Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn Yūsuf ibn Ayyūb (Arabic: صلاح الدين يوسف بن أيوب; Kurdish: سهلاحهدین ئهیوبی , Selahedînê Eyûbî; Persian: صلاح الدين أيوبی; Turkish: Selahattin Eyyubi) (1137/1138 – March 4, 1193), better known in the Western world as Saladin, was the first Sultan of Egypt and Syria and the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty. A Muslim of Kurdish[2][3] origin, Saladin led the Muslim opposition against the European Crusaders in the Levant. At the height of his power, his sultanate included Egypt, Syria, Mesopotamia, Hejaz, Yemen, and other parts of North Africa.