Rabīʿa ibn Nizar ( ar, ربيعة بن نزار) is the patriarch of one of two main branches of the "North Arabian" (
Adnanite) tribes, the other branch being founded by
Mudhar.
Branches
According to the classical
Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Wester ...
genealogists, the following are the important branches of Rabīʿa:
*
Abd al-Qays
*
Anazzah
* Anz ibn Wa'il
*
Bakr ibn Wa'il, which also included the following sub-tribes
**
Banu Hanifa
**
Banu Shayban
** Banu Qays ibn Tha'laba
**
Taym Allah (or Taym Allat)
**
Banu Yashkur
*
Taghlib ibn Wa'il
The Banu Taghlib (), also known as Taghlib ibn Wa'il, were an Arab tribe that originated in Najd (central Arabia), but later migrated and inhabited the Jazira (Upper Mesopotamia) from the late 6th century onward. Their parent tribe was the Ra ...
* al-Nammir ibn Qasit
Location
Like the rest of the Adnanite Arabs, legend has it that Rabīʿa's original homelands were in the
Tihamah region of western
Arabia
The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...
,
from which Rabīʿa migrated northwards and eastwards. Abd al-Qays were one of the inhabitants of the region of
Eastern Arabia
Eastern Arabia, historically known as al-Baḥrayn ( ar, البحرين) until the 18th century, is a region stretched from Basra to Khasab along the Persian Gulf coast and included parts of modern-day Bahrain, Kuwait, Eastern Saudi Arabia, Unite ...
, including the modern-day islands of
Bahrain
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 ...
, and were mostly sedentary.
Bakr's lands stretched from
al-Yamama (the region around modern-day
Riyadh
Riyadh (, ar, الرياض, 'ar-Riyāḍ, Literal translation, lit.: 'The Gardens' Najdi Arabic, Najdi pronunciation: ), formerly known as Hajr al-Yamamah, is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyad ...
) to northwestern
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...
. The main body of the tribe was
bedouin, but a powerful and autonomous sedentary sub-tribe of Bakr also resided in al-Yamama, the
Bani Hanifa.
Taghlib resided on the eastern banks of the
Euphrates, and al-Nammir are said to have been their clients. Anz inhabited southern Arabia, and are said to have been decimated by the
plague in the 13th century, though a tribe named "Rabīʿa" in modern-day
'Asir is said to be its descendant.
Anazzah was divided into a sedentary section in southern
Yamama and a bedouin section further north.
Abd al-Qays, Taghlib, al-Nammir, and some sections of Bakr were mostly
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...
before Islam, with Taghlib remaining a Christian tribe for some time afterwards as well.
Anazzah and Bakr are said to have worshiped an idol by the name of al-Sa'eer.
Rabīʿa in Egypt and Sudan
During 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-Muttal ...
era, many members of Bani Hanifa and related tribesmen from Bakr ibn Wa'il migrated from al-Yamama to southern
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...
, where they dominated the gold-mines of
Wadi Allaqi near
Aswan
Aswan (, also ; ar, أسوان, ʾAswān ; cop, Ⲥⲟⲩⲁⲛ ) is a city in Southern Egypt, and is the capital of the Aswan Governorate.
Aswan is a busy market and tourist centre located just north of the Aswan Dam on the east bank of ...
. While in Egypt, the tribesmen went by the collective name of "Rabi'a" and inter-married with indigenous tribes in the area such as the
Beja peoples. Among their descendants are the tribe of
Banu Kanz (also known as the Kunooz), who take their name from Kanz al-Dawlah of
Bani Hanifa, the leader of Rabi'a in Egypt during the
Fatimid
The Fatimid Caliphate was an Ismaili Shi'a
Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muh ...
era.
Some Notable people
*
Amr ibn Kulthum
*
Suhayb al-Rumi
*
Al-Muthanna ibn Haritha
*
Abu Layla al-Muhalhel Abu Layla ʿUday ibn Rabīʿa ibn al-Ḥāriṯ at-Taḡlibiyy ( ar, أَبُو لَيْلَى عُدَيّ بْن رَبِيعَة بْن الْحَارِث التَّغْلِبِيّ; 443 – 531 CE), also known by the nicknames al-Muhalhil ...
