Mhallami

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Mhallami
Total population
150,000-500,000[1][2] or 800,000[3]
Regions with significant populations
Turkey, Lebanon, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands, Belgium
Languages
North Mesopotamian Arabic
Religion
Sunni Islam
Related ethnic groups
Kurds, Arabs, Assyrians/Arameans

The Mhallami, Mahallami or Mardelli (Arabic: محلّمي‎, romanized: Mḥallame; Syriac: ܡܚܠ̈ܡܝܐ‎, romanized: Mḥallmāye; Turkish: Mıhellemi; Kurdish: Mehelmî‎) are an Arabic-speaking tribal group, traditionally living in and around the city of Mardin, Turkey.[4] Due migration in since 1920 they are having a large presence in Lebanon as well. As a result of the Lebanese Civil War large numbers fled to Europe, particularly Germany. Outside of the region, they are also known as Mardinli. They typically identify themselves as Arabs, but are sometimes associated with other ethnic groups such as Kurds, Assyrians/Arameans.[5] though their historical roots are not definitively established.[4][6][7][8] They are Sunni-Muslims and primarily speakers of an Arabic dialect that has Turkish, Kurdish and Aramaic influences.[4]

Etymology[]

The origin of the name Mhallami is said to derive from the Ahlamū (Mahlamu/Mahalmi), an Aramean tribe who have inhabited the Tur Abdin region since 1805 BC.[9][10] The name Mardelli is derived from the region of origin: Mardin, which derives from Marida a Syriac word meaning "fortress".

Origin[]

Multiple claims regarding the origins of the group have been presented, that the group descends from either the Assyrian/Aramean[11][12] or Kurdish population groups of the Mardin region that converted to Islam and Arabized linguistically or that the group originates from the Arab Peninsula.

The date of their appearance in Anatolia is unknown, but likely sometime in the 5th century. There are no known written records by their ancestors of this period. Among the Mhallami there is a view that they are descended from Banu Hilal tribes, but historical sources and research indicate that this is somewhat unlikely. Arab ancestry is more probably from Rabi'ah tribes, possibly Banu Shayban, though this does not preclude Kurdish and/or Turkish roots. Some sources view the group as ethnically or denominationally Assyrian.[4]

According to Ya'qubi, in his 9th-century book Kitab Futuh Al-buldan,[dubious – discuss] after the Umayyad expansion into north Mesopotamia (661–750), there was a resettlement by the Umayyad caliph Muawiyah I of the Arab tribe of Banu Bakr[citation needed] from Najd in central Saudi Arabia to the region of Mardin, possibly being the ancestors of the Mhallami.[13][obsolete source]

English traveller Mark Sykes wrote in 1907: This tribe has a peculiar history. They claim that they were Christians 350 years ago [...] They speak mixed Arabic and the women wear red clothes and are not veiled. Ibrahim Pasha says they are now a mixed race of Arabs and Kurds. Some families are said to still descent from the Aramean Christians.[14]

This theory is also confirmed by orientalist Ishaq Armala and by the Syriac Orthodox patriarch Ignatius Aphrem I who indicated that the Arameans who converted to Islam under pressure started calling themselves Mhalmoye at the end of the 17th century.[15]

Demographics[]

Mhallami of Turkey[]

Most Mhallamis in Turkey live in Mardin, and at the village of .[citation needed] The first Mhallami cultural association of Turkey was founded in February 2008 in Mercimekli village of Midyat.[citation needed] In 2015, the founding chairman Mehmet Ali Aslan became the first Mhallami to be elected a member of the Turkish Parliament from the Kurdish HDP party.[16]The migration of the Mhallami from Turkey to Lebanon began in the 1920s. In the 1940s, tens of thousands more came to Lebanon, mostly in the cities of Beirut and Tripoli.[17]

Mhallami of Lebanon[]

