bo ...

of the

Golden Horde The Golden Horde, self-designated as ''Ulug Ulus'' ( in Turkic) was originally a Mongols, Mongol and later Turkicized khanate established in the 13th century and originating as the northwestern sector of the Mongol Empire. With the division of ...

(). With the support of Ahmad Aq Qoyunlu, Burhan al-Din decimated the region of Erzincan for a whole month and granted the Aq Qoyunlu the territory around Bayburt. On 27 October 1395, Mutahharten clashed with Burhan al-Din at Pulur. Although Mutahharten emerged victorious there, Burhan al-Din continued pursuing Mutahharten until Qara Yuluk killed Burhan al-Din on 14 July 1398. The

Ottoman sultan The sultans of the Ottoman Empire (), who were all members of the Ottoman dynasty (House of Osman), ruled over the Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental empire from its perceived inception in 1299 to Dissolution of the Ottoman Em ...

() annexed Sivas in 1398 and demanded that Mutahharten accept his suzerainty. Instead, Mutahharten relied on Timur, who conquered Sivas in August 1400. Bayezid did not shy away from striking back and advanced as far as Erzincan in 1401, where he took Mutahharten and his Trapezuntine wife captive. Mutahharten was ultimately released and restored as the ruler when Qara Yusuf, who had been given control of the place, did not fare well with the locals. Mutahharten momentarily acted as an intermediary between the Ottomans and the Timurids, but soon participated in the latter's Anatolian campaign that would become a major blow to the Ottomans at the

Battle of Ankara The Battle of Ankara or Angora () was fought on 28 July 1402, at the Çubuk plain near Ankara, between the forces of the Ottoman sultan Bayezid I and the emir of the Timurid Empire, Timur. The battle was a major victory for Timur, and it led to ...

. Mutahharten died in late 1403. He had no surviving legitimate male issue.

Fall

Exact details on the emirate's end following Mutahharten's demise are obscure. Castilian traveler

Ruy González de Clavijo Ruy González de Clavijo (died 2 April 1412) was a Castilian traveler and writer. In 1403–05 Clavijo was the ambassador of Henry III of Castile to the court of Timur, founder and ruler of the Timurid Empire. A diary of the journey, perhaps ba ...

claimed that Mutahharten's daughter's son, Sheikh Ali, first gained control of the city, and after Timur's intervention, Mutahharten's son usurped the throne, although Mutahharten lacked legitimate heirs. According to Clavijo, the city of Erzincan was besieged by the Qara Qoyunlu ruler Qara Yusuf in 1406. However, no other contemporary sources provide a similar account. Iranian historian

Hafiz-i Abru Hafez-e AbruMaria Eva Subtelny and Charles Melville, (; died June 1430) was a Persian historian working at the courts of Timurid rulers of Central Asia. His full name is ʿAbdallah (or Nur-Allah) Ebn Lotf-Allah Ebn 'Abd-al-Rashid Behdadini; ...

noted that in 1410, Mutahharten's other grandson Sheikh Hasan surrendered after resisting a 45-day siege led by Qara Yusuf. Qara Yusuf appointed one of his adherents, Pir Umar, as the governor of Erzincan. Sheikh Hasan was granted control of a fortress near Erzurum, thus putting an end to the emirate. Historian Rustam Shukurov identifies Mutahharten's grandson "Yar Ali" as the emir or governor between 1403–10 and 1420–25.

Culture

Ahi Ayna is known to have built a (building for

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

gatherings) known after himself in the city of Erzincan. Mutahharten's legacy in Erzincan includes a

madrasa Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , ), sometimes Romanization of Arabic, romanized as madrasah or madrassa, is the Arabic word for any Educational institution, type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whet ...

(school) and (Sufi building). During the period of the emirate, Erzincan was the scene of literary exchange and production. Sharaf al-Din Sati, a well-respected lord and history-writer from Erzincan, is thought to have sourced the paper from

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

, paying 6000 dirhams, for his work titled ''Tarikh-i Chingiz Khan'' (), which also went through the binding process in

Hama Hama ( ', ) is a city on the banks of the Orontes River in west-central Syria. It is located north of Damascus and north of Homs. It is the provincial capital of the Hama Governorate. With a population of 996,000 (2023 census), Hama is one o ...

before arriving in Erzincan. A copy of

Rumi Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī (), or simply Rumi (30 September 1207 – 17 December 1273), was a 13th-century poet, Hanafi '' faqih'' (jurist), Maturidi theologian (''mutakallim''), and Sufi mystic born during the Khwarazmian Empire ...

's ''Masnavi'' prepared by Muhammad ibn Husayn al-Mawlawi in January–February 1373 probably in Erzincan for "Taj al-Din Shaykh Husayn Beg" is attributed to Pir Husayn's patronage.

Population

The major cities ruled by the emirate and its subordinates, namely Erzincan and Bayburt, housed a majority

populace, mainly

Armenians Armenians (, ) are an ethnic group indigenous to the Armenian highlands of West Asia.Robert Hewsen, Hewsen, Robert H. "The Geography of Armenia" in ''The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiq ...

, while the rulers were

Muslims Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

. Contemporary

Maghreb The Maghreb (; ), also known as the Arab Maghreb () and Northwest Africa, is the western part of the Arab world. The region comprises western and central North Africa, including Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, and Tunisia. The Maghreb al ...

i traveler

Ibn Battuta Ibn Battuta (; 24 February 13041368/1369), was a Maghrebi traveller, explorer and scholar. Over a period of 30 years from 1325 to 1354, he visited much of Africa, the Middle East, Asia and the Iberian Peninsula. Near the end of his life, Ibn ...

mentioned in his that Erzincan's Armenian bishop exercised further than solely local influence. Castilian traveler Clavijo moreover relayed how Mutahharten reversed Timur's order of the conversion of a local influential

Greek Orthodox Greek Orthodox Church (, , ) is a term that can refer to any one of three classes of Christian Churches, each associated in some way with Greek Christianity, Levantine Arabic-speaking Christians or more broadly the rite used in the Eastern Rom ...

priest to Islam, and the total massacre of the local Christians by paying him 9,000 aspers. On the other hand, the emirate also contained some Muslim-majority communities.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * {{coord missing, Turkey Anatolian beyliks

States in medieval Anatolia State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

States and territories established in the 14th century History of Erzincan Province * History of Bayburt Province History of Giresun Province History of Erzurum Province States and territories disestablished in 1410