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This article is about the minority religious group in Syria. For other uses, see Alawites (disambiguation).
Alawis علوية
An Alawi falconer in Baniyas, Syria, during World War II
Total population
about 4 million
Founder
Ibn Nuṣayr
Regions with significant populations
 SyriaAbout 3.5 million[1]
 LebanonAn estimated 100,000[2][3]
 TurkeyAbout 450,000[4]
Lebanon/Golan HeightsAbout 2000 live in Ghajar[5]
 AustraliaAlawites comprise 2% of Lebanese born people in Australia[6]
Religions
Shia Islam
Scriptures
Qur'an, Kitab al Majmu[7]
Languages
Arabic, Turkish

The Alawis, also known as Alawites, Nusayris and Ansaris (‘Alawīyyah Template:Lang-ar, Nuṣayrī Template:Lang-ar, and al-Anṣāriyyah) are a prominent mystical and syncretic[8] religious group centred in Syria

|last=Kramer |first=Martin |quote=In their mountainous corner of Syria, the ‘Alawī claim to represent the furthest extension of Twelver Shi'ism.}}</ref>[9]

Etymology

Zulfiqar, a stylized representation of the sword of Ali, is an important symbol for Alawis

The Alawis take their name from ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib cousin and son-in-law of Muḥammad,[10] who was the first Shi'a Imam and the fourth and last "Rightly Guided Caliph" of Sunni Islam.

Until fairly recently Alawis were referred to as "Nusairis", named after Abu Shu'ayb Muhammad ibn Nusayr (d. ca 270 h, 863 AD) who is reported to have attended the circles of the last three Imams of the prophet Muhammad's line. This name is considered derogatory, and Alawis refer to themselves as Alawis.[page needed][11] Nusairis have allegedly "generally preferred" to be called 'Alawis, because of its association with 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, rather than Abu Shu'ayb Muhammad Ibn Nusayr.[12] In September 1920, French occupational forces instituted the policy of referring to them by the term "'Alawi".

In older sources they are often referred to as Ansaris, as this is how they referred to themselves, according to the Reverend Samuel Lyde, who lived among Alawis in the mid-19th century. Another source states that "Ansari", as referring to Alawites, is simply a Western mistransliteration of Nosairi.[page needed][13][14]

Alawis are distinct from the Turkish-based Alevi religious sect, although the terms share similar etymologies.

History

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The origin of the Alawis is disputed. The Alawis themselves trace their origins to the followers of the eleventh Imām, Hassan al-'Askarī (d. 873), and his pupil ibn Nuṣayr (d. 868). [15]

The sect seems to have been organised by a follower of Muḥammad ibn Nuṣayr known as al-Khasibi, who died in Aleppo about 969. In 1032 Al-Khaṣībī's grandson and pupil al-Tabarani moved to Latakia, which was then controlled by the Byzantine Empire. Al-Tabarani became the perfector of the Alawi faith through his numerous writings. He and his pupils converted the rural population of the Syrian Coastal Mountain Range and the plain of Cilicia to the Alawi faith.[16] Samuel Lyde believed the population was of ancient Canaanite origins, but that parts had come from where the sect originated.[page needed][17] Professor Felix von Luschan (1911), according to his conclusions from anthropometric measurements, makes the Druze, Maronites, and Alawites, together with the Armenians, Bektashis, ‘Ali-Ilahis, and Yezidis of Asia Minor and Persia, the modern representatives of the ancient Hittites.[18]

Under the Ottoman Empire they were ill treated,[19] and they resisted an attempt to convert them to Sunni Islam.[20] They revolted against the Ottomans on several occasions, and maintained virtual autonomy in their mountains.[21] T. E. Lawrence wrote of their isolationism: "The sect, vital in itself, was clannish in feeling and politics. One Nosairi would not betray another, and would hardly not betray an unbeliever."[22]

