Abd Al-Malik Ibn Marwan

Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (Arabic: عبد الملك بن مروان‎ ‘Abd al-Malik ibn Marwān), (646 – 8 October 705) was the 5th Umayyad Caliph. He was born in Makkah and grew up in Medinah (both are cities in modern day Saudi Arabia). `Abd al-Malik was a well-educated man and capable ruler, despite the many political problems that impeded his rule. 14th century Muslim historian Ibn Khaldun states: "`Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan is one of the greatest Arab and Muslim Caliphs. He followed in the footsteps of `Umar ibn al-Khattab, the Commander of the Believers, in regulating state affairs".

In his reign, all important records were translated into Arabic, and for the first time a special currency for the Muslim world was minted, which led to war with the Byzantine Empire under Justinian II. The Byzantines were led by Leontios at the Battle of Sebastopolis in 692 in Asia Minor and were decisively defeated by the Caliph after the defection of a large contingent of Slavs. The Islamic currency was then made the only currency exchange in the Muslim world. Also, many reforms happened in his time as regards agriculture and commerce. `Abd al-Malik consolidated Muslim rule and extended it, made Arabic the state language, and organized a regular postal service.