born in 1882 or 1883 in Tehran, Iran. He was one of Ahad Agha Shirvani's three sons, and grandson of Moustafa Khan Shirvani, governor of the Shirvan Khanate), a descendant of the Shirvan Shah who fought against Shah Esmaeil from the Persian Safavid dynasty. Following the defeat of the Shirvan Shah, the Khanate of Shirvan was annexed to Persia, but Mustafa Khan retained the governorship of Shirvan.