Abu Muhammad Lu'lu' al-Kabir

Abu Muhammad Lu'lu', surnamed al-Kabir ("the Elder") and al-Jarrahi al-Sayfi ("[servant] of the Jarrahids and Sayf al-Dawla"), was a military slave (ghulam) of the Hamdanid Emirate of Aleppo. Under the rule of Sa'd al-Dawla, he rose to become the emirate's chamberlain, and on Sa'd al-Dawla's death in 991 he was appointed guardian of his son and successor, Sa'id al-Dawla. The able Lu'lu' soon became the de facto ruler of the emirate, securing his position by marrying his daughter to the young emir. His perseverance and aid from the Byzantine emperor Basil II preserved Aleppo from repeated Fatimid attempts to conquer it. Upon Sa'id al-Dawla's death in 1002—possibly poisoned by Lu'lu'—he became the ruler of the emirate, disinheriting Sa'id al-Dawla's sons. He ruled with wisdom until his death in 1008/9. He was succeeded by his son, Mansur, who managed to retain the throne until deposed in 1015/16.

Early life and rise to power Although not recorded in any historical source, his nisbas of "al-Jarrahi al-Sayfi" suggest that Lu'lu' was initially a servant of the Jarrahids of Palestine, before coming to serve the Hamdanid ruler of Aleppo, Sayf al-Dawla (r. 945–967), under whom he is attested in an expedition against Mopsuestia in 965. His name, meaning "pearl", was typical of the pet-names often given to the slave-soldiers and servants (ghilman, sing. ghulam) in the contemporary Muslim world. According to historian Fukuzo Amabe, Lu'lu' actually seems to have been a mawla (protege) of a certain ghulam of Sayf al-Dawla named Hajraj. Moreover, Amabe asserts that historian Marius Canard's identification of Hajraj with the Jarrahids "seems to be a mistake".

As Emir of Aleppo, Lu'lu' was a capable ruler, who was remembered for his wisdom and justice. He also managed to maintain the balance between Byzantium and the Fatimids: although he recognized Fatimid suzerainty, he continued to pay tribute to Byzantium, and imprisoned the adventurer al-Asfar, who dreamed of launching jihad against the Byzantine Empire. Lu'lu' died in 1008/9, and was succeeded by his son Mansur. Mansur was unpopular, faced several challenges to his rule by rival factions and tribes, and quickly became subordinate to the Fatimids. In the end, he was deposed by a popular uprising in 1015/16 and forced to find refuge in Byzantine territory.

According to Marius Canard, "Lu'lu' presents the image of a slave (ghulam) who, by his energy and ability, and favoured by external events, succeeds in hoisting himself up to a position of supremacy over an emirate, admittedly an emirate of secondary importance. It could be said that he prefigures in the 5th/11th century what various of the Mamluks of Egypt were to become on a larger scale."