Qahtan (tribe)

Qahtan
قحطان, القحطاني
Regions with significant populations
Saudi Arabia500,000 Bedouins (1920s)[1] (Not including settled population)
5-6 million people in GCC and Iraq
Languages
southern Najdi dialect[2]
Religion
Sunni Islam (Hanbali)
Related ethnic groups
Al Murrah, Bani Hajer, Yam, Ajman

Qahtān (Arabic: قحطان, also spelled as القحطاني) to distinguish between the tribe and the Qahtanite peoples, is an Arab tribal confederation. Qahtan is composed of three main tribes: Sanhan, Junb, and Rufaida. Today, members of the tribe and its sub-tribes are based in Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates.

  1. ^ Bedouin Ethnobotany: Plant Concepts and Uses in a Desert Pastoral World page 50
  2. ^ Bedouin Ethnobotany: Plant Concepts and Uses in a Desert Pastoral World