Sikandar Mirza (died 1613) was an Armenian merchant who travelled from

Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

and became a trusted figure within

Akbar Akbar (Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar, – ), popularly known as Akbar the Great, was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Humayun, under a regent, Bairam Khan, who helped the young emperor expa ...

's court in the

Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an Early modern period, early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to ...

."Mirza Zulqarnain – An Armenian Noble"
by Ruquiya K. Husain, ''

Proceedings of the Indian History Congress Indian History Congress is the largest professional and academic body of Indian historians with over 35,000 members. It was established in 1935. The name of any new applicant for membership needs to be proposed and seconded by existing Ordinary or ...

'', Vol. 59 (1998), pp. 260–265. According to Mesrovb Jacob Seth, he married Lady Juliana (died 1598),Not to be confused with Lady Juliana of Agra a doctor in Akbar's

seraglio A seraglio, serail, seray or saray (from , via Turkish, Italian and French) is a castle, palace or government building which was considered to have particular administrative importance in various parts of the former Ottoman Empire. "The S ...

,Seth, p. 93.
/ref> and the daughter of the

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

chief justice

Abdul Hai Abdul Hai () is a Muslim male given name, and in modern usage, surname. It is built from the Arabic words '' Abd'', ''al-'' and ''Hayy''. The name means "servant of the Living God", ''Al-Hayy'' being one of the names of God in the Qur'an, which give ...

.Seth, p. 2.
/ref> Seth says she was given to Sikandar by Akbar.Seth, p. 3.
/ref> His son was

Mirza Zulqarnain Mirza Zulqarnain or Mirza Zul-Qarnain (c. 1594 – c. 1656) was a '' diwan'' and ''faujdar'' of Armenian descent in the court of the Mughal Empire. He was brought up in the royal harem and, after being appointed to official posts, spent mo ...

(c. 1594 – c. 1656) who was an important official within the court of

Shah Jahan Shah Jahan I, (Shahab-ud-Din Muhammad Khurram; 5 January 1592 – 22 January 1666), also called Shah Jahan the Magnificent, was the Emperor of Hindustan from 1628 until his deposition in 1658. As the fifth Mughal emperor, his reign marked the ...

Notes

References

1613 deaths Year of birth missing 16th-century merchants 17th-century merchants Mughal court Armenians from the Ottoman Empire Indian people of Armenian descent Merchants from the Ottoman Empire {{armenia-bio-stub