The Ikhwan Hijras of Najd

The Ikhwan Hijras of Najd are settled agricultural residential units that arose within a housing project for the Bedouin of the Arabian Peninsula in the era of King Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al Saud. [1]

The project came within the march of building the third Saudi state and unifying the country, and one hundred and seventy-two hijras were established under it until the tent-dwellers became settled inhabitants. [3][4]

The first settlement project rested on housing the Bedouin of the Arabian Peninsula in fixed hijras, and many hijras emerged that are counted as settled agricultural residential units. [1] King Abdulaziz persuaded the heads of the Bedouin tribes to come to Riyadh to receive learning in its Grand Mosque, and urged them to abandon the nomadic life for work in agriculture. [1]

The project enabled each large tribe to keep a portion of its members for agricultural work in the hijras, while the other portion remained in the desert to graze livestock. [1] The King gave those Bedouin who settled money, agricultural supplies, grants, and farmland, and persuaded the tribes to sell their camels and turn into an agricultural society instead of a pastoral one. [1]

The role of religious scholars and guides, who encouraged the Bedouin to build the hijras and practise agriculture, helped the settlement succeed. [1] The state established the General Directorate of Agriculture, built dams, dug wells, and laid aflaj to irrigate the farms. [3]

It distributed seeds, fertilisers, and financial support to the farmers of the hijras, enabling them to make use of the available water resources. [3]

Al-Artawiyah is one of the largest hijras; it is inhabited by more than twenty thousand mujahideen, and it is headed by Faisal bin Sultan Al-Duwaish, sheikh of the Mutair tribes. [2] King Abdulaziz sent Sheikh Abdullah bin Hassan Al ash-Sheikh to Al-Artawiyah as a caller and teacher, and he stayed there a year and some months, spreading the true Islamic call among its people and teaching them the duties of Islam. [2]

Al-Mahmal district comprises five hijras, and Thadiq is its largest settlement and the administrative seat of the district. [5]

The hijras of the district were founded in two different periods: some of the old hijras arose at the beginning of the twentieth century, and the modern hijras later in it. [5]

The shortage of water for drinking and agriculture was the most serious problem facing the hijras of Al-Mahmal. [5] Across the hijras in general, the state worked to dig wells and irrigate the farms with aflaj to meet the need for water. [3]

Settlement changed the social structure of the tribes in Najd; after the Bedouin moved to the agricultural villages, effective authority over the tribes no longer rested with their sheikhs but passed to the central government in Riyadh. [1] Religious awareness spread among the settled Bedouin in the hijras. [1]

Q: What are the Ikhwan Hijras of Najd? A: They are settled agricultural residential units established in Najd within the project to settle the Bedouin of the Arabian Peninsula in the era of King Abdulaziz. [1]

Q: How many hijras were established in the era of King Abdulaziz? A: One hundred and seventy-two hijras. [3]

Q: How was a tribe divided between the hijra and the desert? A: A large tribe kept a portion of its members for agriculture in the hijra, while the other portion remained in the desert to graze livestock. [1]

Q: What is the largest hijra of Najd and who heads it? A: Hijrat Al-Artawiyah, which is inhabited by more than twenty thousand mujahideen and headed by Faisal bin Sultan Al-Duwaish, sheikh of the Mutair tribes. [2]

Q: How many hijras are there in Al-Mahmal district and where is its seat? A: Five hijras, and its largest settlement is Thadiq, the administrative seat of the district. [5]