Bajkam

Abū al-Husayn Bajkam al-Mākānī (), referred to as Bajkam, Badjkam or Bachkam (from Bäčkäm, a Persian and Turkish word meaning a horse- or yak-tail), was a Turkish military commander and official of the Abbasid Caliphate. A former ghulam of the Ziyarid dynasty, Bajkam entered Abbasid service following the assassination of the Ziyarid ruler Mardavij in 935. During his five-year tenure at the Caliphate's court at Baghdad, he was granted the title of amir al-umara, consolidating his dominance over the caliphs al-Radi and al-Muttaqi and giving him absolute power over their domains. Bajkam was challenged throughout his rule by various opponents, including his predecessor as amir al-umara, Muhammad ibn Ra'iq, the Basra-based Baridis, and the Buyid dynasty of Iran, but he succeeded in retaining control until his death. He was murdered by a party of Kurds during a hunting excursion in 941, shortly after the accession of al-Muttaqi as Caliph. Bajkam was known both for his firm rule and for his patronage of Baghdad intellectuals, who respected and in some cases befriended him. His death led to a void in central power, resulting in a brief period of instability and fighting in Baghdad.

== Early military career and service under Ibn Ra'iq == Details of Bajkam's early life are unknown. He was a Turk, and began his career as one of the ghilman (military slaves, usually of Turkish origin) of a vizier to the Daylamite warlord Makan ibn Kaki in northern Iran. His master then made a gift of his ghilman, including Bajkam, to Makan. The latter took care of the young Bajkam's training and education, something for which the latter showed his gratitude by adopting his patron's name as his nisba (surname).