Administratively, Najd is divided into three mainregions: theRiyadh region which featuresWadi Hanifa and theTuwaiq escarpment, which houses easterlyYamama with the Saudi capital,Riyadh since1824,[3] and theSudairi region, which has its capital inMajmaah. The second region,Al-Qassim, houses the fertile oases anddate palm orchards spread out in the region's highlands alongWadi Rummah in central Najd with its capital inBuraidah, the second largest Najdi city, with the region historically contested by theHouse of Rashid to its north and the House of Saud to its east and south. The third administrative unit is northerlyḤa'il, which features the mountains ofJabal Shammar housing theTayy capital ofḤa'il.
Plaque with aMa'inic inscription and two ibexes (1st century BC – 1st century AD),Qaryat al-Faw
The Najd region is home toAl-Magar, which was an advanced prehistoric culture of theNeolithic whose center lay in modern-day southwestern Najd. Al-Magar is possibly one of the first cultures in the world where widespread agriculture and the domestication of animals occurred, particularly that of the horse, during theNeolithic period, before climate changes in the region resulted indesertification.[6]Radiocarbon dating of several objects discovered at Al-Magar indicate an age of about 9,000 years.[7]
In November 2017 hunting scenes showing images of what appear to be domesticated dogs resembling theCanaan dog and wearing leashes were discovered in Shuwaymis, an area about 370 km southwest of the city of Ha'il. Dated at 8,000 years before the present, these are thought of as the earliest known depictions of dogs in the world.[8]
A large ancient stone carving, dating back to 8100 BC, of anequid—an animal belonging to the horse family, found atAl-Magar. The piece itself, measuring 86 cms long by 18 cms thick and weighing more than 135kg., is a large sculptural fragment that appears to show the head, muzzle, shoulder and withers of a horse.[9]
In the 5th century AD, the tribes of North Arabia became a major threat to the trade line betweenYemen andSyria. TheḤimyarites of Sheba decided to establish avassal state that controlled Central and North Arabia. The Kindites, mentioned in Greek sources as theChinedakolpitai (Greek:Χινεδακολπιται), gained strength and numbers to play that role and in AD 425 the Ḥimyarite king Ḥasan ibn 'Amr ibn Tubba’ made Ḥujr 'Akīl al-Murār ibn 'Amr the first King (Ḥujr) of Kindah. They established theKingdom of Kinda in Najd in central Arabia unlike the organized states ofYemen; its kings exercised an influence over a number of associated tribes more by personal prestige than by coercive settled authority. Their first capital was Qaryat Dhāt Kāhil, today known asQaryat al-Fāw.[10]
TheGhassānids,Lakhmids and Kindites were allKahlānī andQaḥṭānī kingdoms which thrived in Najd. In the 5th and 6th centuries AD, the Kindites made the first real concerted effort to unite all the tribes of Central Arabia through alliances, and focused on wars with theLakhmids. Al-Ḥārith ibn 'Amr, the most famous of their kings, finally succeeded in capturing the Lakhmid capital ofal-Ḥirah in southern modern-day Iraq.[11] Later however in about 529, al-Mundhir recaptured the city and put King Ḥārith and about fifty members of his family to death.
In 525, theAksumites invaded Ḥimyar, and this had a knock-on effect with the Kindites, who lost the support of the Ḥimyarites. Within three years the Kindite kingdom had split into four groups: Asad, Taghlib, Qays and Kinānah, each led by a prince of Kindah. These small principalities were then overthrown in the 530s and 540s in a series of uprisings of theAdnani tribes of Najd andHijaz. In 540, theLakhmids destroyed all the Kindite settlements inNejd, forcing the majority of them to move toYemen. The Kindites and most of the Arab tribes switched their alliances to theLakhmids.
