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Anizah or Anazah J. E. Peterson Historical Dictionary of Saudi Arabia, P. 68. ISBN 9781538119808. (, Najdi Arabic pronunciation: ) is an tribe in the Arabian Peninsula, Upper Mesopotamia, and the Levant.
Two main branches of Anizah are recorded by the early historians. One branch was nomadic, living in the northern Arabian steppes bordering Syria and Mesopotamia. The other, was sedentary, living within the wadis of the district of Al-Yamama in eastern Najd, just south of their purported cousins, the Bani Hanifa of the Banu Bakr, who inhabited modern-day Riyadh. One of these clans, Bani Hizzan, Families tracing their origin to Anizah through Hizzan still exist in that area today.Hamad Al-Jassir, "Hizzan", Compendium of the Lineages of the Settled Families of Nejd, pt. II, p. 889 (Arabic)
The other tribes of Rabiʿa were far more prominent in the events of late pre-Islamic Arabia and the early Islamic era. According to historians such as al-Tabari (10th century), the Anizah joined with Bakr ibn Wa'il under an alliance they called al-Lahazim. Many of these tribes were followers of the Christianity faith prior to Islam. Others such as bani Taghlib remained largely Christians even after the Muslim conquest of Mesopotamia and the Levant.
Bahrain's House of Khalifa and Kuwait's House of Sabah royal families both trace their ancestry to this vast tribe. Saudi Arabia's House of Saud trace their ancestry to Anizah's cousin tribe, the Bani Hanifa, which has merged with the larger tribe of Bani Bakr, and are therefore considered members of it as well.
The 13th-century historian Ibn Sa'id al-Maghribi says about himself that he came to the Arabian Peninsula and asked about the rest of the Rabi’a tribes, saying about that 'I entered the Arabian Peninsula and asked: Are there any Rabi'ah tribes left in its regions? They said: There is no one left who rides horses, settles and migrates except for the Anazah, and they are in the regions of Khaybar, and the Banu Shu'bah are famous for highway robbery and tearing down veils in the outskirts of the Hijaz near Yemen and the sea, and the Banu Anz are in the region of Tabalah; and other than that we do not know of in the East or the West'".Ibn Sa'id al-Maghribi, The rapture in the history of the pre-Islamic Arabs
The 14th-century historian Ibn Fadlallah al-Umari notes that the Anazah were one of the tribes allied with the Al Fadl, along with several other tribes, the most prominent of which were Khath'am, Qays, and Al-Dhafeer.al-Umari, Masālik al-abṣār fī mamālik al-amṣār
In the 19th century, the Switzerland traveler Burckhardt and the United Kingdom traveler Doughty visited the tribe in their stronghold of Khaybar and gathered from them many details of Bedouin life
The modern tribe of Anizah became prominent in the Ottoman Empire era, as masters of the oasis towns of northwestern Arabia, particularly Khaybar and Al-Ula. Although not farmers themselves, the Anizah levied crops from the inhabitants, and only spent the winter months in the area, while migrating northwards into southern Syria in the summer months, where they collected tribute from the inhabitants of the Hauran region. The tribute was known as khuwwa ("brotherhood"), and in exchange, the tribesmen pledged to protect the farmers from other tribes. Other clans of the tribe spread across the northern Arabian steppes as far north and east as the Euphrates. According to Encyclopedia of Islam, "it is not known whence they came", while many such as the Western travelers Philby and Anne Blunt simply assumed they had recently migrated from Nejd, having been pushed northwards into Syria by other tribes.
The first Anizah tribe to enter Syria was the Hasana in the mid-18th century. They established themselves as the dominant tribe in the plains around Hama and Homs. Around the same time entered the Wuld Ali in the Hawran. The Ruwallah followed the Wuld Ali in the early 19th century and rivaled them for influence in the Hawran, while the Fad'an and the Sba'a entered the central Syrian plains and often entered into conflict with the Hasana in the early 19th century. (2026). 9781860640315, I. B. Tauris. ISBN 9781860640315
One branch of the Anizah in that area, centered around Al-Jouf and the valley of Wadi Sirhan and extending into Jordan and Syria, became so large and powerful that it practically developed into an independent tribe, known as the Ruwallah. The Ruwallah engaged in battle with other branches of Anizah, and also became the arch-enemy of the large tribe of Shammar, who inhabited roughly the same area and dominated Nejd in the late 19th century after temporarily deposing the Al Saud. A 19th century oral poetic epic telling the tale of a rivalry between two heroes from Shammar and Anizah was published in 1992. The social context of pre-Islamic poetry: poetic imagery The Ruwallah were among the tribes that took part in the "Arab Revolt" against the Ottomans in 1916. Another northern branch of Anizah, the `Amarat, was centered in the deserts of Iraq.
With the rise of the First Saudi State in the late 18th century, Anizah were among the tribes that adopted a favorable attitude towards this new power, but took little active part in supporting it militarily, due to their geographical location. The royal family of Saudi Arabia Al Saud family are from the 'Anizah tribe,C.M. Doughty, Travels in Arabia Deserta with Al Saud having ancestry from Wa'il, the region's native inhabitants as well as the migratory Anizah. The Saud intermarried with their 'Anizah rivals, al Shammar, along with other powerful tribes to solidify their dynasty. Ibn Saud sired dozens of children by his many wives. He had at most four wives at a time, divorcing many times, making sure to marry into many of the noble clans and tribes within his territory, including the chiefs of the Bani Khalid, Ajman, and Shammar tribes, as well as the Al ash-Sheikh.
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In the 19th century, Sheikh Mashaan Ibn Hathal was cavalier, leader, and poet who gained his fame from leading the Bedouin clans of the Anizah tribe across the Arabian peninsula and unifying it against the tribe's enemies at the Battle of Al Shimasiyah on 18 June 1825. Sheikh Mashaan died in the battle of Al Shimasiyah but the Anezis won consequently. "The title of glory in the history of Najd" pages 26-30
The establishment of the modern borders of the Middle East dealt a severe blow to the Bedouin lifestyle of tribes such as Anizah, which were accustomed to raising their animals over wide areas spanning many modern states. Special arrangements were made in the early 20th century for these tribes, but the vast majority ended up settling within these new states and taking Saudi, Kuwaiti, Iraqi, Lebanese, Syrian, or Jordanian citizenship. These recently settled tribesman are often distinguished from their sedentary cousins by retaining tribal appellations such as al-`Annizi or Al-Ruwaili as their surnames.
Hathal had two sons who were both considered Sheikhs : Sheikh Abdullah Ibn Hathal, and Sheikh Mndeel Al-Shuja' Or Mndeel the Brave. Their progeny are still regarded to be the Sheikhs of Anizah and are still given the honorary title of the Sheikhs of Shuyoukh of Anizah.
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