Flag of the Alawi State

After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, Syria and Lebanon came under a French mandate. The French, when they occupied Syria in 1920, recognized the term "Alawi", gave autonomy to them and other minority groups, and accepted them into their colonial troops.[23] Under the mandate, many Alawi chieftains supported the notion of a separate Alawi nation and tried to convert their autonomy into independence. A territory of "Alaouites" was created in 1925. In May 1930, the Government of Latakia was created; it lasted until February 28, 1937, when it was incorporated into Syria.[24]

In 1939 a portion of northwest Syria, the Sanjak of Alexandretta, now Hatay, that contained a large number of Alawis, was given to Turkey by the French following a plebiscite carried out in the province under the guidance of League of Nations which favored joining Turkey. However, this development greatly angered the Alawi community and Syrians in general. In 1938, the Turkish military had gone into Alexandretta and expelled most of its Arab and Armenian inhabitants[neutrality is disputed].[25] Before this, Alawi Arabs and Armenians were the majority of the province's population [neutrality is disputed][25] Zaki al-Arsuzi, the young Alawi leader from Iskandarun province in the Sanjak of Alexandretta, who led the resistance to the annexation of his province to the Turks, later became a founder of the Ba'ath Party along with the Eastern Orthodox Christian schoolteacher Michel Aflaq. After World War II, Salman Al Murshid played a major role in uniting the Alawi province with Syria. He was executed by the newly independent Syrian government in Damascus on December 12, 1946 only three days after a hasty political trial.

Syria became independent on April 17, 1946. Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Syria endured a succession of military coups in 1949, the rise of the Ba'ath Party, and unification of the country with Egypt in the United Arab Republic in 1958. The UAR lasted for three years and broke apart in 1961, when a group of army officers seized power and declared Syria independent again. A further succession of coups ensued until a secretive military committee, which included a number of disgruntled Alawi officers, including Hafez al-Assad and Salah Jadid, helped the Ba'ath Party take power in 1963. In 1966, Alawi-oriented military officers successfully rebelled and expelled the old Ba'ath that had looked to the Christian Michel Aflaq and the Sunni Muslim Salah al-Din al-Bitar for leadership. They promoted Zaki al-Arsuzi as the "Socrates" of their reconstituted Ba'ath Party.

The Assad family

In 1970, then-Air Force General Hafez al-Assad, an Alawite, took power and instigated a "Correctionist Movement" in the Ba'ath Party.[26] His coming to power has been compared to "an untouchable becoming maharajah in India or a Jew becoming tsar in Russia—an unprecedented development shocking to the majority population which had monopolized power for so many centuries."[23]

In 1971 al-Assad became president of Syria, a function that the Constitution allows only a Sunni Muslim to hold. In 1973 a new constitution was published that omitted the old requirement that the religion of the state is Islam and replaced it with the statement that the religion of the republic's president is Islam. Protests erupted when the statement was altered,[27] and to satisfy this requirement in 1974, Musa Sadr, a leader of the Twelvers of Lebanon and founder of the Amal Movement who had earlier sought to unite Lebanese Alawis and Shias under the Supreme Islamic Shiite Council without success,[3] issued a fatwa stating that Alawis were a community of Twelver Shia Muslims.[28][29] Under the dictatorial but secular Assad regime, religious minorities were tolerated, political dissent was not.

After the death of Hafez al-Assad in 2000, his son Bashar al-Assad maintained the outlines of his father's regime.[citation needed] Although the Alawis predominate among the top military and intelligence offices, the civilian government and national economy is largely led by Sunnis, who represent about 74% of Syria's population. The Assad regime is careful to allow all of the religious sects a share of power and influence in the government. Today the Alawis exist as a minority but politically powerful sect in Syria.

