Al Murrah
| Al Murrah آل مرة | |
|---|---|
| Arab tribe | |
 | |
| Ethnicity | Arab |
| Location | Arabian Peninsula Saudi Arabia Qatar United Arab Emirates Kuwait Bahrain Oman Yemen Egypt Sudan |
| Descended from | Banu Yam |
| Language | Arabic |
| Religion | Islam |
The Al Murrah (Arabic: آل مرة) (singular 'Al Marri') are an Arab tribe descended from the Banu Yam tribe. They mainly reside in countries such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Bahrain. Historically, the Al Murrah were a tribe of camel-herding nomads, who controlled and travelled through a vast area of the Arabian Peninsula.
Seven clans make up the Saudi branch of the Al Murrah.[1][2] Travelling as much as 3,000 kilometres (1,900 mi) each year, the tribe comprises approximately 15,000 individuals.
Population
[edit]Qatar
[edit]Historically, the Al Murrah tribe made up a large proportion of Qatar's ethnic population.[3]
In 1885, a number of Al Murrah tribespeople, along with several members from the Bani Hajer tribe, renounced their allegiance to Qatar and departed from the country. The two families were joined by the Ajman tribe, whom were known to harbor hostilities toward Qatar and regularly engage in skirmishes with its inhabitants. While the group was encamped in an area between Qatar and Oman, a regiment of 1,200 partisans composed of branches of Al Murrah and Bani Hajer loyal to the sheikh of Qatar engaged the group. Although the three tribes boasted a combined force of 2,000 men and outnumbered the opposition, they were inflicted with heavy losses.[4]
A majority of tribe members were strong supporters of Sheikh Khalifa Al Thani, the former Emir of Qatar who was deposed in 1995 in a coup by his son. Eight months after the coup, 119 Al Murrah members attempted to overthrow the new Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Al Thani, but failed. In February 2000, 19 of the alleged perpetrators were sentenced to death, 33 were sentenced to life in prison, and the rest were acquitted. However, none of those sentenced to death were executed.[5]
In 2017, Qatar revoked the citizenship of the sheikh and 54 tribespeople. The Al Murrah are friendly to the UAE and Saudi Arabia and oppose the current regime in Iran.[6]
Al Murrah tribespeople were not allowed to run for the 2021 Qatari general election, which led to protests.[7]
Structure
[edit]As of 1908, the internal structure of the tribe was documented with various divisions, sub-sections, and an estimated fighting strength. The total fighting strength of the tribe at the time was approximately 2,000 men, with an overall population estimated at around 7,000 individuals.[8]
Major Sections and Sub-sections
[edit]Al Ali bin Murrah
[edit]This section comprises the following sub-sections:
- Ghiyathin – estimated fighting strength: 20 men.
- Jaraba'ah – estimated fighting strength: 25 men.
- Al Nābit – estimated fighting strength: 60 men. This sub-section was led by Shaikh ‘Ali bin Nābit.
The total fighting strength of this section was around 105 men.[9]
Al Bishr
[edit]This is one of the largest and most complex divisions of the Al Murrah, composed of several sub-sections and clans:
- Al Adhbah – fighting strength: 250 men. The proper Shaikh is ‘Abdur Rahman bin Niqādān, although many of his followers live under the authority of the Shaikh of Al Fahaidah.[9]
- Al Bahaih – composed of:
- Al Buraid – fighting strength: 30 men. Led by Shaikh Salih al-Mutawwa'.
- Al Daw – fighting strength: 20 men.
- Al Fahaidah – fighting strength: 350 men. Led by Muhammad bin Sharaim, who also served as the paramount Shaikh of the entire Al Murrah tribe.
- Al Ghafran – fighting strength: 500 men. Led by Shaikh Bin Jallab.
- Al Hadi – fighting strength: 25 men.
The Al Bahaih had gained a reputation for violent acts near the coast and were governed by two Shaikhs: Taithab bin Hadi and Muhammad as-Sa‘ak.[9]
- Al Hasan – composed of:
- Jahaish – fighting strength: 35 men.
- Al Shabib – fighting strength: 35 men.
- Al Zaqaimah – fighting strength: 25 men.
- Al Zibdan – fighting strength: 30 men.
The total fighting strength of the Al Hasan is estimated at 145 men.[8]
Al Jabir
[edit]- Al Ghadhban – fighting strength: 15 men.
- Al Bin Na'am – fighting strength: 30 men.
The overall fighting strength of the Al Jabir section was 45 men.[9]
Murur
[edit]Though historically affiliated with the Al Murrah in heritage and name, the Murur are largely a coastal tribe with questionable claims of lineage.[10] They were found predominantly in Trucial Oman, with:
- 200 houses in Sharjah (Laiyah quarter),
- 40 houses in Abu Dhabi,
- 30 houses in Dubai.
Additionally, about 70 Bedouin Murur families lived in Liwah, Dhafrah. The Murur were mainly pearl divers, aligned with the Hināwī political faction and followed the Maliki Sunni tradition.[10]
The Thamairat were originally a branch of the Murur but had since been absorbed into the Bani Yas. They numbered around 120 individuals and primarily resided in Abu Dhabi Town.[11]
References
[edit]- ^ "Saudi Arabia - Structure of Tribal Groupings". countrystudies.us.
- ^ Donald Cole. Nomads of the Nomads: The Al Murrah Bedouin of the Empty Quarter (1975) (ISBN 978-0-88295-605-3)
- ^ "2012: Transformationsindex". bti-project.org. Archived from the original on 25 December 2012. Retrieved 10 November 2012.
- ^ "Report On The Administration Of The Persian Gulf Political Residency And Muscat Political Agency For 1884-85". Records of the Government of India. 1885. p. 7. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
- ^ "Qatar's release of Saudi prisoners likely to herald new era in bilateral relations". Habib Toumi. 26 May 2010. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 10 November 2012.
- ^ "Head of al-Murrah tribe confirms Qatar revokes family's citizenship". 14 September 2017.
- ^ "Qatari Al-Murra tribe protests against the election law". The Levant News. 10 August 2021. Archived from the original on 20 November 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
- ^ a b "'Gazetteer of Arabia Vol. II' [1238] (287/688)". Qatar Digital Library. 2014-10-22. Retrieved 2025-04-22.
- ^ a b c d "'Gazetteer of Arabia Vol. II' [1237] (286/688)". Qatar Digital Library. 2014-10-22. Retrieved 2025-04-22.
- ^ a b "'Gazetteer of Arabia Vol. II' [1173] (222/688)". Qatar Digital Library. 2014-10-22. Retrieved 2025-04-22.
- ^ "'Gazetteer of Arabia Vol. II' [1436] (497/688)". Qatar Digital Library. 2014-10-22. Retrieved 2025-04-22.
These prefixes ignored in the alphabetical ordering: Al, Banu. | |
Part of Arab tribes |
These prefixes ignored in the alphabetical ordering: Al, Bani, Banu. | |
| |
Part of Arab tribes |