Al-Muntafiq

Present

The tribe is divided into three main branches: Bani Malik, al-Ajwad, and Bani Sa'id. Most of the tribe traces its genealogy to the tribe of Banu 'Uqayl of the large and ancient Banu 'Amir confederation of Najd. However, the tribe's traditional leaders are Al-Saadun ("the house of Saadun"), who are said to be Sharifs originating from Mecca, while the al-Ajwad branch is said to partially originate from the ancient Arab tribe of Tayy. The Muntafiq tribe was led by Yusuf Beg of the Saadun clan. They were traditional rivals of the Dhufir and of Ibn Saud, although Yusuf sometimes co-operated with Ibn Saud.

The tribe migrated to Iraq during the Islamic conquests. In Ottoman Iraq, the tribe held control over the region of Basrah under Ottoman suzerainty. In 1521, they successfully occupied al-Ahsa and al-Qatif (eastern Saudi Arabia today) on the Ottomans' behalf, before being expelled by Banu Khalid.

During the Ottoman era, most of the tribe settled into sedentary life and took up agriculture in southern and western Iraq. During the Ottoman era, from the late eighteenth century onwards, al-Muntafiq converted to Shia Islam.

The city of Nasiriya in southern Iraq was named after one of the tribe's sheikhs, and the surrounding province was known as "Al-Muntafiq Province" until 1976.

Formerly those who were sedentary or herders of small animals such as sheep and goat, rather than camels, were consequently less mobile and less competent as a fighting force compared to the camel-herding tribes of inner Arabia.

Although the tribe's nominal leaders, the Al Saadun, are Sunnis, most of the tribe's members follow the Shi'ite sect of Islam. After many decades of sedentarization, the tribal bond has weakened and the leadership of the Al Saadun is largely nominal.

Many stateless "bedoons" in Kuwait belong to the Muntafiq tribal confederation.

Division

Source:

• Bani Saeed
• Bani Malik Division:

1. Al Ibrahim
2. Al Jumaiyaan
3. Al Wadai
4. Al Majid
5. Al Diwan
6. Al Taughiyah

• Al Ajwad Division:

1. Al Bdour
2. Al Juwarin
3. Al Ghezzi
4. Al Shuraifat

• Bani Huchaim**:**

1. Al Dhuwalim
2. Al Zayyad
3. Al Jawabur
4. Al Towba
5. Al Aajeeb
6. Al Abas
7. Al Ghazalat
8. Bani Salamah

• Albu Salih (Part of the Bani Malik Division):

1. Al Rumaiyadh
2. Al Nasrallah
3. Al Khlaywi
4. Al Omar

• Al Aunan
• Al Rufa'a

Sources

• Levi Della Vida, G.; Sluglett, P. "al- Muntafiḳ ." Encyclopaedia of Islam. Edited by: P. Bearman, Th. Bianquis, C.E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel and W.P. Heinrichs. Brill, 2007. Brill Online. http://www.brillonline.nl/subscriber/entry?entry=islam_COM-0797
• 'The Muntafik. Al Sa'dun, Bani Malik, Ajwad, Bani Sa'id, Bani Huchaim', British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/20/63, in Qatar Digital Library [accessed 2 December 2025]
• Christiane Thompson, Iranian Tentacles into Iraq, 2009 http://cgsc.cdmhost.com/cdm/ref/collection/p4013coll3/id/2537

Citations

References

1. Thompson, Christiane. "Iranian Tentacles into Iraq". School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS).
2. "Muntafiq". King Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud Information Resource.
3. [https://books.google.com/books?id=agMu0nfdFZ4C&q=The+Shi%27is+of+Iraq+By+Yitzhak+Nakash The Shi'is of Iraq By Yitzhak Nakash, pg.27]
4. Lorimer, Gazetteer, 2B:1273; Great Britain, naval intelligence division, geographical handbook series, Iraq and the Persian Gulf, September 1944, 379-80; Great Britain, office of the civil commissioner, The Arab of Mesopotamia, Basra, 1917,6.
5. (2007). "بدون الكويت: كرة ثلج تتدحرج منذ 40 عاماً". [[Elaph]].
6. Fayez Alfayez. (February 26, 2021). "أزمة الهوية الوطنية - د. فايز الفايز". Platform Post.
7. 'The Muntafik. Al Sa'dun, Bani Malik, Ajwad, Bani Sa'id, Bani Huchaim', British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/20/63, in ''Qatar Digital Library''https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100000000912.0x000004 [accessed 2 December 2025]