Beliefs

Alawis are self-described Shi'i Muslims, and have been called Shia by other sources[30][9] including the highly influential Lebanese Shia cleric Musa al-Sadr of Lebanon.[28] On the other hand, Sunni Muslims do not recognize Alawi as Muslims.[19] At least one source has compared them to Baha'is, Babis, Bektashis, Ahmadis, and "similar groups that have arisen within the Muslim community", and declared that "it has always been the consensus of the Muslim Ulama, both Sunni and Shi'i, that the Nusayri Alawi are kuffar (unbelievers) and mushrikun (polytheists)."[12] On the other hand, the prominent Sunni Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Mohammad Amin al-Husayni, issued a fatwah recognizing them as part of the Muslim community.[31]

The Alawite sect initially resisted encouragement to be categorized as Shi'ite Muslims.[32] Alawites have had a mixed view of themselves propagated. Ali Sulayman al-Ahmad, chief judge of the Alawite state, replied “We are Alawi Muslims. Our book is the Quran. Our prophet is Muhammad. The Ka`ba is our qibla, and our religion is Islam.”[33]

Heterodox

Alawis celebrating a festival in Banyas, Syria, during World War II

Many of the tenets of the faith are secret and known only to a select few Alawi.[19] In the 19th century, however, an Alawite named Sulaiman al-Adni converted to Christianity and in 1863, compiled a book called Al-Bakurah as-Suliamaniya fi Kashf Asrar ad-Diyanah an-Nusairiyah (The First Fruits of Sulaiman in Revealing the Secrets of the Nusairi Religion). Orientalists like Louis Massignon gained access to a number of Nusairi manuscripts.[12]

According to some sources, Alawis have integrated doctrines from other religions (Syncretism), in particular from Ismaili Islam and Christianity.[8][19][29] According to scholar Cyril Glasse, it is thought that "as a small, historically beleaguered ethnic group", the Alawi "absorbed elements" from the different religions that influenced their area from Hellenistic times onward,[29] while maintaining their own beliefs, and "pretended to adhere to the dominant religion of the age."[29] Alawites are reported to celebrate certain Christian festivals, "in their own way",[29] including Christmas, Easter, and Palm Sunday, and their religious ceremonies make use of bread and wine.[23] According to Matti Moosa, a "leading scholar of the Nusayris",

The Christian elements in the Nusayri religion are unmistakable. They include the concept of trinity; the celebration of Christmas, the consecration of the Qurban, that is, the sacrament of the flesh and blood which Christ offered to his disciples, and, most important, the celebration of the Quddas (a lengthy prayer proclaiming the divine attributes of Ali and the personification of all the biblical patriarchs from Adam to Simon Peter, founder of the Church, who is seen, paradoxically, as the embodiment of true Islam).[34]

Glasse writes that they also practice a religious feast called by the Persian name Naw Ruz.

Alawi man in Latakia, early 20th century

Alawis have much in common with the Ismailis in terms of overall beliefs, and they are sometimes regarded as "an offshoot of this group."[12] According to scholar Umar F. Abd-Allah, who uses Sulaiman al-Adni's book along with other sources, the Alawis, like the Ismailis and related groups, believe that the Shariah has both an esoteric, allegorical (Batini) meaning and an exoteric, literal (zahiri) meaning and that only the hidden meaning is intended. Alawis believe the esoteric meaning is known only to the Imams and later to the Bab and was hidden even to the Islamic prophet Muhammad himself. Only the Bab has access to this esoteric meaning in the absence of the Imam.[12]

Alawis believe in a "trinity"[19] or "schema"[29] of `Ain-Mim-Sin, which stands for `Ali, Muhammad, and Salman al-Farsi, the Persian Companion of Muhammad. Muhammad is known as ism, or "name", Ali as bab, or "door", and Salman al-Farsi as ma'na, or "meaning", with both Muhammad and Ali considered to be emanations of Salman al-Farsi.[29] According to Abd-Allah, each of these three is said to have been an incarnation of God. Ali, however, constitutes the most important part of this trinity. The Alawi testimony of faith is: `I have borne witness that there is no God but He, the most High, the object of worship and that there is no concealing veil (hijab) except the lord Muhammad, the object of praise, (as-Sayyid Muhmmad al-Mahmud), and there is not Bab except the lord Salman al-Farisi` The Nusairis believe in the subsequent incarnation of God in other persons after the passing of `Ali, Muhammad, and Salman al-Farisi...[12]

