'Gazetteer of Arabia Vol. I' [‎140] (155/1050)

140
AJMAN
To these may be added the A1 Jiblan section of the Mutair, who have separated from
their own tribe and at present form part of the 'Ajman ; and it may be noted that the
Marazlq of the Bhibkuh Di»triert of the Pe'rsian Coast lay claim to 'Ajman descent. In
Arabia the various sections of the tribe are intermingled throughout their whole territory
and have not separate locations.
The estimate of fighting strength, amounting to 10,000 men, appears high ; it indicates
a total tribal strength of about 35,000 souls, but regard being had to the wideness of
the area over which the tribe extend the number is perhaps not excessive. The
'Ajman are said to muster 2,000 mounted men, all of whom are armed with Martini rifles,
lor spears and swords are now hardly to be found in the tribe.
Political position. —The 'Ajman, whom some authorities would connect with the
Qahtan, state that they are descended from Bhurafa of Najran ; but their pretensions
are generally disallowed, or at least ignored, for no special consideration is shown them
in virtue of the origin to which they lay claim. On the other hand, their tribal strength
makes their alliance valuable and their enmity a serious danger; but in politics they are
a shifting and inconstant factor, being, as they themselves have been known openly to
profess, " the friends of those who treat them best."
At the present time the 'Ajman are on good terms with the Bani Khalid, the two
tribes being mutually free of each other's^country ; and they have somewhat similar
relations with the Bani Hajir, who, after providing themselves with Raflqs from the
* Ajman, range as they please in the 'Aj mi districts. With the Ai Morrah, whose camps
intermingle with theirs on the south side of the Hasa Oasis, the 7 Ajman are presently
at feud ; and they were also at enmity with the late Ahmad-bin-Thani, Shaikh of the
Ma'adhid of Qatar, but with Jasim, the senior Shaikh of that tribe, their dealings are
amicable. As a body, theywere formerly well disposed to Ibn Sa'ud, but they are now at
war with him ; and they are friendly as a rule, with the Shaikh of Kuwait.
During the Turkish occupation, the majority of the Bedouin gendarmerie of Al-Hasa-
used to be drawn from the 'AJman tribe. — [Leachman.)
The following account of the 'Ajman brings out some additional facts concerning them.
The 'Ajman, who range south of the Bani Khalid, trace their descent to Qahtan through
Kafura of Najran; but this pedigree is not accepted by Arab genealogists in general.
They are, however, an important Bedawi tribe, which is the strongest nomad unit on
the Gulf Coast, although is claim to turn out 10,000 fighting-men is excessive. It is
singularly at one within itself, its different sub-tribes and clans not having distinct
dirahs, or falling into sectional groups. 'Ajmi tribesmen of all sections may be found
in any camp in any part of the range of the tribe. It also appears to have unusual
instinct for federation with its weaker neighbours, thus securing more elbow-room. At
present both the Bani Kbalid and the Bani Hajir are its allies, and the 'Ajman have free
tange in their dirahs. The whole tribe is well provided with breach-loading firearms,
and being Sunni of the Hanbali school, it is sympathetic to Wahhabism, and has some
of its dour spirit.
Its proper summer range is the Gulf lowlands from Taff down to 'Oqair, enveloping
the Hasa oasis on north and east. Inland it ranges back over the Summan plateau,
where its herdsmen wander in winter as far west as the confines of Sadair; and at the
same season 'Ajman push even into Kharj, On the littoral they straggle sometimes into
Al-Qatr, and habitually wander north up to Kuwait, relying on their agreement with the
Bani Khalid, whose proper dirah they thus invade. They are to be found, therefore, at
one season or another, over an area of not less than 20,000 square miles.
Very few 'Ajmi tribesmen have even adopted settled life, though they own some date-
groves in Hasa. Their welath lies in horses, camels, and the smaller cattle. In particular
they are horse-breeders. They may total between 4,000 and 5,000 tents.
During the Ottoman occupation of Hasa and Qatff, the 'Ajman were consistently re
calcitrant, in spite of subsidies doled out to their shaikhs, and the screw which could be
put upon the tribe when, according to it custom, it camped near Hofuf, and wished to
dispose of stock, etc., in the local markets. It maintained the while relations of old
standing with the Amirs of Riyadhand welcomed 'Abdul 'Aziz Ibn Sa'ud when he
invaded Hasa in 1913. But when his became the established government, the 'Ajman
liked him and his taxes little better than the Turks, and he had to organizedrastic punish
ment of their raiding in the summer of 1915. Their traditional for is the Aul Morrab