DARK AGES THE ARAB TRIBES AFTER FALL OF ROME

DURING DARK AGES 
THE ARAB TRIBES 
AFTER FALL OF ROME

Arab Tribes, the Umayyad Dynasty
Islam teaches a different relation of the individual and the Arab tribes with society, from that of the Jahiliyah period.6 In pre-Islamic Arab society, the tribal feuds also had focused on mocking the enemy through poetry. Poets frequently had a tremendous impact on a particular tribe’s position within Arabic society:

The Arab tribes accepted Islam, as Ibn Hisham writes in his Sirat Rasul Allah. 10 Both the Northern and the Southern tribes participated eagerly in the Islamic expansion, which had, along with religious motives, economic and political reasons. Fred Donner emphasizes the religious motives for the expansion.11 Perhaps the main cause for their eager participation was the share of booty,12 despite Shaban`s opinion that the Mudar favored a major expansion while the Qahtan proposed a consolidation of the empire instead

The disputes between the Qahtan and the Qays tribes increased during the conquests for economic and political reasons. In the analysis and in the general explanations of the tribes’ expansion along with that of Islam (intishar al-Islam), one has to be aware of various elements of this process

AlMaqqari (d. 1632) asserted in his Kitab Nafh al-Tib that as the Qahtan settled in al-Andalus in great numbers they brought with them their hereditary hatred of the Mudar and other tribes from the line of `Adnan. He also asserted that the Qahtan tribes were more numerous in al-Andalus than their adversaries, and always obtained a greater share of power and influence.17 This is probably one reason why the `Abbasid revolution was not as well received in al-Andalus as it was in the East

Andalus was far from the caliphal centers of power. Although not totally apart from the caliph’s main policies, al-Andalus faced other problems, such as the struggles against the Christians and the Franks, as well as the Berber revolts in both al-Andalus and North Africa, which distracted the Qahtan from the `Abbasid propaganda (centered mainly in Khurasan). The opposite occurred in the East, as can be seen by looking at the tribal origin of those in important administrative and military positions, who were mainly from the Northern tribes. Although al-Hajjaj intended to maintain a balance of power between the two confederations while he governed bAGHDAD Khurasan by appointing Southerners in subgovernor positions, in the long run the Umayyads favored the Mudar over the Qahtan. This information is provided in the major Arabic sources, such as al-Tabari, al-Baladhuri, Ibn Majah, among others, and later Arabic works, such as alSuyuti’s Ta’rikh al-Khulafa’

The expansion  from a religious motivation. This process was neither an expansion of Islam nor a single movement that stopped as soon as the tribes settled. The process was quite the contrary, for Islam’s expansion also led the Arab tribes to undertake one of the largest expansions in history: from Arabia to Baghdad and India, Khurasan, and yo the boundaries of the Chinese Empire, and to North Africa and Spain (al-Andalus)

Arabic became the official and religious language of the vast empire, although some languages were kept for religious purposes (e.g., Coptic, Greek, Latin, Persian) and others continued to be spoken (e.g., Berber, Romance [Spanish], Aramaic, Turkish, and Persian). The conquered peoples adopted Arabic culture.19 The Arabization process took several centuries and finally prevailed in the east (with the exception of Iran) and in the North Africa. The case of al-Andalus is totally different, since Islam and the Arabic culture, language, and customs were replaced by those of the Christian Spaniards after the Reconquista.

The empire-wide expansion of the Arab tribes, which took many years, proves several things. First of all, it shows their interest in acquiring booty, wealth, and land in places outside Arabia. They were also seeking better conditions. Al-Baladhuri’s statement that there were more Arabs in Iraq than in Syria proves the extent of the migrations to the north and east.22 For many Arabs of this time, this was an excellent opportunity to search for better economic conditions abroad. In addition, the share of booty was always an important incentive. An interesting speculation, although little evidence exists for it since Arabic sources do not deal with it, is that Arabia was overpopulated in relation to the availability of food and water resources

