Iraqi Biradari

Biradri/Sunni Iraqis /العراقي برادری
Total population
(approx. 200,000 (2011 census))
Regions with significant populations
Kanpur, Karachi, Chennai,Shahganj, Eastern Uttar Pradesh (Lar, Bahorwa, Kotwari, Rasra, Salempur, Deoria, Rampur Karkhana, Batrauli, Ghazipur, Gangauli, Padrauna), Kolkata, Tinsukia, Delhi (NCR), Gorakhpur,
Languages
Arabic, Urdu, Hindi, Bhojpuri, Awadhi
Religion
Sunni Islam (Hanbali Maddhab, Hanafi Maddhab)
Related ethnic groups
Bani Tamim

Iraqi Biradri, (العراقي برادری) or Iraqi Tamimis are a Sunni Muslim community in India.[1] They are a sub-tribe of Banu Tamim, an Arab tribe who migrated to Sindh, Pakistan. During the Arab invasion of Sindh (present day, a province in Pakistan) in 712 AD, which expedited from present day Iraq, a sizeable number of Sunni Muslims migrated as well, residing first to Sindh, later to the Gangetic plains which included descendants of powerful sahabis Khabbab ibn al-Aratt and Al-Qa'qa' ibn 'Amr al-Tamimi.[2]

History and origin

Migration from Arab to Sindh

A map of Muhammad bin Qasim's expedition into Sindh in 711 AD.

The governor of Basra, Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf, created an expedition against Raja Dahir, ruler of Sindh. The primary reason cited in the Chach Nama, the oldest chronicle, for this was a pirate raid off the coast of Debal resulting in gifts to the caliph from the king of Serendib (modern Sri Lanka) being stolen and a number of Muslim women who were also travelling using the ship were captured.[3]

Meds (a tribe of Scythians living in Sindh) also known as Bawarij had pirated upon Sassanid shipping in the past, from the mouth of the Tigris to the Sri Lankan coast, and now were able to prey on Arab shipping from their bases at Kutch, Debal and Kathiawar.

Hajaj's next campaign was launched under the aegis of Muhammad bin Qasim. In 711 bin Qasim attacked at Debal and, on orders of Al-Hajjaj, freed the earlier captives and prisoners from the previous (failed) campaign. Other than this instance, the policy was generally one of enlisting and co-opting support from defectors and defeated lords and forces. From Debal Hajaj moved on to Nerun for supplies; the city's Buddhist governor had acknowledged it as a tributary of the Caliphate after the first campaign, and capitulated to the second. Qasim's armies then captured Siwistan (Sehwan) received allegiance from several tribal chiefs and secured the surrounding regions. His combined forces captured the fort at Sisam, and secured the region west of the Indus River.Arabs built several new cities such as Mahfooza (in 732 A.D), Mansura (737 A.D.), Baiza (835 A.D.), Jundrore near Multan (in 854 AD) and several others. They also improved and expanded the existing cities by constructing satellite towns. A bridge called “Sukkar-al-Maid” was built over the Indus near Sukkur.

A number of Arab tribes of Quraish, Kalb, Tameem, Saqeef, Harris, Ael-e-Utba, Aal-e-Jareema and Asad, and several prominent families of Yemen and Hejaz had settled in Sind. Masudi (915 A.D. – 302 A.H.) writes that he met many descendants of Hazrat Ali in Mansura who were in the line of Omar bin Ali and Mohammad Bin Ali. He also mentions that there was fertility and opulence here and people were healthy. Some authorities have expressed the view that the wife of Hazrat Imam Hussain, who other of Hazrat Imam Zainul Abdin from whom the line of Hussaini Syeds is traced, was not a Perstan as is generally believed, but a Sindhi lady of noble family.

Bishari writes that the people of Multan were prosperous, they did not drink wine and their women did not use cosmetics. Both Arabic and Sindhi were spoken. Regarding Mansura he states that the people were very well-read, courteous and religious. The city had a large number of scholars and the general standard of morals and intelligence was high. Mansura remained the capital of Sind from 737 A.D. – 120 A.H to 1026 A.D. – 416 A.H. for about 300 years till its conquest by Mahmud Ghaznavi. In late 3rd century Hijri when Multan became the capital of the northern kingdom, Mansura remained the capital of only the south i i.e., modern Sind. It survived till the Tughlaq period in the 14th century A.D. when it disappeared due to change in the course of river Indus.

