Sayyid
Sayyid is an honorific title of Hasanid and Husaynid lineage, recognized as descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad through his daughter Fatima and Ali's sons Hasan and Husayn. The title may also refer to the descendants of the family of the Bani Hashim through the Prophet's great-grandfather Hashim, and others including Hamza, Abbas, Abu Talib, and Asad ibn Hashim.
See also Sharif, which has a good description of three types of identification for that term and co-relates to this term. In its narrowest sense, a sayyid is a descendant of Husayn ibn Ali, but the term is also more generally used for descendants of The Prophet.
Etymology
A few Arabic language experts state that "Sayyid" has its roots in the word al-asad الأسد, meaning "lion", probably because of the qualities of valor and leadership. The word is derived from the verb sāda, meaning to rule. The title seyyed/sayyid/syed/sayyad/saeed/said existed before Islam, however not in light of a specific descent, but as a meritocratic sign of respect.Hans Wehr's Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic defines seyyid as a translation for master, chief, sovereign, or lord. It also denotes someone respected and of high status.
In the Arab world, sayyid is the equivalent of the English word "liege lord" or "master".
Origin of the title
The foundation of the title Sayyid is unclear. In fact the title Sayyid as a unified reference for descendants of Muhammad did not exist, according to Morimoto Kazuo, until the Mongol conquests. This can be substantiated by historic records about Abdul Qadir Gilani and Baha' al-Din Naqshband, who did not refer to themselves with any title, despite their lineages to Muhammad. Sometimes the ruling community of a nation took this title to portray themselves as respected and honored, though they are not actually the descendants of Muhammad. This gives reasons to think that this title is founded later on. Morimoto refers to Mominov, who describes that the emergence of a community leader during the Mongol era gave rise to the prominence of the title Sayyid. This leader is most probably the Sunni Shafi'ite scholar Mir Sayyid Ali Hamadani, who lived in this time, being known as a saint credited with the honorific titles "Amir-e-Kabir" and "Ali-e-Sani". Hamadani's religious legacy in Kashmir as well as his headquarter the Khanqa-e-Mola became under the control of the Grand Sayyid Hazrat Ishaan. Hazrat Ishaan's descendants are buried in Hamadani's headquarters, on which occasion it is known as the Ziyarat Naqshband Sahab today.However, in Sunni Islam as practiced in the Ottoman and Mughal Empire, a person descending from Muhammad can only claim the title of Sayyid meritocratically by passing [|audits], whereupon exclusive rights, like paying lesser taxes, will be granted. These are mostly based on the claimant's demonstrated knowledge of the Quran and piousness under the assessment of a Naqib al-Ashraf, also known as a Mir in Persian-speaking countries. Notable examples of such a Naqib or Mirs, were Hazrat Ishaan in the Mughal Empire and his descendant Sayyid Mir Fazlullah Agha in Royal Afghanistan.
West Asia
Men belonging to the Sayyid families or tribes in the Arab world used to wear white- or ivory-coloured daggers like jambiyas, khanjars or shibriyas to demarcate their nobility amongst other Arab men, although this custom has been restricted due to the local laws of the variously divided Arab countries.Iraq
The Sayyid families in Iraq are so numerous that there are books written especially to list the families and connect their trees. Some of these families are: the Al-Talqani, Al-Yassiri, Al-Aqiqi, Al-Nasrullah, Al-Wahab, Al-Hashimi, Al-Quraishi, Al-Mar'ashi, Al-Witri, Al-Zaidi, Al-A'araji, Al-Baka, Al-Hasani, Al-Hussaini, Al-Shahristani, Al-Qazwini Al-Qadri, Tabatabaei, Al-Alawi, Al-Ghawalib, Al-Musawi, Al-Awadi, and many others.Iran
Sayyids are found in vast numbers in Iran. The Chief of "National Organization for Civil Registration" of Iran declared that more than 6 millions of Iranians are Sayyid. The majority of Sayyids migrated to Iran from Arab lands predominantly in the 15th to 17th centuries during the Safavid era. The Safavids transformed the religious landscape of Iran by imposing Twelver Shi'ism on the populace. Since most of the population embraced Sunni Islam, and an educated version of Shiism was scarce in Iran at the time, Ismail imported a new group of Shia Ulama who predominantly were Sayyids from traditional Shiite centers of the Arabic-speaking lands, such as Jabal Amil, Syria, Bahrain, and southern Iraq in order to create a state clergy. The Safavids offered them land and money in return for loyalty. These scholars taught Twelver Shi'ism, made it accessible to the population, and energetically encouraged conversion to Shi'ism.During the reign of Shah Abbas the Great, the Safavids also imported to Iran more Arab Shias, predominantly Sayyids, built religious institutions for them, including many Madrasas, and successfully persuaded them to participate in the government, which they had shunned in the past.