*
Tarafa
*
Bahira
*
Al-A'sha
*
Al-Harith ibn Hilliza al-Yashkuri
*
Musaylimah
*
Qatada ibn Di'ama
*
Malik ibn Tawk
*
Khalid ibn Yazid al-Shaybani
*
Yazid ibn Mazyad al-Shaybani
*
Ma'n ibn Za'ida al-Shaybani Abu'l-Walid Ma'n ibn Za'ida al-Shaybani () (died 769/70) was an 8th-century Arab general of the Shayban tribe, who served both the Umayyads and the Abbasids.
Under the Umayyads
Ma'n was a member of the nobility of the Shayban tribe, settled in t ...
*
Abu Dulaf al-Ijli
Abū Dulaf al-Qāsim ibn ‘Īsā ibn Ma‘qil ibn Idrīs al-‘Ijlī () was a military commander under the Abbasid caliphs al-Ma’mūn and al-Mu‘taṣim. His father had commenced construction of the city of Karaj in Jibal, the tribal re ...
*
Ahmad ibn Hanbal
Ahmad ibn Hanbal al-Dhuhli ( ar, أَحْمَد بْن حَنْبَل الذهلي, translit=Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal al-Dhuhlī; November 780 – 2 August 855 CE/164–241 AH), was a Muslim jurist, theologian, ascetic, hadith traditionist, and ...
*
Al-Akhtal
*
Abu al-Atahiya
*
Harith al-Muhasibi
*
Haly Abenragel
*
Badi' al-Zaman al-Hamadani
Badi' al-Zamān al-Hamadāni or al-Hamadhāni ( ar, بديع الزمان الهمذاني التغلبي; 969–1007) was a medieval Arab man of letters born in Hamadan, Iran. He is best known for his work the ''Maqamat Badi' az-Zaman al-Ha ...
*
Abu Firas al-Hamdani
*
Awn al-Din ibn Hubayra
*
Al-Bakri
*
Ibn 'Abd al-Barr
*
Said al-Andalusi
*
Abdullah bin Ali Al Uyuni
*
Ibn Saud
*
Abdul-Rahman Al-Sudais
*
Mohammed bin Ali Aba Al Khail
Royal families which stem from the Rabi'a tribe
*
Dulafid dynasty
The Dulafid or Dolafid dynasty () was an Arab dynasty that served as governors of Jibal for the Abbasid caliphs in the 9th century. During the weakening of the authority of the caliphs after 861, their rule in Jibal became increasingly independe ...
*
Uyunid dynasty
*
Hamdanid dynasty
The Hamdanid dynasty ( ar, الحمدانيون, al-Ḥamdāniyyūn) was a Twelver Shia Arab dynasty of Northern Mesopotamia and Syria (890–1004). They descended from the ancient Banu Taghlib Christian tribe of Mesopotamia and Easter ...
.
*
Al Saud
The House of Saud ( ar, آل سُعُود, ʾĀl Suʿūd ) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is composed of the descendants of Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the Emirate of Diriyah, known as the First Saudi state (1727–1818), a ...
, rulers of
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries by area, fifth-largest country in Asia ...
.
*
Al Khalifa, rulers of
Bahrain
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 ...
*
Al Sabah
The House of Sabah ( ar, آل صباح ''Āl Ṣubāḥ'') is the ruling family of Kuwait.
History Origin
The Al Sabah family originate from the Bani Utbah confederation. Prior to settling in Kuwait, the Al Sabah family were expelled from Um ...
, rulers of
Kuwait
Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the no ...
.
*
Banu Kanz
*
Mazyadid dynasty
*
Shirvanshah
*
Taifa of Saltés and Huelva.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rabi'a
Tribes of Arabia
Rabi`ah