These migrations were not undertaken in a single wave is that the Arabic sources speak of problems between “old” and “new” Arabs settled in different regions, whether they were in al-Andalus, Iraq, Khurasan, or Ma wara’ al-Nahr (roughly modern-day Uzbekistan and southwest Kazakhstan). These migrations brought new struggles wherever the migrants settled, especially if the new Arab settlers belonged to the opposite tribal confederation’s members already settled in those regions

The system of land ownership and the establishment of junud (sing: jund, armed groups) also caused increased tribal rivalries. The rapid expansion from Arabia to Syria, Mesopotamia, Iran, Egypt, North Africa, and alAndalus made Muslims adopt the existing Byzantine and Persian institutions. Lacking administrative experience and the institutions to control and keep the conquered areas together, the Arabs transformed the basic division of spoils and territories from the three categories explained by al-Baladhuri in Muhajirun, Ansar, and the wives of the Prophet,23 to a major and better organized one following the ancient Roman practice of the limitanei: soldiers who received land in return for defending the empire’s frontiers. The Muslims adopted this practice by settling the junud and building fortresses (amsar, sing: misr) in the Dar al-Islam’s frontier areas (hudud).

Al-Baladhuri organization of the junud in Syria and Egypt, as well as the divisions of the spoils of war and territories among Muslim soldiers. For the case of Egypt, Ibn `Abd al-Hakam explained the creation of a diwan for dividing the conquered territories.

 After Jerusalem capitulated, the`Ahd al-`Umariyah stipulated how the territories would be divided.28 The presence of these armed tribal groups led to more inter-tribal rivalries, especially in Khurasan and Baghdad The traditional Qays-Qahtan dispute also had an economic context in Khurasan, as well as in other regions, that was expressed in the territorial divisions and the role played by the junudwith very clear economic interests and socioeconomic status

The Southern tribes described the greatness of their past, made Qahtan a son of Prophet Hud, and gave him some other special genealogical origins. They also claimed that Qahtan was a direct descendant of Isma`il, the “father of all Arabs,” as Ibn Hisham, al-Tabari, and other Muslim historians explained.36 Ibn Hisham not only mentioned what the Yemenites believed and thought about  their own origins, but also their opinions about being direct descendants of Isma`il. He wrote: All Arabs are descended from Isma`il and Qahtan. Some of the people of Yaman claim that Qahtan was a son of Isma`il and so, according to them, Isma`il is the father of all Arabs. 

The caliphs’ policies had a direct impact upon tribal power and land ownership, for both the Mudar and the Qahtan could improve their position via royal support. However, the local administration of certain parts of Khurasan was left to the dahaqin (the Persian aristocracy). According to the terms of surrender between ‘Umar and the conquered Persians, the local dahaqin levied the tributes without direct Arab interference and paid them to the ruling Arabs, after keeping a considerable part for themselves. Despite this local administration, the whole region was undoubtedly controlled by the Arabs, especially the Northern tribes, who were usually well-connected with the ruling class in Damascus (a good example of this was the government of Ibn Zur`ah, who had the support of the Qaysites) and managed to secure more privileges and a better position than the Qahtan tribes. Sometimes, various tribes were granted special privileges and leading positions, a situation that was detrimental to other groups


Despite the great number of Arabs who moved to Baghdad andKhurasan, North Africa, and al-Andalus, they were always a minority (although the ruling group) population among the local Persians, Berbers, or Visigoths. For their expansionist wars, the Arabs had to enroll and organize armies of local people. The armies organized by Tariq ibn Ziyad and Musa ibn Nusayr to capture al-Andalus were mainly Berbers

 In the east, Qutaybah ibn Muslim drafted local Persians who had participated in the conquest of Central Asia as far away as Farghana. His army, like many similar armies organized for the expansionist wars by Arab military leaders in the east, was composed mainly of mawali. However, the mawali were not treated as equals of Arab Muslims, for they received a smaller share of the booty. Arabic sources are explicit about this an

This unjust treatment of Persians and Berbers conscripts was an important reason for the mawali revolts both in the east and the west, in North Africa and al-Andalus.43 In al-Andalus, for example, land distribution was a contentious issue. Arabs controlled the best lands, and Berbers were confined to the most arid regions of Galicia, León, Asturias, La Mancha, and Extremadura. Abu al-`Abbas Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn `Idhari even affirmed that Berbers disliked living in cities and preferred those arid lands because they resembled their native territories in North Africa.


