The Musahiban (mus-hi-been; the name derives from Persian مصاحب Muṣāḥib, meaning "courtier" or "aide de camp"[1]) are a Mohammadzai family who founded the Afghan Barakzai dynasty, and members of the royal lineage that ruled Afghanistan as emir, king or president from 1823 to 1978.[2] They descend from Sultan Mohammad Khan Telai (1795–1861) and his older brother Emir Dost Mohammad Khan (1792–1863), and were the last rulers of the Mohammadzai dynasty before being overthrown in the Saur Revolution[3] in April 1978.