Zuhayr ibn Jadhīma ibn Rawāḥa al-ʿAbsī () was the chieftain of the

Banu Abs The Banu Abs (, "sons of ") are an ancient Bedouin tribe that originated in central Arabia. They form a branch of the powerful and numerous Ghatafan tribes. They still inhabit the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa but have spread to man ...

who ultimately became the leader of the

Ghatafan The Ghaṭafān () were an Arab tribal confederation originally based northeast of Medina. The main branches of the Ghatafan were the tribes of Banu Abs, Banu Dhubyan and Ashja'. They were one of the Arab tribes that interacted with Muhammad. Th ...

and

Hawazin The Hawazin ( / ALA-LC: ''Hawāzin'') were an Arab tribe originally based in the western Najd and around Ta'if in the Hejaz. They formed part of the larger Qays tribal group. The Hawazin consisted of the subtribes of Banu Sa'd, and Banu Jusham, a ...

tribal confederations in pre-Islamic Arabia in the mid-6th century.

Life

Zuhayr was the son of Jadhima ibn Rawaha of the

, a subtribe of the larger

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

.Fück 1965, p. 1023. His full genealogy tracing him to the progenitor of the Banu Abs was Zuhayr ibn Jadhima ibn Rawaha ibn Rabi'a ibn Mazin ibn al-Harith ibn Qutay'a ibn Abs. The Banu Abs were based in the Qassim region of

Najd Najd is a Historical region, historical region of the Arabian Peninsula that includes most of the central region of Saudi Arabia. It is roughly bounded by the Hejaz region to the west, the Nafud desert in Al-Jawf Province, al-Jawf to the north, ...

in central Arabia. Under Zuhayr's leadership in circa 550, the Ghatafan became a powerful force in Arabia. He was also able to bring the

under his command. However, the fortunes of the Banu Abs declined considerably when Zuhayr was killed by the chieftain of the

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 ...

, Khalid ibn Ja'far al-Kilabi. Zuhayr's son

Qays Qays ʿAylān (), often referred to simply as Qays (''Kais'' or ''Ḳays'') were an Arab tribal confederation that branched from the Mudar group. The tribe may not have functioned as a unit in pre-Islamic Arabia (before 630). However, by the ea ...

took over leadership of the tribe during the war of Dahis between the Banu Abs and the rest of the Ghatafan led by Hudhayfa ibn Badr of the

Banu Fazara The Banu Fazara or Fazzara or Fezara or Fezzara () were an Arab tribe whose original homeland was Najd. Origins According to Arab genealogical tradition, the progenitor of the Banu Fazara was Fazāra ibn Dhubyān ibn Baghīḍ ibn Rayth ibn G ...

. A fourth-generation, direct descendant of Zuhayr, Wallada bint al-Abbas al-Absiyya, married 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 ...

caliph

Abd al-Malik Abdul Malik () is an Arabic (Muslim or Christian) male given name and, in modern usage, surname. It is built from the Arabic words '' Abd'', ''al-'' and ''Malik''. The name means "servant of the King", in the Christian instance 'King' meaning 'King ...

(r. 685–705) and gave birth to the later Umayyad caliphs

al-Walid I Al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (; – 23 February 715), commonly known as al-Walid I (), was the sixth Umayyad caliph, ruling from October 705 until his death in 715. He was the eldest son of his predecessor, Caliph Abd al-Malik (). As ...

(r. 705–715) and

Sulayman Sulayman (Arabic: سُلِيمَان ''sulaymān'') is an Arabic name of the Biblical king and Islamic prophet Solomon meaning 'man of peace', derived from the Hebrew name Shlomo. The name Sulayman is a diminutive of the name Salman (سَلْما ...

(r. 715–717).Elad 2016, p. 134.

References

Bibliography

* * *{{The History of al-Tabari , volume=23 , url={{Google Books, BgJf6N8RDuUC, plainurl=y 6th-century Arab people Bedouin tribal chiefs Ghatafan