Mutayr

Mutayr (Arabic: مطير‎; also spelled Mutair,Mutir and Mtayr) is one of the largest predominantly Sunni Arab tribes in the Arabian Peninsula, especially Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. The traditional leaders (or "shaykhs") of Mutayr are the Doshan clan (singular "Dewish").

Genealogy

Ahmad al-Qalqashandi who died in 1418 stated that Mutair tribe belongs to Gahtan. John Gordon Lorimer (1870-1914), an official of the Indian Civil Service and other historians of Mutayr noted that the main branches of Mutayr today are Banu Abdullah, Al-'Olwa (also spelled 'Llwah), and Braih.

History

Mutayr's original homelands were the highlands of northern Hejaz near Medina and Najd. At some point in the 17th century, however, the tribe began a large-scale migration eastwards into northern Nejd, displacing many other bedouin tribes in the area, such as Harb and 'Anizzah who were forced to move northwards after. By the 20th century, Mutayr's tribal lands extended from the highlands east of Medina, through the region of Al-Qasim, to the borders of Kuwait. A rivalry developed between Mutayr and Harb, who inhabited roughly the same areas as Mutayr, as well as with 'Utaybah, who had just moved into northern Nejd from Hejaz.