The Mhallami had traditionally settled in large numbers in Lebanese regions such as Tripoli, the Beqaa Valley and Beirut where they have become an integral part of the country's Sunni community after migrating from the Mardin Province in Turkey. Lebanon had a population between 70,000 and 100,000 Mhallami prior to Lebanese Civil War.[18] Their origin and legal status became a particular concern when they started to seek asylum in Western European countries en masse in the early 1980s.[19]

Mhallami of Europe[]

The Mhallami were among the Lebanese Civil War refugees from Lebanon who came to Germany and other European countries such as the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden during the Lebanese civil war since 1976 [20] and have since been partially tolerated or live as asylum seekers. [21] With around 8,000 people, Berlin has the largest Mhallami diaspora community in Europe (as of June 2003).[22]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ : Die Mhallamiyya. In: ders.: Die Libanon-Flüchtlinge in Berlin. Zur Integration ethnischer Minderheiten. Berlin 2000, S. 86–95. Archived (Date missing) at libasoli.de (Error: unknown archive URL)
  2. ^ "Die Mhallamiyya" (PDF), Die Libanon-Flüchtlinge in Berlin. Zur Integration ethnischer Minderheiten (in German), Berlin, 2020, p. 86-65, archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-08-07, retrieved 2020-11-22
  3. ^ "A more colourful parliament".
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Bozkurt, Abdülbaki (30 April 2020). "The Historical Roots of the Mhallami Arabs in Turkey as a Subject of Debate". Journal of International Social Research. 13 (70): 192–202. doi:10.17719/jisr.2020.4086.
  5. ^ Himmelseher, Volker (22 July 2020). Blut ist dicker als Wasser: Im Familienclan ins bessere Leben - Roman über die arabische Clanwelt. ISBN 9783751991650.
  6. ^ "Mhallamiye-Kurden - "Ihre Verachtung für uns ist grenzenlos"".
  7. ^ Burger, Reiner. "Kurden in Deutschland: Parallele Welten". Faz.net.
  8. ^ "Clanstrukturen kamen mit Flüchtlingswelle in den Achtzigerjahren".
  9. ^ (İslam And., 12. C., 1997:100)
  10. ^ Kurden, Araber, Scheinlibanesen: Die vielschichtige Ethnizität der Mḥallami|Laurenz W. Kern|2015
  11. ^ Ghadban, Ralph (12 October 2018). Arabische Clans: Die unterschätzte Gefahr. ISBN 9783843717977.
  12. ^ Edwards, Maxim (2014-10-10). "Ethnic dimension of Iraqi Assyrians often ignored". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  13. ^ https://archive.org/stream/KitabFutuhAl-buldan2VolsSet/KitabFutuhAl-buldanVol-1#page/n287/mode/2up
  14. ^ Caliph’s Last Heritage, London 1915, S. 578
  15. ^ Ghadban, Ralph (12 October 2018). Arabische Clans: Die unterschätzte Gefahr. ISBN 9783843717977.
  16. ^ "A more colourful parliament". Agos. 8 June 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  17. ^ Die arabischen Dialekte des Vilayets Mardin (Südosttürkei), ZDMG Suppl 1 XVII Dt. Orientalistentag. Vorträge Teil II, Sektion 6, Wiesbaden 1969, S. 684
  18. ^ Die Libanon-Flüchtlinge in Berlin Ralph Ghadban (in German)Archived August 7, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  19. ^ Heinrich Freckmann, Jürgen Kalmbach: Staatenlose Kurden aus dem Libanon oder türkische Staatsangehörige? (Ergebnis einer Untersuchung vom 08.–18. März 2001 in Beirut, Mardin und Ankara), Hannover, Hildesheim, 2001; S. 3–4 (in German)
  20. ^ , Die Libanon-Flüchtlinge in Berlin. Berlin 2000. ISBN 3-86093-293-4, Nachdruck 2008, S. 71, 87, 89, 238
  21. ^ Heinrich Freckmann, Jürgen Kalmbach: Archived (Date missing) at orrae.de (Error: unknown archive URL) (PDF; 43 kB), Hannover, Hildesheim, 2001; S. 3–4
  22. ^ Es muss dringend etwas passieren; die tageszeitung, 6. Juni 2003.
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