Muhammad carried out military expeditions in the area. The first was theNejd Caravan Raid against theQuraysh, which took place in 624. The Meccans led bySafwan ibn Umayyah, who lived on trade, left in summer for Syria for their seasonal trade business. After Muhammad received intelligence about the Caravan's route, he orderedZayd ibn Haritha to go after the Caravan, and they successfully raided it and captured 100,000dirhams worth of booty.[12][13]
The most authentic opinion according to "Saifur Rahman al Mubararakpuri", however, is that the Dhat Ar-Riqa' campaign took place after thefall of Khaibar (and not as part of the invasion of Nejd). This is supported by the fact thatAbu Hurairah andAbu Musa Al-Ash'ari witnessed the battle. Abu Hurairah embraced Islam only some days before Khaibar, and Abu Musa Al-Ash'ari came back from Abyssinia (modern dayEthiopia), and joined Muhammad atKhaibar. The rules relating to the prayer of fear, which Muhammad observed at the Dhat Ar-Riqa' campaign, were revealed at the Asfan invasion and, these scholars say, took place afterAl-Khandaq.[14]
TheExpedition of Qatan also took place in Nejd. The Banu Asad ibn Khuzaymah tribe (not to be confused with theBanu Asad tribe) was a powerful tribe connected with the Quraysh. They resided near the hill ofKatan, in the vicinity ofFayd, inNejd. Muhammad received intelligence reports that they were planning a raid on Medina, so he dispatched a force of 150 men under the leadership ofAbu Salama 'Abd Allah ibn 'Abd al-Asad to make a sudden attack on this tribe.[15][16]
After Prophet Muhammad's death, previously dormant tensions between the Meccanimmigrants, theMuhajirun, and the Medinan converts, theAnsar, threatened to split theUmmah. Other Arabian tribes also wished to revert from Islam to local leadership and split from Medina's control; in some places, people such asAl-Aswad Al-Ansi andMusaylima claimedprophethood and started to establish leaderships in opposition to Medina.[17]
TheAnsar, the leaders of the tribes of Medina, met in a hall or house calledsaqifah, to discuss whom they would support as their new leader. When Abu Bakr was informed of the meeting, he,Umar,Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah and a few others rushed to prevent the Ansar from making a premature decision. During the meeting Umar declared that Abu Bakr should be the new leader, and declared his allegiance to Abu Bakr, followed by Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah, and thus Abu Bakr became the firstcaliph.
Apostasy and rebellion in central Arabia were led byMusaylima in the fertile region ofYamamah. He was mainly supported by the powerful tribe ofBanu Hanifa. At Buzakha in north central Arabia, another claimed prophet,Tulayha, a tribal chief ofBanu Asad, led the rebellion against Medina, aided by the allied tribes ofBanu Ghatafan, theHawazin, and theTayy. At Najd,Malik ibn Nuweira led the tribes ofBanu Tamim against the authority of Medina.[18]
Map detailing the route of Khalid ibn Walid's conquest of Arabia
On receiving intelligence of the Muslims' preparations, Tulayha too prepared for a battle, and was further reinforced by the contingents of the allied tribes. Before launchingKhalid ibn Al-Walid against Tulayha, Abu Bakr sought ways and means of reducing the latter's strength, so that the battle could be fought with the maximum prospects of victory. Nothing could be done about the tribes ofBanu Asad andBanu Ghatafan, which stood solidly behind Tulayha, but theTayy were not so staunch in their support of Tulayha, and their chief,Adi ibn Hatim, was a devout Muslim. Adi was appointed by Abu Bakr to negotiate with the tribal elders to withdraw their contingent from Tulayha's army. The negotiations were a success, and Adi brought with him 500 horsemen of his tribe to reinforce Khalid's army.
