''Mikhlaf'' (,

plural In many languages, a plural (sometimes list of glossing abbreviations, abbreviated as pl., pl, , or ), is one of the values of the grammatical number, grammatical category of number. The plural of a noun typically denotes a quantity greater than ...

''Makhaleef''; ) was an administrative division in

ancient Yemen The ancient history of Yemen or South Arabia is especially important because it is one of the oldest centers of civilization in the Near East. Its relatively fertile land and adequate rainfall in a moister climate helped sustain a stable pop ...

and is a geographical term used in

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

. According to

Ya'qubi ʾAbū al-ʿAbbās ʾAḥmad bin ʾAbī Yaʿqūb bin Ǧaʿfar bin Wahb bin Waḍīḥ al-Yaʿqūbī (died 897/8), commonly referred to simply by his nisba al-Yaʿqūbī, was an Arab Muslim geographer. Life Ya'qubi was born in Baghdad to a fam ...

there were eighty-four ''makhaleef'' in Yemen. The leader of a ''mikhlaf'' is called a ''Qil'' (,

Aqial; ).

Overview

Makhaleef were autonomous kingdoms under the united kingdom of Saba' and Dhu Raydan. In the second century AD, Shamir Yuhari'sh II extended the Kingdom of Saba and Dhu Raydan to the kingdom of Hadramout and kingdom of Yamnat and so the kings of that time adopted the long title "King of Saba, Dhu raydan, Hadrmawt and Yamant". They are also known as Tubba kings who established the second Himyarite Kingdom. In the fifth century AD the Tubba king AbuKarib As'ad had the title "King of Saba', Dhu raydan, Hadramawt, Yamnat and his Arabs, on Tawdum (the high plateau) and Tihamah". The system of Makhaleef expanded to these areas and was essential to control these areas.

List of Makhaleef

The following list appears both in al-Ya'qubi's '' Kitab al-Buldan'' and, with minor differences, in his ''

Ta'rikh ibn Wadih ''Tārīkh Ibn Wāḍiḥ'' () or popularly ''Tārīkh al-Yaʿqūbī'' () is a well-known classical Islamic history book, written by al-Yaʿqūbī. Like his contemporary Al-Dinawari, Ya'qubi's histories, unlike those of their predecessors, aim ...

''. However, despite al-Ya'qubi's claim that 84 ''mikhlaf'' existed in Yemen, neither list contains 84 names. # al-Yahsibayn # Yakla # Dhimar # Tamu’ # Tyan # Tamam # Hamal # Qudam # Khaywan # Sinhan # Rayhan # Jurash # Sa'da # al-Akhruj # Majnah # Haraz # Hawzan # Qufa'a # al-Wazira # al-Hujr # al-Ma'afir # 'Ayan # al-Shawafi # Jublan # Wasab # al-Sakun # Shar'ab # al-Janad # Maswar # al-Thujja # al-Mazra' # Hayran # Ma’rib # Hadhur # 'Ulqan # Rayshan # Jayshan # Nihm # Baysh # Dankan # Qanawna # Yaba # Zanlf # al-'Ursh of Jazan # al-Khasuf # al-Sa'id # Balha, which is (also called) Mawr # al-Mahjam # al-Kadra’, which is (also called) Saham # al-Ma'qir, which is (also called) Dhuwal #

Zabid Zabid () (also spelled Zabīd, Zabeed and Zebid) is a town with an urban population of around 52,590 people, located on Yemen's western coastal plain. It is one of the oldest towns in Yemen, and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993. Ho ...

# Rima' # al-Rakb # Bani Majid #

Lahj Lahij or Lahej (), formerly called Al-Hawtah, is a city and an area located between Ta'izz and Aden in Yemen. From the 18th to the 20th century, its rulers were of the Abdali branch of the Al-Sallami tribe who trace their lineage to one of the 1 ...

Abyan Abyan ( ) is a governorate of Yemen. The Abyan region was historically part of the Fadhli Sultanate. It was a base to the Aden-Abyan Islamic Army militant group. Its capital is the city of Zinjibar. This governorate is noted for its agri ...

# Bayn al-Wadiyayn # Alhan #

Hadramawt Hadhramaut ( ; ) is a geographic region in the South Arabia, southern part of the Arabian Peninsula which includes the Yemeni Governorates of Yemen, governorates of Hadhramaut, Shabwah Governorate, Shabwah and Al Mahrah Governorate, Mahrah, D ...

# Muqra # Hays #

Harad In J. R. R. Tolkien's high fantasy ''The Lord of the Rings'', Harad is the immense land south of Gondor and Mordor. Its main port is Umbar, the base of the Corsairs of Umbar whose ships serve as the Dark Lord Sauron's fleet. Its people are the ...

# al-Haqlayn # 'Ans # Bani Amir # Ma’dhin # Humlan # Dhl Jura #

Khawlan Khawlan (, ) is an ancient Tribes of Yemen#Himyar, Himyarite Arab tribe that archeologists view as one of the old tribes of Yemen that were contemporary to the kingdoms of Sabaeans, Saba and Minaeans, Ma'in. There are two tribes in Yemen with the ...

# al-Sarw # al-Dathina # Kubayba # Tabala

References

{{reflist Ancient history of Yemen Geography of Yemen Types of administrative division