| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 150,000-500,000[1] or 800,000[2] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Turkey,Lebanon,Germany,Sweden,Denmark,The Netherlands,Belgium | |
| Languages | |
| North Mesopotamian Arabic | |
| Religion | |
| PredominantlySunni Islam | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Assyrians,Kurds,Arabs |
TheMhallami people, also known asMardelli or alternatively spelled asMahallami (Arabic:المُحَلَّمِيَّة,romanized: Al-Muḥallamiyya) are anArab group traditionally living in and around the city ofMardin,Turkey.[3]
Although scholars sometimes debate the precise origins of the Mhallami, they are generally regarded as Arabs, and the majority typically identified asArabs.[4]
They areSunni Muslims with a smallSyriac Christian minority. They speak Mhallami, a distinct dialect ofNorth Mesopotamian Arabic with heavyTurkish,Kurdish, andAramaic influence.[5][6]
Determining the exact number of Mhallami today is difficult for a number of reasons, but sources generally state numbers as low as 150,000 and as high being around 1 million. Due to migration since 1920 they have a large presence inLebanon, but as a result of theLebanese Civil War, large numbers fled to Europe, particularlyGermany, where they now form the largest community in the diaspora. Mhallami generally have a poor reputation due to their affiliation with low education, criminal activities,[7] and clan structure; however, a number are also affiliated with positions of law and politics, and are regarded as having been mild-mannered.[8]
The nameMhallami is believed to derive from Muhallem, who is recorded in Arab genealogical traditions (ansab) as one of the descendants of Nizar.[5]
The termMhallami is believed to be a combination of the Arabic wordsmahalam (Arabic:محلم,lit. 'house') andmia (Arabic:مائة,lit. '100'). The name traces its origins to theHasankeyf Chronicle, which details the region that the Mhallami lived in as Mardin-Midyat. Differing pronunciations in the word exist sincemahalam doesn't have any unique vowels, and most Mhallami aren't opposed to them.[9] Alternatively, the termMardelli is used in reference to the city of Mardin, where many Mhallami originate from.[10]
Another theory proposes that the term Mhallami is derived fromBeth Ahlam (Syriac:ܒܝܬ ܡܚܠܡ,romanized: Beth Mḥallam), a historical settlement inTur'Abdin, which is believed to have been named after the ancientAhlamu-Aramean tribe from whom the Mhallami are thought to possibly descend.[11]
The main sources on the lineage and migration of the Arabs are the genealogical records known asansab (pedigrees). In studies about the Mhallami, the genealogical tradition points to a connection with Rabia ibn Nizar. Nizar, considered among the Adnanites, is described as the ancestor of two major tribal branches: Rabia and Mudar. Each of these branches included a number of important tribes.[5]
Others state that the origin of the Mhallami in Anatolia are believed to be in the early periods of theMiddle Ages, and they lived a nomadic lifestyle. However, research on their origins is difficult[12] since there are no known written records by their ancestors of this period. Among the Mhallami there is a view that they are descended fromBanu Hilal tribes, but historical sources and research indicate that this is somewhat unlikely. Arab ancestry is more probably fromRabi'ah tribes, possiblyBanu Shayban, though this does not preclude other possible roots. Today, many Mhallami retain Arabic names and use them to refer to themselves or their families/clans, and speak a unique dialect ofNorth Mesopotamian Arabic (Qeltu) which is distinct from other dialects.[13]
There also exist theories that the origins of the Mhallami are ethnically Assyrian, given that their roots trace back to the ancient history of the region as well as Tur Abdin.[14] The theory is supported by orientalist Ishaq Armala and by Syriac Orthodox patriarchIgnatius Aphrem I, who indicated that theSyriac Christians who converted to Islam under pressure started calling themselvesMhalmoye at the end of the 17th century.[15] Some sources view the group as ethnically or denominationally Assyrian.[16][17] The causes of the Islamization of the Mhallami are cited as salvation from persecution, inner divisions of theSyriac-rite churches, and conflict preceding theTreaty of Nasuh Pasha.[18] Some Mhallami who still live in Turkey have identified with Assyrian roots,[19] and to this day, the group shares traditions and cultural elements withAssyrians in Turkey such as the dance of Kathfothe (Syriac:ܪܩܕܐ ܕܐ ܟܬܦܬܐ).[20][21]
The Mhallami are also sometimes associated with ethnicKurds, and theories have persisted that they may be of Kurdish origin, stating that after the original migration of the Arab tribes to Mesopotamia, the Mhallami adopted several Kurdish traditions.[12] While most Mhallami identified as Arabs, a large part of the group identified as Kurds. As the dispute was widespread, there was no Mhallami tribe which fully identified with either the Arabs or Kurds; evennuclear families had heavy disputes amongst each other over ethnic origin.[22]
Many Mhallami are originally from the Mardin area of southeastern Turkey, namely the district ofMidyat.[23] Although many had since migrated outside ofMesopotamia, there were still a community of Mardelli living in the Tur Abdin region as of the late 90's, with some reported to have performed maintenance of theMor Gabriel Monastery.[24] Today, many of these Mhallami still inhabitAssyrian villages in southeastern Turkey such asGercüş andİçören.
