The Banū Qushayr () was a branch of the

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

tribe of

Banu Amir The Banu Amir () was a large and ancient Arab tribe originating from Western Arabia that dominated Najd for centuries after the rise of Islam. It was an independent branch of the Hawazin confederation, and its original homeland was the border are ...

, historically resident in central

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 ...

and later spreading to

Khurasan KhorasanDabeersiaghi, Commentary on Safarnâma-e Nâsir Khusraw, 6th Ed. Tehran, Zavvâr: 1375 (Solar Hijri Calendar) 235–236 (; , ) is a historical eastern region in the Iranian Plateau in West Asia, West and Central Asia that encompasses wes ...

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

Upper Mesopotamia Upper Mesopotamia constitutes the Upland and lowland, uplands and great outwash plain of northwestern Iraq, northeastern Syria and southeastern Turkey, in the northern Middle East. Since the early Muslim conquests of the mid-7th century, the regio ...

Genealogy

According to Arab genealogical tradition, the eponymous progenitor of the Banu Qushayr was a son of Ka'b ibn Rabi'a ibn Amir, thus making them a branch of the Banu Ka'b, itself a branch of the large tribe of

. Qushayr’s brothers were progenitors of the large tribes of Banu Uqayl and Banu Ja'da.Della Vida 1986, p. 526. The mother of Qushayr was Rayta bint Kunfudh ibn Malik of the

Banu Sulaym The Banu Sulaym () is an Arab tribe that dominated part of the Hejaz in the pre-Islamic era. They maintained close ties with the Quraysh of Mecca and the inhabitants of Medina, and fought in a number of battles against the Islamic prophet Muha ...

History

In the pre-Islamic period, the Qushayr were attached to their parent tribe, the Banu Amir, and were resided in the region of

al-Yamama Al-Yamama () is a historical region in south-eastern Najd in modern-day Saudi Arabia. Only a handful of centralized states ever arose in the Yamama, but it figured prominently in early Islamic history, becoming a central theater in the Ridd ...

(central Arabia). They were involved in all the wars between the Banu Amir and rival tribes, particularly the

Banu Tamim The Banū Tamīm () are an Arab tribe that originated in Najd and Hejaz in the Arabian Peninsula. It is mainly present in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Iraq, Oman, Jordan and Lebanon, and has a strong presence in Algeria, and Morocco, Palestine, ...

and

Banu Shayban The Banu Shayban () is an Arab tribe, a branch of the Banu Bakr. Throughout the early Islamic era, the tribe was settled chiefly in al-Jazira Province and played an important role in its history. History In the pre-Islamic period, the Shayban ...

. During one of these wars, the Qushayri leader Malik ibn Salama al-Khayr, known as Dhu'l-Ruqayba, captured the Shaybani chief Hajib ibn Zurara. The Salama al-Khayr family were the princely household of the Banu Qushayr. The Qushayr embraced Islam along with the Banu Amir in 630. During the Muslim conquests of Syria and Mesopotamia, the Qushayr participated, but did not play a distinguished role. After the conquests, they largely settled in the eastern parts of the caliphate, such as

. During the

Umayyad The Umayyad Caliphate or Umayyad Empire (, ; ) was the second caliphate established after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty. Uthman ibn Affan, the third of the Rashidun caliphs, was also a membe ...

period (661–750), they maintained great numbers and power in that province and many of its governors, including Zurara ibn Uqba, hailed from the Salama al-Khayr family.

References

Bibliography

* {{Historical Arab tribes History of Khorasan Banu 'Amir