Quote Originally Posted by Grymloq View Post
Hi,
which is the difference between Ghulams (Ghilman) and Mamluks (Mamalik)?
Thanks
The Mamluks were the dynasty which succeeded the Ayyubids in Egypt in 1250. They seem to be quite a militaristic group of rulers, and ruled over Egypt at the time the Franks were finally expelled from the mainland of the Holy Land (Hillenbrand 1999, 26-29). Ghilman (from the little, questionable stuff I can find on them i.e. wikipedia) seem to be a specific group/unit of soldiers.

Before the time of the Mamluk rulers though, the terms appear to mean the same thing, referring to slave-soldiers. ("Mamluk also translates ghulam, the term with the same significance, used more frequently in the Eastern Islamic world" - from the Introduction to the translation of The Chronicle of Ibn al-Athir, part 1, trans. D.s. Richards)