Zahir al-Dawla Vushmgir was the second Ziyarid emir who ruled from 935 until his death in December 967. He was a son of Ziyar. Voshmgir means "quail catcher" in the local Caspian Iranian dialects.
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Bisutun (بيستون) (died 977) was the ruler of the Ziyarids (967–977). He was the eldest son of Vushmgir.
During his father's lifetime, Bisutun was the governor of Tabaristan Amol. Upon Vushmgir's death in 967 during a hunting expedition, he went to Gurgan to assume power. His ascension was contested, however, by a Samanid army which had arrived shortly before Vushmgir's death for a joint campaign against the Buyid Rukn al-Dawla. The army commander supported making Bisutun's brother Qabus as ruler of the Ziyarids. Bisutun then turned to Rukn al-Dawla, recognizing the latter's sovereignty in an attempt to gain support. The Samanid army soon left Gurgan, returning to Khurasan, but Qabus found the support of al-Hasan ibn al-Fairuzan, who was ruling in Simnan at that time. Bisutun eventually managed to conquer both Gurgan and Simnan, forcing Qabus to give up his claims.
The Ziyarid dynasty (Persian: زیاریان) was an Iranian dynasty of Gilaki origin that ruled Tabaristan from 931 to 1090 during the Iranian Intermezzo period. The empire rose to prominence during the leadership of Mardavij. After his death, his brother Vushmgir and his Samanid allies led the dynasty in wrestling for control over territory against the Buyids in the early- to mid-10th century. When Vushmgir died, his sons Bisutun and Qabus fought for influence. Qabus would eventually outlive his brother and ruled the kingdom. However, Qabus was placed in exile from 980 to 998 by the Buyid ruler, Adud al-Dawla who would then dominate Tabaristan, the heartland of Ziyarid power. A succession of other rulers came to rule the kingdom with Ghaznavid support in the early 11th century. The Nizari Ismaili state invaded and ended Ziyarid rule in 1090.
At its greatest extent, it ruled much of present-day western and northern Iran. During the turn of the century, the kingdom attracted many scholars, with the most notable being al-Biruni.
Qabus ibn Wushmagir (full name: Abol-Hasan Qābūs ibn Wušmagīr ibn Ziyar Sams al-maʿālī, ابوالحسن قابوس بن وشمگیر بن زیار, شمسالمعالی; (died 1012) (r. 977–981; 997–1012) was the Ziyarid ruler of Gurgan and Tabaristan in medieval Iran. His father was Vushmgir and his mother was a daughter of the Bavandi Ispahbad Sharwin II.