Bahrani people 4027752 222664450 2008-06-30T14:33:15Z Arabbi 6240614 /* External links */ {{Infobox Ethnic group |image = <div style="background-color:#fee8ab"><small>[[Maitham Al Bahrani]] • [[Abdul Amir al-Jamri]] • [[Nazar Al Baharna]] • [[Abdulhadi Al Khawaja]]</small> |group = Baharna |poptime = Over 310,000 |region1 = {{flag|Bahrain}} |pop1 = 300,000<ref name="Ethnologue - Arabic, Baharna Spoken">{{cite web|url = http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=abv| title = Arabic, Baharna Spoken |publisher = Ethnologue|accessdate = 2008-06-09}}</ref> |region2 = {{flag|Saudi Arabia}} |pop2 = |region3 = {{flag|Kuwait}} |pop3 = |region4 = {{flag|Oman}} |pop4 = |langs = [[Baharna Arabic]] |rels = [[Twelver Shi`ism]] }} The '''Baharna''' (singular '''Bahrani''', {{ArB|'''بحراني'''}}) are the indigenous [[Shi'a]] inhabitants of the archipelago of [[Bahrain]] and the oasis of [[Qatif]] on the [[Persian Gulf]] coast of Saudi Arabia (see [[Bahrain (historical region)| historical region of Bahrain]]). The term is sometimes also extended to the Shi'a inhabitants of the [[al-Hasa]] oasis. They are [[ethnic]] [[Arab]]s, and some claim descent from Arab tribes. Their dialect of Arabic is known as "Bahrani" or "[[Baharna Arabic]]," and they are overwhelmingly adherents [[Twelver Shi'ites]]. Most Bahrani clerics have since the 18th century followed the conservative [[Akhbari]] school.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} The term "Baharna" serves to distinguish them from other Shi'ites in the region, such as the relatively recent immigrants from [[Iran]] who fall under the term ''[[Ajam (Bahrain)|Ajam]]'', as well as from the [[Sunnis]] of Bahrain who prefer the term ''Bahrayni'' or ''Ahl el-Bahrayn'' ("people of Bahrain").<ref>Lorimer, John Gordon, ''Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, Oman and Central Arabia'', republished by Gregg Internatinal Publishers Limited Westemead. Farnborough, Hants., England and Irish University Press, Shannon, Irelend. Printed in Holland, 1970, Vol. II A, entries on "Bahrain" and "Baharna" </ref> In previous centuries, the term "Bahrani" often referred to any inhabitant of the larger [[Bahrain (historical region)|historical region of Bahrain]]. Before the advent of the oil industry, the Baharna mostly engaged in agriculture, including the cultivation of [[date palm]]s, [[fishing]], and [[pearl diving]], as well as a host of other cottage industries, such as basket weaving and pottery. Unlike their [[Bedouin]] neighbors, the people of this region led a [[Settler|settled lifestyle]], as they had access to abundant [[freshwater spring]]s and long coastal lines, rich with fish, shrimp, and oysters. The [[Pearl hunting|pearling]] industry involved a variety of other business activities, such as ship building (with distinctive styles of [[dhow]]s) and trade with Africa, Iran, the Indian subcontinent, some parts of Indochina, and Indonesia. The Baharna produced many well-known religious scholars, including [[Shaykh Ahmad|Shaykh Ahmad al-Ahsai]] (1753 - 1826) (founder of the Shaikhí school), [[Maitham Al Bahrani| Shaykh Maitham al-Bahrani]] (1238 - 1299), [[Yusuf Al Bahrani|Shaykh Yusuf al-Bahrani]] (1695 - 1722) (one of the foremost [[Akhbari]] scholars), [[Abdullah al Samahiji]] (1675 - 1723), and [[Salih Al-Karzakani]] . Many religious scholars immigrated to [[Iran]] after the [[Bahrain]] islands were conquered by the [[Safavids]] in 1602 - for instance 17th Century theologian and scholar, Sheikh [[Salih Al-Karzakani]] was appointed by the Shah as court judge in [[Shiraz]], although he initially left Bahrain to work in the Indian Kingdom of [[Golkonda]]. Many students and scholars settled, and still do today, in centers of Shi'ite scholarship, especially [[Najaf]], [[Karbala]], and [[Qom]]. Insignificant numbers have settled in relatively remote areas, such as [[Zanzibar]].[http://www.angelfire.com/nf/abdulsf/Memoirs/zanzibar.htm], [http://www.angelfire.com/nf/abdulsf/communal/Chehlum_In_Zanzibar/Chehlum_in_Zanzibar.htm]. The singular term "al-Bahrani" and the plural term "al-Baharna" are also used as family names by individuals who have Baharna ancestry, such as the Iraqi art historian Dr [[Zainab Bahrani]]. == Historically Bahrani towns and villages== ===In Bahrain (present day)=== *[[Manama]] *[[Jidhafs]] *[[Diraz]] *[[Abu Saiba]] *[[A'ali]] *[[Ghuraifa]] *[[Hamala]] *[[Khamis]] *[[Nabih Saleh]] *[[Saar, Bahrain]] *[[Samaheej]] *[[Sitrah]] *[[Bilad Al Qadeem]] *[[Zinj, Bahrain]] *[[Mukharaqa]] *[[Noaim]] *[[Nabih Saleh]] *[[Bani Jamra]] *[[Karrana]] ===Saudi Arabia=== *[[Qatif]] *[[Saihat]] *[[Tarout]] Island *[[Al-Jaroudiya]] *[[Hofuf]] *[[Al-Hasa]] *[[Al-Mubarraz]] == References == {{reflist}} ==See also== * [[Bahrani Arabic]] * [[Bahrain (historical region)]] * [[History of Bahrain]] * [[Huwala]] * [[Ajam (Bahrain)]] ==External links== * [http://vob.org/index.php?show=news&action=article&id=21&lang=english The 1922 Baharna uprising in Bahrain] *[http://www.scribd.com/doc/3729409 Rival Empires of Trade and Imami Shiism in Eastern Arabia, 1300-1800], [[Juan Cole]], [[International Journal of Middle East Studies]], Vol. 19, No. 2, (May, 1987), pp. 177-203 [[Category:Arab groups]] [[Category:Saudi society]] [[Category:History of Bahrain]] [[Category:Bahraini society]] [[ar:بحارنة]]