Negudar (also known as ''Nikudar'' or ''Neguder'') was a

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 ...

general under

Berke Berke Khan (died 1266/1267; also Birkai; Turki/ Kypchak: برکه خان, , ) was a grandson of Genghis Khan from his son Jochi and a Mongol military commander and ruler of the Golden Horde, a division of the Mongol Empire, who effectively c ...

, and a

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 ...

Noyan ''Noyan'' (pl. noyad), or ''Toyon'', was a Central Asian title of authority which was used to refer to civil-military leaders of noble ancestry in the Central Asian Khanates with origins in ''Noyon'', which was used as a title of authority in ...

. With many other Golden Horde generals, he embraced

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

in the late 13th century. He subsequently took the Muslim name of Ahmad Khan. Before the conflicts between Berke and Hulagu, Negudar fostered peace in Eastern Khorasan and its surrounding areas in Central Asia. Neguder with other generals of the

Mongol Empire The Mongol Empire was the List of largest empires, largest contiguous empire in human history, history. Originating in present-day Mongolia in East Asia, the Mongol Empire at its height stretched from the Sea of Japan to parts of Eastern Euro ...

raided the northwest parts of the

Delhi Sultanate The Delhi Sultanate or the Sultanate of Delhi was a Medieval India, late medieval empire primarily based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for more than three centuries.

in the 1230s. When war hostilities broke out between Berke and

Hulagu Hulegu Khan, also known as Hülegü or Hulagu; ; ; ; ( 8 February 1265), was a Mongol ruler who conquered much of Western Asia. As a son of Tolui and the Keraite princess Sorghaghtani Beki, he was a grandson of Genghis Khan and brother of Ar ...

in 1260, Negudar assumed control over a sizeable portion of Berke's forces primarily in

Ghazni Ghazni (, ), historically known as Ghaznayn () or Ghazna (), also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana (), is a city in southeastern Afghanistan with a population of around 190,000 people. The city is strategica ...

and eastern

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

. Negudar and his forces ultimately settled in various parts of modern-day Afghanistan including

Kabul Kabul is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province. The city is divided for administration into #Districts, 22 municipal districts. A ...

''India as Seen by Babur, AD 1504–1530'' by R. Nath, pg. 23 and

Herat Herāt (; Dari/Pashto: هرات) is an oasis city and the third-largest city in Afghanistan. In 2020, it had an estimated population of 574,276, and serves as the capital of Herat Province, situated south of the Paropamisus Mountains (''Se ...

. Mongols in Afghanistan adopted his name later as they merged into

Chagatai Khanate The Chagatai Khanate, also known as the Chagatai Ulus, was a Mongol and later Turkification, Turkicized khanate that comprised the lands ruled by Chagatai Khan, second son of Genghis Khan, and his descendants and successors. At its height in the l ...

during the reign of

Alghu Alghu (died 1265 or 1266) was the khan of the Chagatai Khanate (1260–1265/6). He was the son of Baidar and the grandson of Chagatai Khan. Biography In 1260 Alghu was appointed as head of the ''ulus'' of the Chagatai Khanate by the Great Khan ...

. Today, Nikudari, an archaic form of the Mongolian language extinct in Mongolia, is preserved in Afghanistan and named after Negudar.

References

13th-century Mongols Generals of the Mongol Empire Converts to Islam Mongol Empire Muslims Golden Horde {{Mongol-Empire-stub