When we attempt to analyze the medieval Middle East we subject ourselves to severe frustration, particularly if we try to connect social structure to the political history of sovereign dynasties. For all the thousands of pages of history, biography, and geography which have come down to us, and for all their wealth of incident, the material is fragmentary, repetitious and tendentious. Historians of Iran and Central Asia are at a particular disadvantage because the detailed biographical material so useful for Mamluk history is not replicated in the Persian tradition. Biographies certainly exist, but they are usually shorter and less systematic. Furthermore, local historiographical traditions are rarely focused on the largest and most central cities. Nonetheless, we must be grateful for the existence of our sources and if we face their problems squarely we can enjoy the delights they do offer. The materials on Timurid history are plentiful, and the major ones have been well described and analyzed. Instead of reviewing texts and filiations therefore, I will use this chapter to discuss some historiographical issues relevant to this inquiry and to explain how I have tried to work around the difficulties confronting me. The goal of this study, to understand the politics within and among different groups, requires a particularly careful use of the available material because the information I am seeking is not what these sources are designed to give the reader.

We can rarely find out all we wish about the people in any one group.