Hashemite

:The name of this Arab dynasty should not be confused with "Hashem", one of the names for God in Judaism

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Hashemite (Arabic هاشمي) traditionally refers to those belonging to the Banu Hashim, or "clan of Hashem", a clan within the larger Quraish tribe. It also refers to an Arab dynasty whose original strength stemmed from the network of tribal alliances and blood loyalties in the Hejaz region of Arabia, along the Red Sea.

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The Hashemites trace their ancestry from Hashim ibn Abd al-Manaf (died c.510 CE), the great-grandfather of Muhammad. The early history of the Hashemites saw them in a continuous struggle against the Umayyads for control over who would be the caliph or successor to Muhammad. The Umayyads were of the same tribe as the Hashemites, but a different clan. This rivalry eventually would lead to the split between the Sunni and Shia. After the overthrow of the Umayyads, the Abbasids would present themselves as representatives of the Hashemites, as they claimed descent from Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib, an uncle of Muhammad.

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From the 10th century onwards, the Sharif (religious leader) of Mecca and its Emir was by traditional agreement a Hashemite. Before World War I Husain ibn Ali of the Hashemite Dhawu-'Awn clan ruled the Hejaz on behalf of the Ottoman sultan. For some time it had been the practice of the Sublime Porte to appoint the Emir of Mecca from among a select group of candidates. In 1908, Husain ibn Ali was appointed Emir of Mecca. He found himself increasingly at odds with the Young Turks in control at Istanbul, while he strove to secure his family's position as hereditary Emirs. Between 1917 and 1924, after the collapse of Ottoman power, he ruled an independent Hejaz, of which he proclaimed himself king, with the tacit support of the British Foreign Office. His supporters are sometimes referred to as "Sharifians" or the "Sharifian party". His chief rival in the Arabian peninsula was the king of the highlanders on the highland of Najd named Ibn Saud, who annexed the Hejaz in 1925 and set his own son, Faysal bin Abdelaziz Al Saud, as governor.

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Hussein had four sons: Ali bin Hussein, who briefly succeeded to the throne of Hejaz before its loss to the Saud family; Abdullah, who later became the king of Transjordan, and whose descendents have ruled that kingdom, now known as the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, ever since; Faisal, who became King of Iraq; and Zeid, who became a claimant to the throne of Iraq when his brother's grandson was overthrown in a coup in 1958.

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Banu Hashim: Banu Hashim is a clan in the Quraish tribe. Muhammad was a member of this clan; his great-grandfather was Hashim for whom the clan is named. Members of this clan are also called Hashemites....

Quraish: :Quraish is also the name of a Surah in the Qur'an....

Hejaz: Hejaz (also Hijaz, Hedjaz; al-Ḥiǧāz) is a region in the northwest of present-day Saudi Arabia; its main city is Jeddah, but it is probably better-known for the holy city of Mecca. As a region, The Hijaz, as it is often referred to, because of being the site of Islam's holy places, ...