Khalid next marched against another apostate tribe,Jadila. Here again,Adi ibn Hatim offered his services to persuade the tribe to submit without bloodshed. Bani Jadila submitted, and their 1000 warriors joined Khalid's army. Khalid, now much stronger than when he had left Zhu Qissa, marched forBuzakha. There, in mid-September 632, he defeated Tulayha in theBattle of Buzakha. The remaining army of Tulayha retreated toGhamra, 20 miles from Buzakha, and was defeated in theBattle of Ghamra in the third week of September.[19]
Several tribes submitted to theCaliph after Khalid's decisive victories. Moving south from Buzakha, Khalid reachedNaqra in October, with an army now 6000 strong, and defeated the rebel tribe ofBanu Saleem in theBattle of Naqra. In the third week of October, Khalid defeated a tribal chieftess, Salma, in thebattle of Zafar.[19]
Afterwards, he moved to Najd against the rebel tribe ofBanu Tamim and theirSheikhMalik ibn Nuwayrah. At Najd, getting the news of Khalid's decisive victories againstapostates in Buzakha, many clans of Banu Tamim hastened to visitKhalid, but theBanu Yarbu', a branch of Banu Tamim, under their chief,Malik ibn Nuwayrah, hung back. Malik was a chief of some distinction: a warrior, noted for his generosity, and a famous poet. Bravery, generosity, and poetry were the three qualities most admired among the Arabs. At the time of Muhammad, he had been appointed as a tax collector for the tribe of Banu Tamim. As soon as Malik heard of the death of Muhammad he gave back all the tax to his tribespeople, saying "Now you are the owner of your wealth."[citation needed] Moreover, he was to be charged because he signed a pact with the anti-Islamic prophetSajjah. This agreement stated that first, they would deal with local enemy tribes together, and then they would confront the state ofMadinah.[citation needed]
His riders were stopped by Khalid's army at the town ofButtah. Khalid asked them about the signing of pact withSajjah; they said it was just because they wanted revenge against their terrible enemies.[citation needed] When Khalid reached Najd he found no opposing army. He sent hiscavalry to nearby villages and ordered them to call theAthaan to each party they meet.
Zirrar bin Azwar, a squadron leader, arrested the family of Malik, claiming they did not answer the call to prayer. Malik avoided direct contact with Khalid's army and ordered his followers to scatter, and he and his family apparently moved away across the desert.[20][full citation needed] He refused to givezakat, hence differentiating between prayer and zakat. Nevertheless, Malik was accused of rebellion against the state of Medina. He was also to be charged for his entering in an anti-Caliphate alliance with the anti-Islamic prophetess Sajjah.[21][full citation needed] Malik was arrested along with his clansmen.[22][full citation needed]
Malik was asked by Khalid about his crimes. Malik's response was "your master said this, your master said that", referring to Abu Bakr. Khalid declared Malik a rebel apostate and ordered his execution.[23][full citation needed]Khalid bin Walid killedMalik ibn Nuwayra.
Ikrimah ibn Abi-Jahl, one of the corps commanders, was instructed to make contact with Musaylima atYamamah, but not to engage in fighting until Khalid joined him. Abu Bakr's intention in giving Ikrimah this mission was to tie Musaylima down at Yamamah. With Ikrimah on the horizon, Musaylima would remain in expectation of a Muslim attack, and thus not be able to leave his base. With Musaylima so committed, Khalid would be free to deal with the apostate tribes of north-central Arabia without interference from Yamamah. Meanwhile, Abu Bakr sentShurhabil's corps to reinforce Ikrama at Yamamah.
However,Ikrimah attacked Musaylima's forces in early September 632 and was defeated. He wrote the details of his actions to Abu Bakr, who, both pained and angered by the rashness of Ikrimah and his disobedience, ordered him to proceed with his force toOman to assistHudaifa; once Hudaifa had completed his task, to march toMahra to helpArfaja, and thereafter go toYemen to help Muhajir.[24]
Meanwhile,Abu Bakr sent orders to Khalid to march against Musaylima. Shurhabil's corps, that was stationed at Yamamah, was to reinforce Khalid's corps. In addition to this Abu Bakr assembled a fresh army ofAnsar andMuhajireen in Medina that joined Khalid's corps atButah. From Butah Khalid marched to Yamamah to join with Shurhabil's corps. Though Abu Bakr had instructed Shurhabil not to engage Musaylima's forces until the arrival of Khalid, shortly before the arrival of Khalid, Shurhabil engaged Musaylima's forces and was defeated too.
Khalid joined with the corps of Shurhabil early in December 632. The combined force of Muslims, now 13,000 strong, defeated Musaylima's army in theBattle of Yamamah, which was fought in the third week of December. The fortified city of Yamamah surrendered peacefully later that week.[24] Khalid established his headquarters at Yamamah, from where he despatched columns to all over the plain ofAqraba to subdue the region around Yamamah and to kill or capture all who resisted. Thereafter all of central Arabia submitted to Medina. What remained of theapostasy in the less vital areas of Arabia was rooted out by the Muslims in a series of well-planned campaigns within five months.
