'GAZETTEER OF PERSIA. VOL. III.' [‎391v] (787/982)

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SAB-SAB
head-quarters (1905) are at Suq-ush-Shuiukli on the Euphrates where they
number 700 souls : they are also found at ’Amarab (1,000 souls), Nasiriyeh
(300), Kaleh Salih and Shatrat-ul-Muntafik in Turkish Arabia A term used by the British officials to describe the territory roughly corresponding to, but not coextensive with, modern-day Iraq under the control of the Ottoman Empire. . In’Arabis-
tan they are found at Muhammareh (40 families); at Hawizeh, which 60
years ago was one of their important places, and at Aminieh on the Karun
river (10 or 12 families). There are none now at Ahwaz, Dizful or Shushtar.
Their religious head, known as the Qari, resides at Suq-ush-Shuiukh.
The Sabians display a special aptitude for working in gold and silver, and
this probably is the trade followed by the majority ; in Turkish Arabia A term used by the British officials to describe the territory roughly corresponding to, but not coextensive with, modern-day Iraq under the control of the Ottoman Empire. , how
ever, many of them are canoe builders and carpenters : few or none are
agriculturists.
The numbers of the Sabians have greatly declined in recent years, and
are still dwindling. The exact nature of their religion and its affinities with
Star-worship, Judaism, Christianity, and Muhammadanism have not been
ascertained accurately. The use also of the term ^ Sabian ” by different
authorities at various times has not been consistent, and it is doubtful
wheather the modern Subba are identical with the Sabiyana of the Quran.
The modern Sabians possess scriptures of their own and a book of ritual ;
baptism is one of their principal rites, and water enters into all their impor
tant ceremonies ; they respect Yahia, or John the Baptist, as a prophet,
regarding him as a re-incarnation of Seth, but they consider both Moses and
Christ to have been false teachers ; their paradise is located in the North Star.
They are an uncircumcised race and not monogamous. In ’Arabistan
they claim a Syrian origin, and say that their ancestors once owned most
of Shushtar.— { Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Gazetteer, 1908.)
SABALA (?)— Lat. 30° 32' N. Long. 48° 18' E. Elev.
A ruined town in Khuzistan, on the left bank of the Karhn, 18 miles
above Muhammareh.
The Fallahleh canal joins the Karun near this. The Marid canal, with
the mounds of the old dyke, is usually called Sabala.— {Layard — Monteith
■ — Schindler.)
SABLCr—
A stream a few miles east of Du Pulan on the road from Shhshtar to Is
fahan.— {Schindler).
SABZ AB, vide AB-I-DIZ.
SABZABAD-Lat. Long. Elev.
The country house of the British Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. .
It stands 6 miles south of Bushire, 1 mile east of Rishahr foot and | of a
mile south of Imamzadeh.
It stands on the highest part of the peninsula and is surrounded by a good
garden— { Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Gazetteer, 1908.)
SABZ KUH—,
A range in the Bakhtiarl country, uniting at its eastern extremity with the
Kuh-i-Kallar. Its higher slopes furnish the best pasturage in the country.
Its most conspicuous peak, a notable landmark, named Sultan Ibrahim,