Al-Uqaydat (Arabic: الْعُقَيْدَات, romanized: al-ʿUqaydāt) is a large Arab tribe which straddles Syria's eastern border with Iraq. It is the largest tribe in the Deir ez-Zor province and according to Max von Oppenheim, it is the largest tribe in all of Mesopotamia.[1] Members of the tribe can be found on both sides of the Iraqi-Syrian border.
Uqaydat tribe is descended from the tribe of Zubaid.[2]
Structure
The tribe is divided into three branches which are in turn divided into multiple clans:
Busaraya clan
- Abu Kamel
- Abu Hassan clan
- Al-Qaraan clan
- Abu Rahmat clan
- Al-Baqir clan
- Al-Shuwait clan
- Abu Kamal
- Al-Mireh clan and their sheikh is Mohamed Al-Gharab Al-Harsa
- Al-Hassoun clan and their sheikh is Ayman Al-Daham Al-dandal
- Al-Damim clan and their sheikh is Kamal Al-Naji Al-Jirah
- Al-Daleej clan
- Al-Marashda clan
- Al-Jaalkah clan
- Abu Zamil (al-Shaitat)
- al-Khanfour
- al-Shabab
- al-Aliyat
