Many Arabs in Iraq identify strongly with a tribe (العشيرة ''
'ashira''). 30 of the 150 or so identifiable tribes of
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
are the most influential. Tribes are grouped into federations (''qabila''). Below the tribe, there are the clan (الفخذ ''fukhdh''), the house (البيت ''beit'') and the extended family (الخمس ''khams''). On its accession to power in the
17 July Revolution of 1968, the
Ba'ath Party
The Arab Socialist Baʿath Party ( ar, حزب البعث العربي الاشتراكي ' ) was a political party founded in Syria by Mishel ʿAflaq, Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn al-Bītār, and associates of Zaki al-ʾArsūzī. The party espoused ...
announced its opposition to tribalism ( القبلية ''al-qabaliyya''), although for pragmatic reasons, especially during the war with
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
, tribalism was sometimes tolerated and even encouraged.
List of major tribes ('''ashira'')
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Banu Khuza'ah
The Banū Khuzāʿah ( ar, بنو خزاعة singular ''Khuzāʿī'') is the name of an Azdite, Qaḥṭānite tribe, which is one of the main ancestral tribes of the Arabian Peninsula. They ruled Mecca for a long period, prior to the Islamic ...
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Shammar
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Al-Dulaimi
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Al-Jubouri
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Al-Aniza
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Al-Asadi
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Al-Ali
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Al-Duraji
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Bani Hasan
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Al-Khazraj
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Banu Lam Banu Lam ( ar, بنو لام) is an Arab tribe of central Arabia and southern Iraq. The tribe claims descent from the ancient Arab tribe of Tayy. It dominated western Nejd (the region between Medina and al-Yamama) before the 15th century. The trib ...
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Bani Malik
Sanaa ( ar, صَنْعَاء '), also spelled San'a or Sana, is a governorate of Yemen. Its capital is Sanaa, which is also the national capital. However, the city of Sanaa is not part of the governorate but instead forms the separate governora ...
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Al-Muntafiq
Al-Muntafiq ( ar, المنتفق) was a large Arab tribal confederation of southern Iraq and Kuwait. The confederation's tribes predominantly settled in Iraq's southern provinces and northern Kuwait. The confederation is not homogeneous in ter ...
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Al-Bu Nasir
Al-Bu Nasir ( ar, ألبو ناصر) is one of the Arab tribes in Iraq. It is a Sunni Arab shepherd (Arabic: الراعي) tribe comprising some 35,000 people who primarily inhabit the town of Tikrit and the surrounding area of northern central ...
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Al-Dhafeer
Al-Dhafeer () is an ancient Arabian tribe, that goes back to Tayy. It used to control the entirety of Najd from around 1300 to 1590. They were known as warriors of the Arabian region 700 years ago, united and always together despite their huge num ...
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Al-Musawi
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Al-Ubaid
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Otaibah The Otaibah (, also spelled Otaiba, Utaybah) is one of the biggest Arab tribes originating in the Arabian Peninsula. Their distribution spans throughout Saudi Arabia, especially in Najd. and the Middle East. The Otaibah are descended from the Bedoui ...
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Al-Zubaidi
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Mutair
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Banu Tamim
Banū Tamīm ( ar, بَنُو تَمِيم) is an Arab tribe that originated in Najd in the Arabian Peninsula. It is mainly present in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Iraq, Jordan, Algeria, and has a strong presence in Morocco, Palestine, Tuni ...
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Banu Kilab
The Banu Kilab ( ar, بنو كِلاب, Banū Kilāb) was an Arab tribe in the western Najd (central Arabia) where they controlled the horse-breeding pastures of Dariyya from the mid-6th century until at least the mid-9th century. The tribe was div ...
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Al-Huraishi (Iraqi tribe)
Partial source
Tribes in Iraq Humanitarian Information Centre for Iraq. 2003.
See also
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Iraqis
Iraqis ( ar, العراقيون, ku, گهلی عیراق, gelê Iraqê) are people who originate from the country of Iraq. Iraq consists largely of most of ancient Mesopotamia, the native land of the indigenous Sumerian, Akkadian, Assyrian, ...
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Arabs
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
References
*Tripp, Charles (2000) ''A History of Iraq''. Cambridge University Press. /
*Al-Azzawi, Abbas. ''Asha'ir al-Iraq'' (The Tribes of Iraq). Baghdad Press, Iraq.
*Al-Amiri, Thamir. "Mawsu'at al-Qaba'il al-Iraqiyya" (The Encyclopedia of Iraqi Tribes). 9 vols. Baghdad, 1991–1997.
*Al-Samarra'i, Younis Al-Sheikh Ibrahim. ''Al-Qaba'il al-Iraqiyya'' (Iraqi Tribes). Al-Sharaf Al-Jedid Press, Baghdad, Iraq.
*Al-Samarra'i, Younis Al-Sheikh Ibrahim. ''Al-Qaba'il wa al-Biyoutat al-Hashimiya fi al-Iraq'' (Hashimi Tribes and Families in Iraq). Al-Umma Press, Baghdad.
*Al-Durubi, Ibrahim. ''Al-Baghdadiyun, Akhbaruhum wa Majalisuhum'' (The Baghdadis, Their Annals and Assemblies). Al-Rabita Press, Baghdad, 1958.
*ath-Thuroihi, Abdul Maula. (Ar-Riyaadh al-Azhariyyah Fii Taariikh al-Usor al-‘Alawiyyah)
{{Arab tribes in Iraq
Arab groups
Arabs in Iraq
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