Najd soon became a politically peripheral region of theMuslim world as the focus shifted to theoutside of the peninsula. Many of members of the conquering tribes of Najd soon shifted into the Levant, Persia and North Africa, playing a role in future conflicts in the caliphate, becoming governors and even birthing emirates such as theAghlabids.[25] Migrations continued throughout the centuries back and forth from Nejd to Iraq and the Levant, with many Najdi tribes reaching Khorosan and the Maghreb.
Ottoman control over these lands varied over the next four centuries with the fluctuating strength or weakness of the Empire's central authority.[27][28] The emergence of what was to become the Saudi royal family, known as theAl Saud, began inNajd in central Arabia in 1744, whenMuhammad bin Saud, founder of the dynasty, joined forces with the religious leaderMuhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab,[29] founder of the Wahhabi movement, a strict puritanical form of Sunni Islam.[30]
This alliance formed in the 18th century provided the ideological impetus to Saudi expansion and remains the basis of Saudi Arabian dynastic rule today.[31] The first "Saudi state" established in 1744 in the area aroundRiyadh rapidly expanded and briefly controlled most of the present-day territory of Saudi Arabia, but was destroyed by 1818 by the Ottomanviceroy of Egypt,Mohammed Ali Pasha.[32]
A much smaller second "Saudi state", located mainly in Nejd, was established in 1824 byTurki bn Abdullah.[33] Throughout the rest of the 19th century, the Al Saud contested control of the interior of what was to become Saudi Arabia with another Arabian ruling family, theAl Rashid. By 1891, the Al Rashid were victorious and the Al Saud were driven into exile inKuwait.[34]
At the beginning of the 20th century, theOttoman Empire continued to control or have suzerainty over most of the peninsula. Subject to this suzerainty, Arabia was ruled by a patchwork of tribal rulers,[35][36] with theSharif of Mecca having pre-eminence and ruling theHejaz.[37]
In 1902,Abdul Rahman's son, AbdulAziz—later to be known to the west asIbn Saud—recaptured control of Riyadh, bringing the Al Saud back to Najd.[34] Ibn Saud gained the support of theIkhwan, a tribal army inspired by Wahhabism, and which had grown quickly after its foundation in 1912.[38] With the aid of the Ikhwan, Ibn Saud capturedal-Ahsa from the Ottomans in 1913.
In 1916, with the encouragement and support of Britain (which was fighting the Ottomans inWorld War I), the Sharif of Mecca,Hussein bin Ali, led apan-Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire to create a united Arab state.[39] Although this revolt failed in its objective,the Allied victory in World War I resulted in the end of Ottoman suzerainty and control in Arabia.[40]
Ibn Saud avoided involvement in the Arab Revolt and instead continued his struggle with the Al Rashid. Following the latter's final defeat, he took the titleSultan of Najd in 1921. With the help of the Ikhwan, the Hejaz was conquered in 1924–25 and on 10 January 1926, Ibn Saud declared himself King of theHejaz.[41] A year later, he added the title of King of Nejd. For the next five years, he administered the two parts of his dual kingdom as separate units.[34]
After the conquest of the Hejaz, the Ikhwan leadership turned to expansion of the Wahhabist realm into the British protectorates ofTransjordan, Iraq and Kuwait, and began raiding those territories. This met with Ibn Saud's opposition, as he recognized the danger of a direct conflict with the British. At the same time, the Ikhwan became disenchanted with Ibn Saud's domestic policies, which appeared to favor modernization and the increase in the number of non-Muslim foreigners in the country. As a result, they turned against Ibn Saud and, after a two-year struggle, were defeated in 1930 at theBattle of Sabilla, where their leaders were massacred.[42] In 1932 the two kingdoms of the Hejaz and Nejd were united as the modern-dayKingdom of Saudi Arabia.[34]
Medieval Muslim geographers spent a great amount of time debating the exact boundaries between Hejaz and Najd in particular, but generally set the western boundaries of Najd to be wherever the western mountain ranges andlava beds began to slope eastwards, and set the eastern boundaries of Najd at the narrow strip of red sand dunes known as theAd-Dahna Desert, some 100 km (62 mi) east of modern-dayRiyadh. The southern border of Najd has always been set at the large sea of sanddunes known today asRub' al Khali (the Empty Quarter), while the southwestern boundaries are marked by the valleys of Wadi Ranyah, Wadi Bisha, and Wadi Tathlith.
