Tribes and Tribalism: Hassana Tribe

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TRIBES AND TRIBALISM: HASSANA TRIBE

A major tribe of the Anaza confederation of Arab tribes who were known for their bravery.

In the second half of the eighteenth century, the Hassana tribe headed towards Syria from Najd, pushed by the Wahhabis. They reached the confines of Homs and Hama and clashed with the Mawali bedouin in control there. The weakened Mawali relinquished their positions and retreated towards Salamiyya and Maʿarrat al-Nuʿman. The Hassana numbered 400 bayts (households), that is, about 2,000 persons (the bayt or the khayma [tent], according to the Ottoman Salname, included about five persons). The Hassana additionally had 300 bayts of followers.

abdul-karim rafeq

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