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Qizilbash or Kizilbash (Qızılbaş; قزيل باش; Qezelbāš; Kızılbaş kɯzɯɫbaʃ) were a diverse array of mainly Turkoman Shia militant groups that flourished in Azerbaijan, Anatolia, the Armenian highlands, the Caucasus, and Kurdistan from the late 15th century onwards, and contributed to the foundation of the Safavid dynasty in early modern Iran. The word Qizilbash derives from Turkish Kızılbaş, meaning "red head". The expression is derived from their distinctive twelve-gored crimson headwear (tāj or tark in Persian; sometimes specifically titled "Haydar's Crown" / Tāj-e Ḥaydar), indicating their adherence to the Twelve Imams and to Shaykh Haydar, the spiritual leader (sheikh) of the Safavid order in accordance with the Imamate in Twelver doctrine. The name was originally a pejorative label given to them by their Sunni Ottoman foes, but soon it was adopted as a mark of pride. The origin of the Qizilbash can be dated from the 15th century onward, when the spiritual grandmaster of the movement, Shaykh Haydar (the head of the Safaviyya Sufi order), organized his followers into militant troops. The Qizilbash were originally composed of seven Turkic, all Azerbaijani-speaking tribes: Rumlu, Shamlu, Ustajlu, Afshar, Qajar, Tekelu, and Zulkadar. Connections between the Qizilbash and other religious groups and secret societies, such as the Iranian Zoroastrian Mazdaki movement in the Sasanian Empire, or its more radical offspring, the Persian Khurramites, and Turkic shamanism, have been suggested. Of these, the Khurramites were, like the Qizilbash, an early Shi'i ghulat group and dressed in red, for which they were termed "the red ones" (سرخ‌جامگان, محمرة muḥammirah) by medieval sources. In this context, Turkish scholar Abdülbaki Gölpinarlı sees the Qizilbash as "spiritual descendants of the Khurramites". The Qizilbash were a coalition of many different tribes of predominantly (but not exclusively) Turkic-speaking background united in their adherence to Safavi Shia Islam. Apart from Turkomans, Qizilbash also included Kurds, Lurs, Persians, and Talysh.

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