Banu Hashim

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Banū Hāshim (Arabic: بنو هاشم) was a clan in the Quraish tribe. Islam's founder, Muhammad(saw), was a member of this clan; his great-grandfather was Hashim, for whom the clan is named. Members of this clan are referred to in English and the Anglicised version of their name as Hashemites, or carry the family name Hashmi or Hashemi. Banu Hashim includes Banu Abbas of the Abbasid dynasty.

1 History
2 List
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] History

Banu Hashim was one of the clans of Banu Abd al-Manaf (one of the most noble and respected tribes of the Quraish). Other branches of the Abdal-Manaf tribe were the Banu Muttalib and the tribe of Banu Abd Shams. Abu Talib, Muhammad's uncle was head of the Hashim clan. The Banu Hashim were one of the most important clans in the Quraish tribe at the time of Muhammad's birth. Its importance came from its role as the keepers of the Kaaba.

During Muhammad's early life, his uncle, Abu Talib was head of the clan, and he subsequently faced heavy pressure from the rest of the Quraish tribe to keep his nephew in check. Despite this, Abu Talib never stopped supporting Muhammad. Abu Talib's son Ali was the first child Muslim and husband of Muhammad's daughter, Fatima Zahra.

Abu Talib and his brothers were in charge of feeding and watering the pilgrims who came to Mecca every year to venerate the Kaaba, believed by Muslims to have been built by Abraham (known in Arabic as Ibrahim). At that time, the idols of the many tribes were placed in the Kaaba, numbering over 300.

In 617-619, the Meccan boycott of Hashemites and Muhammad was in effect.

The Banu Hashim accompanied the Meccan army when they moved to intercept the Muslim army, but they left the Meccan army and returned to Mecca before the Battle of Badr started.

When Muhammad took control of Mecca he removed all of the idols from the Kaaba and destroyed them.

The city of Mecca had special importance well before the advent of Islam. The Kaaba is located there. It was built by Ibrahim and his son Ismael, according to Islamic belief. The Kaaba contained objects of worship that were sacred to the Meccans and Bedouins. Worshiping idols was the prominent religion in the Arabian Peninsula before the birth of Islam.

From the 10th century onwards the Banu Hashim were the rulers of Mecca. Their rule was ended by Mohammed Ibn Saud in 1924. However members of the group rule in Jordan (hence its formal name, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan).