The Usfurids () were an
Arab
Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world.
Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...
dynasty that in 1253 gained control of
Eastern Arabia
Eastern Arabia () is a region stretched from Basra to Khasab along the Persian Gulf coast and included parts of modern-day Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia (Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia, Eastern Province), and the United Arab ...
, including the islands of
Bahrain
Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
. They were a branch of
Uqaylids
The Uqaylid dynasty () was a Shia Arab dynasty with several lines that ruled in various parts of Al-Jazira, northern Syria and Iraq in the late tenth and eleventh centuries. The main line, centered in Mosul, ruled from 990 to 1096.
History
Ri ...
who re-migrated to Arabia after the fall of their rule in Syria.
Name
The dynasty is named after its founder, ʿUṣfūr bin Rāshid (). The name ''
ʿUṣfūr'' () means small bird''.''
History
The Usfurids were initially allies of the
Qarmatians
The Qarmatians (; ) were a militant Isma'ili Shia movement centred in Al-Ahsa in Eastern Arabia, where they established a religious state in 899 CE. Its members were part of a movement that adhered to a syncretic branch of Sevener Ismaili ...
and their successors, the
Uyunids
The Uyunid dynasty () were an Arab dynasty that ruled Eastern Arabia for 163 years, from the 11th to the 13th centuries. Their sect is disputed; some sources mention they were Shia, others Sunni. They were, like the majority of the people of Ea ...
, but eventually overthrew the latter and seized power themselves. The Usfurids' takeover came after Uyunid power had been weakened by invasion in 1235 by the
Salghurid
The Salghurids (), also known as the Atabegs of Fars (), were a Persianate society, Persianate dynasty of Salur tribe, Salur Turkoman (ethnonym), Turkoman origin that ruled Fars province, Fars, first as vassals of the Seljuks then for the Khwara ...
Atabeg of Fars.
At the beginning of their rule the Usfurids had a state composed of central and eastern Arabia and even ruled parts of Oman. After 150 years of rule the Usfurids were overthrown by the
Jarwanids whom in turn were overthrown by the
Jabrids
The Jabrids () or Banu Jabr were an Arab dynasty that ruled all of Arabia except for Hejaz, parts of Oman and Yemen, and expanded into Iran's southern coast, controlling the Strait of Hormuz.
Prominence
Their most prominent ruler was Ajwad ibn ...
who were also an Uqaylid dynasty.
According to Arab sources, in 1354 the Arabian forces from the Usfurids invaded
Basra
Basra () is a port city in Iraq, southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the List of largest cities of Iraq, third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq bor ...
and defeated the
Mongols
Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, China ( Inner Mongolia and other 11 autonomous territories), as well as the republics of Buryatia and Kalmykia in Russia. The Mongols are the principal member of the large family o ...
where they inflicted heavy losses on them. However,
Sheikh Hassan al-Jalairi the Great, who succeeded the Mongols in ruling Iraq and was himself a Mongol sought help from Prince Fawaz bin Muhanna, the leader of the
Ta’is Tribe, and
Sheikh Hassan al-Jalairi the Great, who was able to repel the invaders, defeating them and killing a large number of the Usfurid forces.
See also
*
History of Bahrain: 10th-16th centuries
*
Jarwanid dynasty
The Jarwanid dynasty () was an Arab dynasty that ruled Eastern Arabia in the 14th century.
History
The Jarwanids belonged to the clan of Bani Malik. It is disputed whether they belonged to the Banu Uqayl—the tribe of their predecessors the Usf ...
*
Kalbids
The Kalbids () were a Muslim Arab dynasty which ruled the Emirate of Sicily from 948 to 1053. They were formally appointed by the Fatimids, but gained, progressively, ''de facto'' autonomous rule.
Family origins
The Kalbids descended from the ...
*
Mirdasids
The Mirdasid dynasty (), also called the Banu Mirdas, was an Arab Shia Muslim dynasty which ruled an Aleppo-based emirate in northern Syria and the western Jazira (Upper Mesopotamia) more or less continuously from 1024 until 1080.
History Do ...
*
Uqaylid Dynasty
The Uqaylid dynasty () was a Shia Islam, Shia Arab dynasty with several lines that ruled in various parts of Al-Jazira (caliphal province), Al-Jazira, northern Bilad al-Sham, Syria and Iraq in the late tenth and eleventh centuries. The main line ...
*
Uyunid dynasty
The Uyunid dynasty () were an Arab dynasty that ruled Eastern Arabia for 163 years, from the 11th to the 13th centuries. Their sect is disputed; some sources mention they were Shia, others Sunni. They were, like the majority of the people of Ea ...
*
Yusuf al-Bahrani
Yūsuf ibn ʾAḥmad al-Baḥrānī (1695–1772) () was a Bahraini muhaddith, faqīh and a key figure in the intellectual development of Twelver Shia Islam. Specifically, al-Bahrani was a key figure in the eighteenth century Twelver Shia debates ...
, descendant of the Usfurid dynasty
References
External links
ديوان آل عصفورJordan ديوان آل عصفورسايت خاندان آل عصفور در ايران
History of Eastern Arabia
Arab dynasties
Bahraini monarchy
Banu Uqayl
Arab slave owners
States and territories disestablished in 1392
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