| House of Al Saud آل سعود | |
|---|---|
| Royal house | |
 | |
| Parent family | Al-Muqrin of house of Al-Muraydi of the Diriyah (1446) of Banu Hanifa of Banu Bakr bin Wa'il |
| Country | Saudi Arabia (current) Historical: |
| Founded | 1720 |
| Founder | Saud I (died 1725) |
| Current head | Salman bin Abdulaziz |
| Titles |
|
| Traditions | Sunni Islam; Formerly Wahhabism (followers of Mohammed ibn Abdulwahhab)[1] |
The House of Al Saud (Arabic: آل سُعُود, romanized: ʾĀl Suʿūd IPA: [ʔaːl sʊʕuːd]) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is composed of the descendants of Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the Emirate of Diriyah, known as the First Saudi State (1727–1818), and his brothers, though the ruling faction of the family is primarily led by the descendants of Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman, the modern founder of Saudi Arabia.[2] It forms a subtribe of the larger prominent ancient Banu Hanifa tribe of Arabia,[3] from which well known 7th century Arabian theologist Maslama ibn Ḥabīb originates.[4] The most influential position of the royal family is the King of Saudi Arabia, an absolute monarch. The family in total is estimated to comprise 15,000 members; however, the majority of power, influence and wealth is possessed by a group of about 2,000 of them.[5][6] Some estimates of the royal family's wealth measure their net worth at $1.4 trillion.[7] This figure includes the market capitalization of Saudi Aramco, the state oil and gas company, and its vast assets in fossil fuel reserves, making them the wealthiest family in the world and the wealthiest in recorded history.
The House of Saud has had four phases: the Sheikhdom of Diriyah (1446–1744); the Emirate of Diriyah (1727–1818), marked by the expansion of Salafism; the Emirate of Nejd (1824–1891), marked with continuous infighting; and the current state (1902–present), which evolved into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932 and now wields considerable influence in the Middle East. The family has had conflicts with the Ottoman Empire, the Sharif of Mecca, the Al Rashid family of Ha'il and their vassal houses in Najd along with numerous Islamist groups both inside and outside Saudi Arabia and Shia minority in Saudi Arabia.
The succession to the Saudi Arabian throne was designed to pass from one son of the first king, Abdulaziz, to another. The monarchy was hereditary by agnatic seniority until 2006, when a royal decree provided that future Saudi kings are to be elected by a committee of Saudi princes.[8] King Salman, who reigns currently, first replaced the next crown prince, his brother Muqrin, with his nephew Muhammad bin Nayef. In 2017, Muhammad bin Nayef was replaced by Mohammed bin Salman, King Salman's son, as the crown prince after an approval by the Allegiance Council with 31 out of 34 votes. The king-appointed cabinet includes more members of the royal family.
- ^ "The Saudi "Founding Day" and the Death of Wahhabism". The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. AGSIW. 23 February 2022. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
- ^ "The House of Al Saud – A View of the Modern Saudi Dynasty". Frontline. PBS. 18 September 2015. Archived from the original on 5 February 2020. Retrieved 31 August 2017.
- ^ Al-Rasheed, Madawi (2021). The son king : reform and repression in Saudi Arabia. New York, NY. ISBN 978-0-19-755814-0. OCLC 1192311816.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Fattah, Hala Mundhir (2009). A brief history of Iraq. Frank Caso. New York: Facts On File. ISBN 978-0-8160-5767-2. OCLC 212023483.
- ^ "HRH Princess Basma bint Saud bin Abdulaziz Al Saud". Hardtalk. BBC. 28 July 2011. Archived from the original on 17 October 2019. Retrieved 7 April 2013.
- ^ Milmo Cahal (3 January 2012). "The Acton princess leading the fight for Saudi freedom". The Independent. Archived from the original on 22 April 2013. Retrieved 3 January 2012.
- ^ "Saudi royal family's $2 trillion wealth and lavish spending".
- ^ Dewey Caitlin; Max Fisher (22 July 2013). "Meet the world's other 25 royal families". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 4 July 2015. Retrieved 5 May 2020.