The first migration of the Mhallami was toLebanon in the 1920s to flee persecution under the government ofMustafa Kemal Atatürk. By the 1940s, tens of thousands more came to Lebanon, but they were not naturalized as citizens and as a result, their clan structures grew tighter to ensure their survival.[25][26][27] The Mhallami had traditionally settled in large numbers in Lebanese regions such asTripoli, theBeqaa Valley andBeirut, having a population between 70,000 and 100,000 Mhallami prior toLebanese Civil War.[1] Typically, they would find settlement in the parts of Beirut that were poorer than others, and they often received little to no education.
The Mhallami were among the civil war refugees from Lebanon who came to Germany and other European countries such as the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden since 1976[1] and have since been partially tolerated or live as asylum seekers.[28][29] Their origin and legal status became a particular concern when they started to seek asylum inWestern European countriesen masse in the early 1980s, since many were consideredstateless peoples and some had even discarded their previous documentation.
In 2015, the founding chairman of the first Mhallami association in Turkey,Mehmet Ali Aslan, became the first Mhallami to be elected a member of theTurkish Parliament from theHDP party.[30] The group has also become more active in preserving culture and uniting their community, with 1st International Mhallami Symposium being held in 2008 to discuss their origins and bring the community together.[31]
As of 2014, the leader of the Mhallami in Turkey was lawyer Şeyhmus Miroğlu, whose family was politically active in the leadingJustice and Development Party ofRecep Tayyip Erdoğan.[32][33] Miroğlu's brother,Orhan Miroğlu, is also active in Turkish politics.
With around 8,000 people,Berlin has the largest Mhallami diaspora community in Europe (as of June 2003).[34]Essen also has a sizable population of Mhallami, with the majority of the "Lebanese" community there being of Mardelli origin.[35]
Certain families of Mhallami have been known to engage in criminal activities following their move to the diaspora, owing to their tightly knitted clan structure and their larger inability to integrate with their new society.[36][37][38] InSweden, some families in places such asGothenburg andJönköping are part of these activities,[39] while in Germany, theMiri-Clan and theRemmo family have also been involved with the criminal scene of Europe.[40][41][22] Often times, the level of crime is due to familial conflicts, which originates from their tribal structures.[25] These groups also exist in theNetherlands.
Ahlamilerin ya da Bit-Ahlam, yani Beth-Mahlam veya Beth Mhalam denilen Kuzey Aramilerin yasadigi yerle birdir. Süryanice ta- rih kaynaklannda sik sik Mihalmi adina "Beth Mahlam" (M-ahlam yeri) olarak M.S. 7. yüzyilin baslarinda gecmektedir.
A small community of Muslim Assyrians, the Mhallami, lives in southern Turkey. All speak variations of Eastern Neo-Aramaic, a Semitic language related to Arabic and Hebrew, traditionally written with distinct scripts.
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