As during the time of Darius when Sind constituted the 20th Satrapy of the Achaemenian Empire and considered an extremely rich province, so also during the Arab rule Sind was regarded a prosperous part of the Caliphate and paid a million dirham per annum as revenue to the Government at Baghdad.

Migration from Sindh to India

During 16th century Sindh was hit by a major drought due to which a village occupied by Thaheem (who were from tribe of Tamim) left their village and planned to leave Sindh which was often struck by droughts and famine. About 100 families of Thaheem migrated to Ghazipur and Ballia districts in Eastern Uttar Pradesh thus dispersing in the villages of the region.

Present Circumstances

Iraqis are found in Eastern Uttar Pradesh in the districts of Ghazipur, Ballia, Deoria, Kushinagar, Gorakhpur, Mau and Azamgarh in large numbers. Beside they are also found in Jaunpur, Varanasi and Sultanpur. They are also found in some towns and villages of Bihar. In Kanpur, Kolkata and Chennai they are trading community engaged in leather work. In Assam, they are found in Tinsukia and Dibrugarh. They are also present in Delhi (NCR), Aligarh, Lucknow, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, Mumbai, Vishakhapatnam, Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Bhopal engaged in various professions. In Pakistan, they are present in Karachi, Faisalabad and Lahore due to migration in 1947. In Bangladesh, they are present in small numbers in Dhaka. They are also present in Middle East, UK, USA, Europe etc for Jobs and study purpose. The community strictly believes in inter racial marriage as they consider other Indian communities as 'Non Arab' or 'Mixed Arabs'.

Organizations

Eminent people

Lari

Bijapur.[10]

References

  1. ↑ https://ramanan50.wordpress.com/2015/01/20/list-of-308-castes-in-islam-indian-muslims/
  2. ↑ https://gdhouse.wordpress.com/2015/08/20/foreigners-in-india-part-2/
  3. ↑ Mirza Kalichbeg Fredunbeg: The Chachnamah, An Ancient History of Sind, Giving the Hindu period down to the Arab Conquest. Commissioners Press 1900, Section 18: "It is related that the king of Sarandeb* sent some curiosities and presents from the island of pearls, in a small fleet of boats by sea, for Hajjáj. He also sent some beautiful pearls and valuable jewels, as well as some Abyssinian male and female slaves, some pretty presents, and unparalleled rarities to the capital of the Khalífah. A number of Mussalman women also went with them with the object of visiting the Kaabah, and seeing the capital city of the Khalífahs. When they arrived in the province of Kázrún, the boat was overtaken by a storm, and drifting from the right way, floated to the coast of Debal. Here a band of robbers, of the tribe of Nagámrah, who were residents of Debal, seized all the eight boats, took possession of the rich silken cloths they contained, captured the men and women, and carried away all the valuable property and jewels."
  4. ↑ https://m.facebook.com/Al-Jamiah-Al-Iraqi-Al-Hind-%D8%AC%D9%85%D8%B9%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A2%D9%84-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%82%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D9%87%D9%86%D8%AF-563520293785098/
  5. ↑ http://iraqibiradripakistan.info/
  6. ↑ https://m.facebook.com/iraqibiradri.in/photos
  7. ↑ http://www.uok.edu.pk/contacts.php
  8. ↑ http://indiankanoon.org/doc/37687667/?type=print
  9. ↑ https://www.flickr.com/photos/drlariazad/5827043135
  10. ↑ http://www.husainiarts.com/archive.html
  11. ↑ http://www.google.co.in/search?q=Murshid+Iraqui+Divam&hl=en&nfpr=1&prmd=ivns&source=lnms&tbm=bks
  12. ↑ https://books.google.co.in/books?id=AhS9BgAAQBAJ&pg=PA94&lpg=PA94&dq=Shahabuddin+Iraqi&source=bl&ots=2pm7hQvhJr&sig=q1zCRZS1uXWTV-UUy_1y44Zww0I&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiTgY6um53LAhUDFh4KHQpyDawQ6AEIGzAG#v=onepage&q=Shahabuddin%20Iraqi&f=false
  13. ↑ http://www.hindilinks4u.to/2011/05/sarphira-1992.html

External links

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