Abstract
Jewish sources emanating from the Islamic world of the Middle Ages abound in references to individuals bearing the title nasiء (“prince”; plural, nesiءim). In the unique religious and cultural world of the medieval Near East this biblical designation signified, with rare exception, descent from King David through the line of the Babylonian exilarchs. While at one time the title was restricted to incumbents of the exilarchate, by the eleventh century CE it had been appropriated by a broader circle of individuals who claimed descent from David but were often only distantly related to occupants of that office. These nesiءim enjoyed a measure of status in the Jewish communities of the Near East that was informed by the importance of noble ancestry in Arabic society in general and Islamic veneration for King David in particular.
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