Some sources have suggested that the non-Muslim nature of many of the historical Alawi beliefs notwithstanding, Alawi beliefs may have changed in recent decades. In the early 1970s a booklet entitled al-`Alawiyyun Shi'atu Ahl al-Bait (The Alawis are Followers of the Household of the Prophet), was issued in which doctrines of the Imami Shi'ah were described as 'Alawi, and which was "signed by of numerous `Alawi` men of religion".[12] This book and Musa Sadr's proclamation have led one scholar to wonder whether "a mass conversion from Nusairism to Shi'ah Islam" has taken place.[12] Another scholar suggests that factors such as the high profile of Alawi in Syria, the strong aversion of the Muslim majority to apostasy, and the relative lack of importance of religious doctrine to Alawi identity may have induced Syrian leader Hafez al-Assad and his successor son to press their fellow Alawi "to behave like 'regular Muslims', shedding or at least concealing their distinctive aspects."[35]

Alawis have their own scholars, referred to as shaikhs, although more recently there has been a movement to bring Alawism and the other branches of Twelver Islam together through educational exchange programs in Syria and Qumm.[36] Distinct Alawi beliefs include the belief that prayers are not necessary, they don't fast, nor perform pilgrimage, nor have specific places of worship.[37]

Population

Syria

Alawi women in Syria, early 20th century

Traditionally Alawis have lived in the Alawite Mountains along the Mediterranean coast of Syria. Latakia and Tartous are the region's principal cities. Today Alawis are also concentrated in the plains around Hama and Homs. Alawis also live in all major cities of Syria. They have been estimated to constitute about 15% of Syria's population (which would be in 2011 about 3.5 million people of about 23.1 million people in Syria).

There are four Alawi confederations — Kalbiyah, Khaiyatin, Haddadin, and Matawirah — each divided into tribes.[19] Alawis are concentrated in the Latakia region of Syria, extending north to Antioch (Antakya), Turkey, and in and around Homs and Hama.[38]

Before 1953 they held reserved seats in the Syrian Parliament, like all other religious communities. After that, including for the 1960 census, there were only general Muslim and Christian categories, without mention of subgroups in order to reduce "communalism" (taïfiyya).

Lebanon

There are an estimated 40.000 to 100,000[3][39] Alawis in Lebanon, where they are recognized as one of the 18 official Lebanese sects. Due to the efforts of their leader Ali Eid, the Taif Agreement of 1989 gave them two reserved seats in the Parliament. Lebanese Alawis live mostly in the Jabal Mohsen neighbourhood of Tripoli and Akkar, in 15 villages,[40][41][42] and are mainly represented by the Arab Democratic Party.

Turkey

In order to avoid confusion with Alevis, they prefer the self-appellation Arap Alevileri ("Arab Alevis") in Turkish. The term Nusayrī, which used to exist in (often polemical) theological texts is also revived in recent studies. In Çukurova, they are named as Fellah and Arabuşağı, the latter considered highly offensive by Alawis, by the Sunni population. A quasi-official name used particularly in 1930s by Turkish authorities was Eti Türkleri ("Hittite Turks"), in order to conceal their Arab origins. Today, this term is almost obsolete but it is still used by some people of older generations as a euphemism.

The exact number of ‘Alawī in Turkey is unknown, but there were 185 000 Alawis in 1970[43] (this number suggest ca 400 000 in 2009). As Muslims, they are not recorded separately from Sunnis in ID registration. In the 1965 census (the last Turkish census where informants were asked their mother tongue), 180,000 people in the three provinces declared their mother tongue as Arabic. However, Arabic-speaking Sunni and Christian people are also included in this figure.

Alawis traditionally speak the same dialect of Levantine Arabic with Syrian Alawis. Arabic is best preserved in rural communities and Samandağ. Younger people in Çukurova cities and (to a lesser extent) in İskenderun tend to speak Turkish. Turkish spoken by ‘Alawī is distinguished by ‘Alawī and non-‘Alawī alike with its particular accents and vocabulary. Knowledge of Arabic alphabet is confined to religious leaders and men who had worked or studied in Arab countries.

