Khorasani Arabs
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 50,000 (2013)[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| South Khorasan Razavi Khorasan | |
| Languages | |
| Persian, Khorasani Arabic | |
| Religion | |
| Shia Islam, minority Sunni Islam | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Iranian Arabs |
Khorasani Arabs are Iranian Arabs descended from Arab settlers who migrated to the Khorasan region during the early Islamic conquests and the Abbasid Caliphate (8th century onward). These settlers, often of South Arabian (Yamani) tribal origin, played a pivotal role in the Abbasid Revolution (747–750), forming the core of the revolutionary forces (ahl Khurāsān) that helped establish the Abbasid Caliphate and later became the elite military backbone (abnāʾ al-dawla) of the early Abbasid regime. Over the centuries, they assimilated culturally and linguistically, with most speaking Persian and only a few retaining Khorasani Arabic as their native tongue.[2][3][4][1]
History
During the 8th century, Arab settlers migrated to Khorasan as part of the early Islamic expansion and Abbasid-era administrative policies. Many of these settlers were tribal Arabs from South Arabian (Yamani) lineages. They became the primary military backbone of the early Abbasid Caliphate, known as the ahl Khurāsān, and played a decisive role in the Abbasid Revolution (747–750) under the leadership of Abu Muslim. Following the establishment of the Abbasid Caliphate, these Khurāsāni Arabs were settled in Iraq and other key regions, becoming the abnāʾ al-dawla ("sons of the state") and serving as the elite troops supporting the early Abbasid regime.[5][6][7]
According to Ibn Al-Athir, the Abbasids settled approximately 50,000 Arab families in Iranian Khorasan (including parts of modern northern Afghanistan and southern Turkmenistan), although the number may be exaggerated.[8]
Tribes and Demographics
Many modern Khorasani Arab tribes trace their lineage to the original Arab settlers who arrived during the Abbasid era. These include Shaybani, Zangooyi, Mishmast, Khozaima, and Azdi tribes. Today, the majority are Persian speakers, with only a few retaining Khorasani Arabic as their native language. Cities such as Birjand, Mashhad, and Nishapur are home to large populations of Khorasani Arabs.[9]
Notable people
- Abu al-Futuh al-Razi (b. 1077 CE) – early 12th-century Twelver Shia theologian and author descended from the tribe of Banu Khuza'ah in Nishapur
- Qahtaba ibn Shabib al-Ta'i – a member of the ahl Khurāsān and supporter of the Abbasids from Khorasan, who played a leading role in the Abbasid Revolution against the Umayyad Caliphate.
See also
- Iranian Arabs
- Khorasani Arabic
- Abnāʾ al-dawla
- Ahl al-Khorasan
References
- ^ a b Ahmadi, Hamid (2013). "Political Elites and the Question of Ethnicity and Democracy in Iran: A Critical View". Iran and the Caucasus. 17 (1): 82. doi:10.1163/1573384X-20130106.
- ^ al-Ṭabarī, Taʾrīkh al-rusul wa-l-mulūk, SUNY Press, accounts of the Khurāsān uprising.
- ^ Moshe Sharon, Black Banners from the East: The Establishment of the Abbasid State (Jerusalem: Magnes Press, 1983).
- ^ Hugh Kennedy, The Early Abbasid Caliphate (London: Croom Helm, 1981).
- ^ al-Ṭabarī, Taʾrīkh al-rusul wa-l-mulūk, SUNY Press.
- ^ Moshe Sharon, Black Banners from the East, 1983.
- ^ Hugh Kennedy, The Early Abbasid Caliphate, 1981.
- ^ Prof. Dr. Aydın Usta, Türkler ve İslamiyet, Yeditepe Yayınevi, 2020, pp. 56–57.
- ^ Philip Khuri Hitti, History of the Arabs, 10th edition, 2002.
Sources
- Persian and German Wikipedia
- Éva Ágnes Csató, Bo Isaksson, Carina Jahani, Linguistic Convergence and Areal Diffusion: Case Studies from Iranian, p.162.
- Khorasani Arabic Archived 2016-09-05 at the Wayback Machine