Abd al-Qays
| Abd al-Qays عبد القيس | |
|---|---|
| Rabi'i Arab tribe | |
| Ethnicity | Arab |
| Nisba | ʿAbdī or ʿAbqasī |
| Location | Eastern Arabia |
| Descended from | Abd al-Qays ibn Qurayy ibn Afsa ibn Dami ibn Jadila ibn Asad ibn Rabi'a ibn Nizar |
| Parent tribe | Rabi'a |
| Language | Arabic |
| Religion | Islam |
The Abd al-Qays (Arabic: عبد القيس) was an ancient Arabian tribe from the Rabi'a branch of the North Arabian tribes.
History[]
Origins[]
The name of the tribe means 'servant of the [god] Qays'.[1] It belonged to the tribal groups originally resident in the area of al-Arid in South Arabia and which migrated northwestward to an area extending north to Sudayr and south to al-Kharj. Later, in the Arab genealogical tradition, these tribes were called the Rabi'a,[1] a branch of the northern Arab Ma'add confederation.
Campaigns of Shapur II[]
In pre-Islamic times, the Abd al-Qays frequently raided Iran.[2] The Sasanian king Shapur II (r. 309–379) led an expedition against the Arabian tribes, during which he massacred most of the Abd al-Qays.[2] Later, several Abd al-Qays tribesmen were relocated by Shapur to the Iranian province of Kirman.[2]
Migrations into eastern Arabia[]
By the 5th century, the Abd al-Qays had shifted to nomadism, dwelling outside of the Tuwaiq escarpment in the southern Najd (central Arabia). In the 6th century, the tribe migrated northeastward the oases of al-Ahsa and Qatif in eastern Arabia.[1]
Islamic period[]
During the Arab conquest of Iran, considerable numbers of Abd al-Qays tribesmen entered southeastern, launching extensive raids in the region.[2] Several groupings of Abd al-Qays settled near Tavvaz in the Iranian coastal mountains and Basra in lower Mesopotamia.[2] In the early 8th century, 4,000 Abd al-Qays warriors formed part of the army of Qutayba ibn Muslim on his campaign into Khorasan.[2]
There are many gaps and inconsistencies in the genealogies of Abd al-Qays in Bahrain, thus Baharna are probably descendants of an ethnically mixed population.[3]
Religion[]
Abd al-Qays were mostly Christians before the advent of Islam.
Remnants of the tribe[]
Sources[]
- ^ a b c Caskel 1960, p. 72.
- ^ a b c d e f ʿABD-AL-QAYS Encyclopaedia Iranica.
- ^ Brian John Ulrich (2007). Constructing Al-Azd: Tribal Identity and Society in the Early Islamic Centuries. p. 107.
Bibliography[]
- Caskel, W. (1960). "ʿAbd al-Kays". In Gibb, H. A. R.; Kramers, J. H.; Lévi-Provençal, E.; Schacht, J.; Lewis, B. & Pellat, Ch. (eds.). The Encyclopaedia of Islam, New Edition, Volume I: A–B. Leiden: E. J. Brill. pp. 72–74. OCLC 495469456.
| Authority control |
|---|
- Abd al-Qays
- History of Bahrain
- History of Saudi Arabia
- Rabi`ah
- Tribes of Arabia