The Al Murrah () (singular 'Al Marri') are an Arab tribe descended from the

Banu Yam Banu Yam (, ') is an Arabian tribe that belongs to the Qahtanite branch of Arabian tribes, specifically the group known as Banu Hamdan, and are, therefore, native to southwestern Arabia. Their traditional way of life was well suited to life in ...

tribe. They mainly reside in countries such as

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

and

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

. Historically, the Al Murrah were a tribe of

camel A camel (from and () from Ancient Semitic: ''gāmāl'') is an even-toed ungulate in the genus ''Camelus'' that bears distinctive fatty deposits known as "humps" on its back. Camels have long been domesticated and, as livestock, they provid ...

-herding nomads, who controlled and travelled through a vast area of the

Arabian Peninsula The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

. Seven clans make up the Saudi branch of the Al Murrah.Donald Cole. ''Nomads of the Nomads: The Al Murrah Bedouin of the Empty Quarter'' (1975) () Travelling as much as each year, the tribe comprises approximately 15,000 individuals.

Population

Qatar

Historically, the Al Murrah tribe made up a large proportion of Qatar's ethnic population. In 1885, a number of Al Murrah tribespeople, along with several members from the

Bani Hajer Bani Hajer (), also known as al-Hawajir, are an influential tribe in the Arabian Peninsula. The tribe is also called Bani Hajer (Family surnames: Al-Hajri) in Egypt eastern Saudi Arabia and other Arab states of the Persian Gulf (Qatar, UAE, Bahrain ...

tribe, renounced their allegiance to Qatar and departed from the country. The two families were joined by the

Ajman Ajman ( '; Gulf Arabic: عيمان ''ʿYmān'') is the capital of the emirate of Ajman in the United Arab Emirates. It is the List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, fifth-largest city in UAE after Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Al Ain. Loca ...

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 Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

, 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. 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. 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. Al Murrah tribespeople were not allowed to run for the

2021 Qatari general election General elections were held in Qatar for the first time on 2 October 2021, following an announcement by the Emir of Qatar on 22 August 2021. The elections for the Consultative Assembly of Qatar, Consultative Assembly were originally scheduled for ...

, which led to protests.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Murrah Tribes of Saudi Arabia Yemeni tribes Banu Hamdan Tribes of Arabia