Arab Tribes in Iraq
Most Iraqis identify strongly with a tribe ('ashira), and nearly half of Iraqis are more loyal to their clans or tribes than to the national government. Thirty of the 150 or so identifiable tribes in Iraq are the most influential. Tribes are grouped into federations (qabila). Below the level of the tribe, there are the clan (fakhdh), the house (beit) and the extended family (khams). On its accession to power in 1968, the Ba'ath party announced its opposition to tribalism (al-qabaliyya), although for pragmatic reasons, especially during the war with Iran, tribalism was sometimes tolerated or even encouraged.
List of major tribes ('ashira) Federations (qabila) Al-Dulaym federation (in central Iraq)*Al-Bu Fahd group*Al-Bu Nimr (from al-Ramadi)*Al-Mahamda*Al-Falahat*Al-Bu Fahad*Al-Bu Diyab*Al-Bu Issa (in Fallujah)*Al-Jumeily (in Fallujah)*Al-Karabla*Al-Bu IssafAl-Timimi federation (BANI TIMIM)*Al-Kan'an*Al-Staili*Al-seheliShammar federation (north of Baghdad)Al-Jaburi federation (once allied to Saddam Hussein, but later turned against him)Al-Tikriti federation*Al-Bu Nasir (includes Saddam Hussein)*Al-Bu Ajeel*Al-Shaya'ishaAl-'Ubayd federation (in al-'Alam and Tarmiya)Al-'Azza federation (in Balad)Al-Muntafiq federation*Al-Sa'dun*Bani Khaled (Al-Khawalid)*Bani Qais (Al-Qaisiyun)*Bani Malik*Bani Sa'id*Bani Hassan (southern Iraq)*Khafaja*Abbouda*Al-Bu Saleh*Al-Mayyah*Al-Izayrij*Bani Zaid*Al-Sharifat (An-Naasriya, south of Iraq)*Al-Ghizi*Al-HameedAnniza federation*Anniza (Bedouin)Al-Zubayd federationAl-bu Lam federationAl-Bu Mohammed federationRubai'a federationKa'ab federeationAl-Khaza'il federation
Baghdad area Hamdan (1,500,000)Bani Hajam (8,000)BardostiShumar Mosul area Al Dulaimi (100,000?)Al ShammariTayy Khazraj Tikrit area Albu LatifHadithiyyin*Rifa'iyyin*Jawa'inaMushahadah (in Tarmiya)Luhayb (in Sharqat) Najaf area Bani HasanAal JaryuAlbu DushAal'Isa Aal ShibilKamouna (from the noble family of the prophet Muhammad pbuh)
Other northern tribes HadidiAl-ShammawiAl-Obeid (in the southern Haweeja plains)Al-Bayati Al-SaadunHarb
Basra Families Mohammed Al-Issa (Khawalid)Al-Abdulwahid(Khawalid)Al-KhudairyAn-NamaBarakat(from the Noble Family of the Prophet Muhammad pbuh)Ar-RasheedAt-ThukairBaraakAz-ZuhairBasha-AyanBacha-ChiAl-NaqeebAl-MandeelSheikh KhazaalAl-DhufairBani-Khaled(Al-Khawalid)ShammarAl-HassanAl-GhalalAl-Umtayr Others, to be classified Harb (in ad-Dur)Maghami (from Khalis)Al-Fallujiyyin (in Falluja)
Related organizations Iraq Tribes Council National Council of Iraqi TribesNational Alliance of Tribes and Clans of Iraq Democratic Grouping of Iraqi Tribes Iraqi Sheikhs Council (ISC).., Ref.: Sheikh M.Al-ABDULWAHID (Al-Khaledi)
External links Arab Tribes in Iraq - Associated Press analysis - Healing Iraq
References - A History of Iraq, Charles Tripp, Cambridge University Press, 2000, ISBN 0521554047/ISBN 0521556333
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