Umayyad Politics and Government: Administration, Tribal Divisions, and the Origins of the `Abbasid Revolution
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The numerous privileges granted by the Umayyads to the Northern tribes with respect to land ownership, commanding and leading positions, tax exemption, and others upset the Qahtan. The Southerners opposed both the Mudar and the Umayyads and fought strongly against their enemies in Iraq and Khurasan. This led to the Umayyads’ collapse and the `Abbasids’ rise to power. It is important to keep in mind that the `Abbasids gained power not only because of the Southern tribes’ support, but for many other reasons as well, such as the involvement of the mawali and other groups.

 The first three Umayyad caliphs, Mu`awiyah (661-80),45 Yazid (680- 83),46 and Mu`awiyah II (683-84),47 who formed the Sufyaniyah Umayyad family, supported the Southern tribes. 

Mu`awiyah encouraged and even ordered the settlement of 50,000 Azd families in Khurasan.48 They settled mainly in Merv (Marw) and its environs. He helped them because they had supported Talhah and al-Zubayr against `Ali and thus were reputed to be anti-`Alid.49 The Northern tribes opposed these measures. However, no fighting took place in Jazirah (Iraq) or Syria, probably due to the fear of the caliph and his tight administration. The Mudar-Qahtan rivalry was reactivated in those areas after Mu`awiyah’s death, especially under Yazid, who was challenged by the fitnah (civil war) of `Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr. Yazid faced the opposition of some Northern tribes that supported Ibn al-Zubayr in the Hijaz, because of his pro-Qahtan policy.
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Marwan I (684-85), who succeeded Mu`awiyah ibn Yazid,51 started the Marwanid Umayyad dynasty, the second and last Umayyad ruling family. His mother was a Kalbi, and thus he relied on the Qahtan tribes. The Qays did not like the predominant position of their enemies, the Kalbis, and opposed the rulers. Some Qays tribes, especially the Sulaym, the `Amir, and the Ghatafan, supported `Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr’s claims in the Hijaz.52 AlBaladhuri wrote that Ibn Ziyad, governor of the Khurasan province that included Sistan, was neither respected nor accepted by the tribes. Due to these reasons, he fled that region and joined Ibn al-Zubayr.53 However, a large percentage of Southern Arabs had moved to and settled in Khurasan, following Mu`awiyah’s order, only to find that the Northern tribes had already occupied the best land.

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During the Marwanid period, the caliphs started relying on military men as governors. Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf is a clear example of a person of humble origins rising to important positions through military services, which he began in the shurtah (police) of Damascus. He eventually became the architect of `Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan’s military, political, and economic reforms.57 As part of the centralization program, the Marwanids started new institutions with a clear purpose. The barid (postal system) was very well organized both as an efficient communication system and as an excellent way to keep the government informed about possible problems or revolts in the provinces. The writing and sealing of documents were developed through the institutions of diwan al-rasa’il and diwan al-khatam. The Marwanids also introduced a specific Muslim coinage in their lands, replacing the old Sasanid and Byzantine coins. Real Muslim coins were minted under `Abd al-Malik and his governor al-Hajjaj. They were purely epigraphic and without the ruler’s portrait, for Islam forbids the depiction of any human or animal figures.58 Having their own coins, along with the Syrian army and the centralization plans, gave the Marwanid Umayyad dynasty, great power, and efficient control of the empire.

Al-Hajjaj was able to control the tribes in Bafgdad because of their weak position. Their internal problems and the Khawarij threat had weakened them to the point that, despite occasional and poor resistance, they accepted him, especially in the major garrison cities of Kufah and Basrah. He faced a more serious Khawarij opposition in Iraq in both the rural and the urban areas. For example, the Azariqah of Basrah strongly opposed the Ummayd’s control of the city.