Mehri people


Mehri, also known as al-Mahrah tribe, is a South Arabian tribe primarily inhabiting South Arabia and the Guardafui Channel island of Socotra.

Origin

They are descended from Mahra bin Heydan bin 'Amr bin el-Hafi Quda'a bin Malik bin 'Amr bin Murra bin Zeyd bin Malik bin Ḥimyar.. Which means Mahra son of Heydan son of 'Amr son of el-Hafi Quda'a son of Malik son of 'Amr son of Murra son of Zeyd son of Malik son of Ḥimyar.

Distribution

The Mehri are one of the largest tribes in the Al Mahrah Governorate of Yemen and in the island of Socotra and Dhofar Governorate of Oman. Mehri group members are also found in other countries in the Arabian Peninsula, mainly Oman, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates. Additionally, the Arab Salah clan of Al Mahrah tribe resides in the Somalia.
According to Ethnologue, there are around 115,200 total Mehri speakers. Of those, 50,000 live in Yemen, 50,800 in Oman, and 14,400 in Kuwait, and according to Saudi officials there are around 20,000 Mehri speakers in Saudi Arabia.

Language

The Mehri speak the Mehri language as their native language. It belongs to the Modern South Arabian subgroup of the Afroasiatic family's Semitic branch.
Mehri is divided into two main dialects: Eastern Mehri and Western Mehri. These idioms in turn have urban and Bedouin varieties.
On the island of Socotra, the Mehri inhabitants speak the native Soqotri language of the Soqotri people.
The Mehri language is most closely related to other Modern South Arabian languages, such as Bathari and Soqotri. These tongues collectively share many features with the Old South Arabian languages, as spoken by the ancient Sabaeans, Minaeans, and Qatabanians.
Additionally, many Mehri in Yemen speak as a second language Arabic, which is also a Semitic language.

Religion

The Mehri are predominantly Muslims.