n.
Arabic waz 012B; r
Chief minister of the Abb 0101; sid caliphs and later a high government official in various Muslim countries.
The office was originally held and defined by the Barmakids in the 8th century; they acted as the caliph's representative to the public, later serving a similar function for various sultans. In the Ottoman Empire the title could be held by several people at once; under Mehmed II the position of grand vizier, the absolute representative of the sultan, was created.