Common Sayyid family surnames in Iran are Husseini, Mousavi, Kazemi, Razavi, Eshtehardian, Tabatabaei, Hashmi, Hassani, al-Ja'fari, Emami, Arabi, Ahmadi, Zaidi, Imamzadeh, Sherazi, Kirmani, Shahidi, and Mahdavi.
Oman
In Oman, Sayyid is used solely as a royal title and not as a means of indicating descent from Muhammad. It is used by members of the ruling Al Bu Said family who are not descended from Muhammad but instead from the Azd, a Qahtanite tribe. All male line descendants of Sultan Ahmad bin Said, the first ruler of Oman from the Al Bu Said dynasty, are able to use the title of Sayyid or Sayyida. Male line descendants of Sultan Turki bin Said are also able to use the style of His/Her Highness. The Sayyid title in Oman is some times translated as Prince.Yemen
In Yemen the Sayyids are more generally known as sadah; they are also referred to as Hashemites. In terms of religious practice they are Sunni, Shia, and Sufi. Sayyid families in Yemen include the Rassids, the Qasimids, the Mutawakkilites, the Hamideddins, some Al-Zaidi of Ma'rib, Sana'a, and Sa'dah, the Ba 'Alawi sadah families in Hadhramaut, Mufadhal of Sana'a, Al-Shammam of Sa'dah, the Sufyan of Juban, and the Al-Jaylani of Juban.South Asia
In South Asia, Sayyids are mostly credited for preaching and consolidating the religion of Islam. They are predominantly descendants of leading saints of Sunni Islam that migrated from Persia to preach Islam in Islamic Theology.Afghanistan
In the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, the Sayyid have been recognized as an ethnic group. On March 15, 2019, President Ashraf Ghani decreed the inclusion of the Sadat tribe in the electronically registered national identity documents. The majority of Sayyids live in Balkh and Kunduz in the north, as well as in Nangarhar in the east. They are predominantly Sunni Muslims, although there are some, including in Bamyan Province, who belong to Shia Islam. These individuals are often referred to as Sadat, a term traditionally used to denote the descendants of Hasan and Hussein, the first Shia martyrs and sons of Ali, who are grandsons of Muhammad, particularly in the northern Hejaz region and British India.North India
The earliest migration of Sayyids from Afghanistan to North India took place in 1032 when Ghazi Saiyyad Salar Sahu and his son Ghazi Saiyyad Salar Masud established their military headquarters at Satrikh in the Barabanki district of Uttar Pradesh. They are considered to be the first Muslim settlers in North India. In 1033 Ghazi Saiyyad Salar Masud was killed at the battle of Bahraich, the location of his mazar. Ghazi Saiyyad Salar Masud had no children. His parental uncle Sayyid Ma'ruf al-Din Ghazi and his family lived in Tijara until 1857 before they migrated to Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh. Syed Ahmed Rizvi Kashmiri and Khan Bahadur Aga Syed Hussain were both Rizvi Sayyids through Aqa Mir Sayyid Hussain Qumi Rizvi, whose sacred shrine is in the Zainagir Village of Sopore, Jammu and Kashmir. Iraqi Sayyids or Iraqi Biradri in Purvanchal are descendants of Sayyid Masud Al Hussaini who was the direct descendant of Muhammad's grandson Husayn ibn Ali and came to India from Iraq during the reign of Sultan Muhammad bin Tughlaq in 1330 CE. He settled with his seven sons and forty champions in Ghazipur as some of them converted to Sunni Islam in the reign of Sultan Ibrahim Lodhi around 1517 CE. His Shia descendants are now known as Sayyids of Ghazipur.Sayyids of Syed Nagli, or the Baquari Syeds had migrated from Termez during the Sultanate era. Sikandar Khan Lodi was the ruler of Delhi when Mir Syed Muhammad al-Hussain al-Hussaini al-Termezi Haji al-Haramain came to India and settled at Syed Nagli. He was a Baquari Syed who drew his lineage from Muhammad al-Baqir.
Perhaps the most important figure in the history of the Sayyid in Uttar Pradesh was Sayyid Basrullah Shustari, who moved from Mashhad in Iran in 1549 and joined the court of the Mughal Emperor Akbar. Akbar appointed Shustari as his chief justice, who used his position to strengthen the status of the various Sayyid families. They were preferred in administrative posts and formed a privileged elite. When the Mughal Empire disintegrated, the Sayyid played an important role in the turbulent politics of the time. The new British colonial authorities that replaced the Mughals after the Battle of Buxar made a pragmatic decision to work with the various Sayyid jagirdars. Several Sayyid taluqdars in Awadh were substantial landowners under the British colonial regime, and many other Sayyid contributed to state administration. After the abolition of the zamindari system, many Sayyid zamindars had to leave their homes.