Saints and Tombs of Diyarbakır

Maqam attributed to Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas (Diyarbakır)

MAQAM (grave not certain). Behind the Ulu Beden Tower in Sur, a grave bears a later inscription 'Sahat b. Vakkas'. The famous Companion Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas is not recorded as taking part in the conquest of Diyarbakır, and his true grave is in al-Baqi, Medina; this site likely belongs to another Companion. (Sources: Evliyalar.net; Sur tomb-tower inventory)

Maqam of Prophet Harun al-Asafi

MAQAM (grave not certain). On Ziyaret Tepe in Eğil district, attributed to Prophet Harun al-Asafi, said to have assisted Prophet Solomon. The 1316/1898 Salname records his grave in Eğil. Owing to dam flooding it was relocated to the Nebi Harun Hill shrine in 1995; prophethood/grave attribution disputed. (Sources: Diyarbakır Salname 1316/1898; Eğil Prophet Tombs inventory)

Sheikh Abdurrahman Aktepe

Son of the Naqshbandi-Khalidi sheikh Hasan al-Nurani, born 1854 in Aktepe village of Çınar district, Diyarbakır. He wrote works on medicine, logic, astronomy and Sufism and trained many students at the Aktepe lodge. He died on 29 March 1910 and was buried in the Aktepe village tomb. (Sources: TDV 'Abdurrahman Aktepe'; Evliyalar.net)

Sheikh Hasan al-Nurani

A leading figure of the Khalidi branch of the Naqshbandi order, he received his succession from Sheikh Khalid al-Jaziri. He settled in Aktepe, founded a madrasa, and led guidance. He died in 1865 (1283 AH) and was buried in the Aktepe tomb; his guidance was continued by his son Sheikh Abdurrahman Aktepe. (Sources: TDV [on his father]; Evliyalar.net)

Shaykh Yusuf al-Hamadani

Shaykh

A saint believed to be buried in the tomb in the courtyard of the Tabakhane (Şeyh Yusuf) Mosque in Melikahmet neighbourhood, Sur, Diyarbakır, after whom the mosque is named. He is locally said to have been a shaykh who came from Hamadan and settled in the city in the Akkoyunlu period. (Venerated as a figure distinct from the celebrated Central Asian Sufi Yusuf al-Hamadani, teacher of Ahmad Yasawi, whose tomb is in Merv.)

Sarı Sadık (Shaykh Sadiq Ali Efendi)

Shaykh

A shaykh of the Gülşeniyye Sufi order believed to be buried in the tomb opposite the Urfa Gate, popularly known as the 'Sarı Saltuk Tomb'. Sources identify the interred figure as Shaykh Sadiq Ali Efendi (d. 961/1553), one of the caliphs of İbrahim Gülşenî, known by the epithet Sarı Sadık.

Prophet Elisha (Elyasa)

Prophet (peace be upon him)

One of the prophets named in the Qur'an (al-An'am 86, Sad 48). His tomb in Eğil, Diyarbakır, was relocated together with that of Dhu'l-Kifl in September 1995 to Nebi Harun Hill in Kale neighbourhood, Eğil, owing to the Dicle Dam.

Prophet Dhu'l-Kifl (Ezekiel)

Prophet (peace be upon him)

Counted among the prophets named in the Qur'an (al-Anbiya 85, Sad 48). His shrine in the Eğil district of Diyarbakır, threatened by the Dicle Dam reservoir, was relocated in September 1995 (13-16 Sept.) to Nebi Harun Hill (Ziyaret Tepesi) in Kale neighbourhood of Eğil, where it remains a major pilgrimage site.

Sulayman ibn Khalid (ibn al-Walid) and the 27 Companions

Hazrat

According to tradition the son of the famous Companion-commander Khalid ibn al-Walid, said to have been martyred during the conquest of Diyarbakır (Amid) by the army of Iyad ibn Ghanm under Caliph Umar (c. 639 CE). He and the Companions martyred with him are buried in the tomb adjoining the western wall of the Hz. Süleyman (Kale/Nâsıriyye) Mosque in the inner citadel, also known as the 'Tomb of the 27 Companions'.