Yahya ibn Zakarawayh, also known under his

assumed name A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individu ...

Sahib al-Naqa ("Master of the She-camel"), was a

Qarmatian The Qarmatians ( ar, قرامطة, Qarāmiṭa; ) were a militant Isma'ili Shia movement centred in al-Hasa in Eastern Arabia, where they established a religious-utopian socialist state in 899 CE. Its members were part of a movement that adh ...

leader in the Syrian Desert in the early years of the 10th century. Yahya was the eldest son of the Qarmatian leader Zakarawayh ibn Mihrawayh, and a descendant of the seventh

Isma'ili Isma'ilism ( ar, الإسماعيلية, al-ʾIsmāʿīlīyah) is a branch or sub-sect of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili () get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor ( imām) to Ja'far al- ...

imam,

Muhammad ibn Isma'il Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Ismāʿīl (), also known in his own time as al-Maymūn and hence sometimes incorrectly identified as Maymūn al-Qaddāḥ, was the son of Isma'il ibn Ja'far; he was an Ismāʿīlī Imam. The majority of Ism� ...

. His name made direct allusion to

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

(known as Yahya ibn Zakariyya in Islam), but he also assumed the title of "''Sahib al-Naqa''" ("Master of the She-camel") and claimed to be the awaited

Mahdi The Mahdi ( ar, ٱلْمَهْدِيّ, al-Mahdī, lit=the Guided) is a messianic figure in Islamic eschatology who is believed to appear at the end of times to rid the world of evil and injustice. He is said to be a descendant of Muhammad w ...

under the name "Muhammad ibn Abdallah". Along with his brother

Husayn Hussein, Hussain, Hossein, Hossain, Huseyn, Husayn, Husein or Husain (; ar, حُسَيْن ), coming from the triconsonantal root Ḥ-S-i-N ( ar, ح س ی ن, link=no), is an Arabic name which is the diminutive of Hassan, meaning "good", " ...

Yahya established a base of operations at

Palmyra Palmyra (; Palmyrene: () ''Tadmor''; ar, تَدْمُر ''Tadmur'') is an ancient city in present-day Homs Governorate, Syria. Archaeological finds date back to the Neolithic period, and documents first mention the city in the early secon ...

. The brothers were successful in gaining the support of many local Bedouin—especially from the

Banu Kalb The Banu Kalb ( ar, بنو كلب) was an Arab tribe which mainly dwelt in the desert between northwestern Arabia and central Syria. The Kalb was involved in the tribal politics of the eastern frontiers of the Byzantine Empire, possibly as early ...

, thus acquiring a potent military force. From this base they began launching raids against the

Abbasid The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...

and

Tulunid The Tulunids (), were a Mamluk dynasty of Turkic origin who were the first independent dynasty to rule Egypt, as well as much of Syria, since the Ptolemaic dynasty. They were independent from 868, when they broke away from the central authority ...

provinces of Syria, with devastating effect. In 902, the Qarmatians defeated the Tulunids under Tughj ibn Juff near

Raqqa Raqqa ( ar, ٱلرَّقَّة, ar-Raqqah, also and ) (Kurdish: Reqa/ ڕەقە) is a city in Syria on the northeast bank of the Euphrates River, about east of Aleppo. It is located east of the Tabqa Dam, Syria's largest dam. The Hellenistic, ...

, and laid siege to Damascus. The city was successfully held by Tughj, and Yahya was killed. Leadership passed to his brother, who assumed the title "Man with the Mole", and led the Qarmatians until his defeat, capture and execution after the

Battle of Hama The Battle of Hama was fought some from the city of Hama in Syria on 29 November 903 between the forces of the Abbasid Caliphate and the Qarmatians. The Abbasids were victorious, resulting in the capture and execution of the Qarmatian leader ...

in November 903. Zakarawayh, the brothers' father, also rebelled in 906 near

Kufa Kufa ( ar, الْكُوفَة ), also spelled Kufah, is a city in Iraq, about south of Baghdad, and northeast of Najaf. It is located on the banks of the Euphrates River. The estimated population in 2003 was 110,000. Currently, Kufa and Najaf a ...

but was killed in the next year during an attack on the '' hajj'' caravan. With these defeats, the Qarmatian movement virtually ceased to exist in the Syrian Desert, although their counterparts in

Bahrayn Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ad ...

remained an active threat for several decades to come.

References

Sources

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yahya ibn Zakarawayh 9th-century births 902 deaths Year of birth unknown Qarmatians Rebels from the Abbasid Caliphate 10th century in Asia People killed in action