‘Alawī show a considerable pattern of social mobility. Until 1960s, they used to work bound to Sunni aghas around Antakya and they were among the poorest folk in Çukurova. Today, ‘Alawī are prominent in economic sectors such as transportation and commerce. A large professional middle-class had also emerged.

In recent years, there has been a tendency of exogamy, particularly among males who had attended universities and/or had lived in other parts of Turkey. These marriages are highly tolerated but exogamy of women, as with other patrilineal groups, is usually disfavoured.

‘Alawī , like Alevis, mainly have strong leftist political preferences. However, some people in rural areas (usually members of notable ‘Alawī families) may be found supporting secularist conservative parties such as True Path Party. Most ‘Alawī s feel discriminated by the policies of Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı.[44][45]

Golan Heights

There are also about 2000 Alawis living in the village of Ghajar, split between Lebanon and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.[46]

See also

References

Notes
  1. ^ http://thegulfblog.com/2011/05/17/map-of-religion-in-the-middle-east/
  2. ^ "Tharwa Project". The Alawis have been present in modern-day Lebanon since the 16th century and are estimated to number 100,000 today, mostly in Akkar and Tripoli. The sect is managed through the Islamic Alawi Union, a council of 600 members that are elected every four years.
  3. ^ a b c Riad Yazbeck. Return of the Pink Panthers?. Mideast Monitor. Vol. 3, No. 2, August 2008
  4. ^ http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90204.htm
  5. ^ N.K. Singh (2009). Global Encyclopedia of Islamic Mystics and Mysticism (Hardcover ed.). Global Vision Publishing House. p. 20. ISBN 8182202272.
  6. ^ Ghassan Hage (2002). Arab-Australians today: citizenship and belonging (Paperback ed.). Melbourne University Publishing. p. 40. ISBN 0522849792.
  7. '^ "Alawi Islam". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved 2008-05-31. Their prayer book, the source of religious instruction, is the Kitāb al-Majmu, believed to be derived from Ismā'īlī writings. Alawis study the Qur'ān and recognize the five pillars of Islam, which they interpret in a wholly allegorical sense to fit community tenets.
  8. ^ a b Lebanon: current issues and background John C. Rolland (2003)
  9. ^ a b Fisk, Robert. "This election will change the world. But not in the way the Americans imagined". The Independent UK. Archived from the original on 2006-05-06. Retrieved 2006-10-21. But outside Iraq, Arab leaders are talking of a Shia "Crescent" that will run from Iran through Iraq to Lebanon via Syria, whose Alawi leadership forms a branch of Shia Islam.
  10. ^ Kaplan, Robert (1993-02). "Syria: Identity Crisis". TheAtlantic.com. The term "'Alawī" means "follower of Ali", the martyred son-in-law of Mohammed who is venerated by millions of Shi'ites in Iran and elsewhere. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  11. ^ http://books.google.dk/books?id=K94wQ9MF2JsC&pg=PA79&lpg=PA79&dq=#v=onepage&q&f=false
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h Abd-Allah, Umar F., Islamic Struggle in Syria, Berkeley : Mizan Press, c1983, p.43-48
  13. ^ http://books.google.dk/books?id=DnDP09R4s_0C&pg=PA97&lpg=PA97&dq=#v=onepage&q&f=false
  14. ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/8684113/Secretive-sect-of-the-rulers-of-Syria.html
  15. ^ "Alawi Islam in the 11th Encyclopædia Britannica". 1911. Among the more plausible explanations is that the name is derived from that of Muhommed ibn Nusair, who was an Isma'ilite follower of the eleventh imam of the Shiites at the end of the 9th century. This view has been accepted by Nosairi writers, but they transfer Ibn Nusair to the 7th century and make him the son of the vizier of Moawiya I.
