Hudhayfa ibn al-Ahwas al-Qaysi | |
|---|---|
حذيفة بن الأحوص القيسي | |
| Governor of Al-Andalus | |
| In office 728–728 | |
| Preceded by | Yahya ibn Salama al-Kalbi |
| Succeeded by | Uthman ibn Abi Nis'a al-Khath'ami |
Hudhayfa ibn al-Ahwas al-Qaysi (Arabic:حذيفة بن الأحوص القيسي,romanized: Ḥudhayfa ibn al-Aḥwaṣ al-Ḳaysī)[a] was the eighthgovernor of al-Andalus under theUmayyad caliphate of Damascus. He served for six months in the yearAD 728 (AH 110).[4]
Hudhayfa succeededYahya ibn Salama al-Kalbi as governor towards the middle of 728. This was probably related to the change in the governorship inIfriqiya. The previous governor,Bashir, a member of theBanu Kalb like Yahya, died late in 727 and his hand-picked successor was replaced early in 728 by the CaliphHisham ibn Abd al-Malik. The new governor of Ifriqiya wasUbayda of theQays Aylan clan. Since the governor of al-Andalus was under the authority of the governor of Ifriqiya, by the middle of the year Yahya (perhaps dead) had been replaced by a Qaysi.[1] Hudhayfa is the last governor whose appointment by the governor of Ifriqiya with the consent of the caliph is recorded in theChronicle of 754. All subsequent governors seem to have governed independently of Damascus.[2]
TheChronicle of 754 was written inLatin by a contemporaryChristian from al-Andalus. It records that Hudhayfa—whose name is spelledOdifa[b]—was in office for only six months.[1] TheProphetic Chronicle (883) also gives him a term of six months, but the list of governors compiled by the Andalusian scholarIbn Habib (878/9) has him ruling for a whole year.[2] The 17th-century historianal-Maqqari follows Ibn Habib and dates his term from June or July 728 until April 729.[3]
TheChronicle of 754 criticises Hudhayfa for unspecified "levity" or "frivolity" (levitas), implying that he lacked the virtue ofgravitas (dignity) that was considered an imperative of high office.[1] He was succeeded after a brief and unsuccessful term byUthman ibn Abi Nis'a al-Khath'ami.[1]
| Preceded by | Umayyad governor ofal-Andalus 728 | Succeeded by |