Back to People

Bashīr

מטא-דאטא

Gender
Male
מסמכים
Active dates
1135 CE
Social roles
  • Other
  • Merchant
Other name
בשיר

Description / Bio

A nākhudā in the Indian Ocean trade in the 12th century. "His ship [G]hazāla ('Gazelle'), in which Ben Yijū had sent pepper and ginger, suffered damage off the INdian coast, ca. 1145. It seems that Sheikh Makkī b. Abu ʾl-Hawl was the captain, and Bashīr accordingly, was probably the shipowner. Goitein commented that the name Bashīr was next to unknown among Jews; accordingly this nākhudā was probably a Muslim (or Christian)." (Goitein & Friedman, India Book p. 151)

Sasha Batz Stern, "Bashīr," available online through the Princeton Geniza Project at https://geniza.princeton.edu/people/bashir/, accessed June 9, 2026.
https://geniza.princeton.edu/people/bashir/