  16. ^ Shi'ism, by Heinz Halm, pg.157. Books.google.com.au. Retrieved 2010-01-17.
  17. ^ http://books.google.dk/books?id=x-U-AAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=#v=onepage&q&f=false
  18. ^ Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute (London, 1911), page 241.
  19. ^ a b c d e f Alawi Islam globalsecurity.org
  20. ^ Seale, Patrick. Asad Of Syria : The Struggle For The Middle East / Patrick Seale With The Assistance Of Maureen McConville. Seale, Patrick. Berkeley : University of California Press, 1989, c1988.
  21. ^ Mordechai Nisan. Minorities in the Middle East: a history of struggle and self-expression. McFarland, 2002. ISBN 0786413751, 9780786413751
  22. ^ T. E. Lawrence. Seven Pillars of Wisdom. Book 5, Chapter 58
  23. ^ a b c Kaplan, Robert (1993-02). "Syria: Identity Crisis". TheAtlantic.com. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Cite error: The named reference "Kaplan" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  24. ^ Gitta Yaffe-Schatzmann. Alawi Separatists and Unionists: The Events of 25 February 1936. Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. 31, No. 1 (Jan., 1995), pp. 28-38 Published by: Taylor & Francis, Ltd.
  25. ^ a b Jack Kalpakian (2004). Identity, Conflict and Cooperation in International River Systems (Hardcover ed.). Ashgate Publishing. p. 130. ISBN 0754633381.
  26. ^ Kaplan, Robert (1993-02). "Syria: Identity Crisis". TheAtlantic.com. But the coup of 1970, which brought an Alawi air force officer, Hafez al-Assad, to power, was what finally ended the instability that had reigned in Syria since the advent of independence. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  27. ^ Seale, Patrick, Asad, the Struggle for the Middle East, University of California Press, 1989, p.173
  28. ^ a b Kaplan, Robert (1993-02). "Syria: Identity Crisis". TheAtlantic.com. Today, those Muslims called Alawīs are brothers of those Shi'ites called Mutawallis by the malicious. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  29. ^ a b c d e f g The New Encyclopedia of Islam by Cyril Glasse, Altamira, 2001, p.36-7
  30. ^ Cite error: The named reference Kramer was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  31. ^ http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content=a920713227~db=all~jumptype=rss
  32. ^ http://faculty-staff.ou.edu/L/Joshua.M.Landis-1/Islamic%20Education%20in%20Syria.htmhttp://faculty-staff.ou.edu/L/Joshua.M.Landis-1/Islamic%20Education%20in%20Syria.htm
  33. ^ `Abd al‑Latif al‑Yunis, Mudhakkirat al‑Duktur `Abd al‑Latif al‑Yunis, Damascus: Dar al‑`Ilm, 1992, p. 63.
  34. ^ Moosa, Matti. Extremist Shiites: The Ghulat Sects (1988). quoted in "Storm Over Syria", Malise Ruthven. nybooks.com June 9, 2011
  35. ^ Rubin, Barry, The Truth about Syria, Palgrave Macmillan, 2007, p.49
  36. ^ Esther, Pan (18 July 2006). "Syria, Iran, and the Mideast Conflict". Backgrounder. Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  37. ^ The Nuaayri-Alawis (2009) Yaron Friedman
  38. ^ Encyclopædia Britannica. "Encyclopædia Britannica". Britannica.com. Retrieved 2010-01-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  39. ^ TDS (dead link)
  40. ^ http://menassat.com/?q=en%2Fnews-articles%2F5210-tripoli-4
  41. ^ http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/489c1be4c.html
  42. ^ http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4896c47526.html
  43. ^ State and rural society in medieval Islam: sultans, muqtaʻs, and fallahun. Leiden: E.J. Brill. 1997. p. 162. ISBN 90-04-10649-9. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  44. ^ Fellahlar'ın Sosyolojisi, Dr. Cahit Aslan, Adana, 2005
  45. ^ Arap Aleviliği: Nusayrilik, Ömer Uluçay, Adana, 1999
  46. ^ "Getting rid of Ghajar - Haaretz - Israel News". Haaretz. Retrieved 2010-01-17.
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