The northern boundaries of Najd have fluctuated greatly over time and received far less attention from the medieval geographers. In the early Islamic centuries, Najd was considered to extend as far north as the RiverEuphrates, or more specifically, the "Walls ofKhosrau", constructed by theSassanid Empire as a barrier between Arabia andIraq immediately prior to the advent of Islam. The modern usage of the term encompasses the region ofAl-Yamama, which was not always considered part of Najd historically, and became incorporated into the larger definition of Najd in the past centuries.
Lake at the 120 km longWadi Hanifa valley that cuts through Riyadh
Najd is aplateau ranging from 762 to 1,525 m (2,500 to 5,003 ft) in height and sloping downwards from west to east. The eastern sections (historically better known as Al-Yamama) are marked by oasis settlements with much farming and trading activities, while the rest has traditionally been sparsely occupied bynomadic Bedouins. The main topographical features include the twin mountains of Aja andSalma in the north near Ha'il, the high land of Jabal Shammar and theTuwaiq mountain range running through its center from north to south. Also important are the various dry river-beds (wadis) such asWadi Hanifa near Riyadh, Wadi Na'am in the south, Wadi Al-Rumah in theAl-Qassim Province in the north, andWadi ad-Dawasir at the southernmost tip of Najd on the border with Najran. Most Najdi villages and settlements are located along these wadis, due to ability of these wadis to preserve precious rainwater in the arid desert climate, while others are located nearoases.
TheAn Nafud desert in the outskirts of Riyadh with the JabalTuwaiq in the background
Historically, Najd itself has been divided into small provinces made up of constellations of small towns, villages and settlements, with each one usually centered on one "capital". These subdivisions are still recognized by Najdis today, as each province retains its own variation of the Najdi dialect and Najdi customs. The most prominent among these provinces are Al-'Aridh, which includes Riyadh and the historical Saudi capital ofDiriyah; Al-Qassim, with its capital inBuraidah;Sudair, centered onAl Majma'ah; Al-Washm, centered onShaqra; andJebel Shammar, with its capital, Ha'il. Under modern-daySaudi Arabia, however, Najd is divided into three administrative regions:Ha'il, Al-Qassim, andRiyadh, comprising a combined area of 554,000 km2 (214,000 sq mi).
The architecture of Najd is a typevernacular architecture.[43][44][45][46] The style flourished roughly between 13th and 18th centuries and is known for its desert adaptive urban patterns with low-contour earth-structuredmudbrick buildings[47][48][49][50] that are characterized by elements such as triangular or rectangular openings (furjat) andbattlements (shurfat) as well as peepholes projecting outward from the mainfaçade (tarma).[51] The presence of a centralcourtyard and open spaces also forms a distinct part of the architectural style.[52][53] The influence of Najdi style can be felt in neighboring regions, such asKuwait and inlandQatar.[54]
Unlike theHejaz andTihamah, Najd is remote and stayed outside of the realm of important Islamic empires such as theAbbasids and theOttoman Empire. This historical separation largely shaped its current dissimilarity to Hejaz.[55]
The region is traditionally known as aHanbali stronghold, and after the 18th century became known for its strict interpretation of Islam and is generally considered a bastion of religious conservatism. The founder of the interpretation ofSalafism,Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, was born in'Uyayna, a village in the Najd.[56]
The majority of people in the region consider themselves as Salafi Muslims. The name derives from advocating a return to the traditions of the "ancestors" (salaf), the first three generations of Muslims said to know the "purest" form of Islam. Those generations include the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his companions (the Sahabah), their successors (the Tabi‘un), and the successors of the successors (the Taba al-Tabi‘in). Practically, Salafis maintain that Muslims ought to rely on the Qur'an, the Sunnah and the 'Ijma (consensus) of the salaf, giving them precedence over later Islamic hermeneutic teachings.[57]
According to two narrations inSahih Bukhari,Prophet Muhammad asksAllah to bless the areas ofBilad al-Sham (Syria) andYemen. When his companions said "Our Najd as well," he replied:There will appear earthquakes and afflictions, and from there will come out the side of the head (i.e. horns) ofSatan.[58][59] In a similar narration, Muhammad again asked Allah to bless the areasMedina,Mecca, Sham, and Yemen and, when asked specifically to bless Najd, repeated similar comments about there being earthquakes, trials, tribulations, and the horns of Satan.[60][61]
"O Allaah bestow your blessings on our Shaam. O Allaah bestow your blessings on our Yemen." The people said, "O Messenger of Allaah, and our Najd." I think the third time the Prophet, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, said, "There (in Najd) will occur earthquakes, trials and tribulations, and from there appears the Horn of Satan."
The people of Najd have spokenArabic, in one form or another, for practically all of recorded history. As in other regions of the peninsula, there is a divergence between the dialect of the nomadic Bedouins and the dialect of the sedentary townspeople. The variation, however, is far less pronounced in Najd than it is elsewhere in the country, and the Najdi sedentary dialect may be either a descended from theBedouin dialect, or due to similar conditions of isolation from foreign influence, they share similar isolated features being related dialects. TheNajdi dialect is seen by some to be the least foreign-influenced of all modern Arabic dialects, due to the isolated location and harsh climate of the Najdi plateau, as well as the apparent absence of any substratum from a previous language. Indeed, not even the ancientSouth Arabian language appears to have been widely spoken in Najd in ancient times, unlike southern Saudi Arabia, for example.
Within Najd itself, the different regions and towns have their own distinctive accents and sub-dialects. However, these have largely merged in recent times and have become heavily influenced byArabic dialects from other regions and countries. This is particularly the case in Riyadh.
^The Encyclopaedia of Islam. New Edition. Vol. 1, p. 110. Peter Hellyer, Ibrahim Al-Abed, Ibrahim Al Abed, "The United Arab Emirates, A New Perspective", London: Trident Press, 2001, pp. 81–84;ISBN1-900724-47-2.
^abA. I. Akram (1970),The Sword of Allah: Khalid bin al-Waleed, His Life and Campaigns, Rawalpindi: National Publishing. House;ISBN0-7101-0104-X.
^Al-Tabari 915, pp. 501–502 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFAl-Tabari915 (help)
^Al-Tabari 915, p. 496 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFAl-Tabari915 (help)
^Al-Tabari 915, p. 502 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFAl-Tabari915 (help)
^Riedel, Bruce (2011)."Brezhnev in the Hejaz"(PDF).The National Interest.115. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on November 15, 2013. RetrievedApril 23, 2012.
^Bin Ali Mohamed (2015).The Roots of Religious Extremism: Understanding the Salafi Doctrine of Al-wala‘ Wal Bara‘. Bara World Scientific.ISBN9781783263943. p. 61.
^"O Allah bestow your blessings on our Medina, and bestow your blessings on ourMecca, and bestow your blessings on our Sham, and bestow your blessings on our Yemen, and bestow your blessings in our measuring (fee saa`inaa wa muddinaa)." A person said, "O Messenger of Allah and in our Najd" and so he turned away from him and said, "there will occur earthquakes, trials and tribulations and there will appear the horn of Satan." FromShu'ayb al-Arna'ut: Sharh as-Sunnah' (14/206-207 fn. 2)
^O Allah bestow your blessings on our Medina, O Allah bestow your blessings in our measuring, O Allah bestow your blessings in our Sham and our Yemen." A person said, "And Najd O Messenger of Allah?" He said, "from there arises the horn of Satan and the trials and tribulations would come like mounting waves." From al-Awsat by at-Tabaraanee from Hadith ofIbn Umar and authenticated byAli ibn Abu Bakr al-Haythami inMujma az-Zawaa`id (3/305)
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