Zakarawayh ibn Mihrawayh
Zakarawayh ibn Mihrawayh, () often misspelled as Zikrawayh in modern sources, was an Isma'ili and Qarmatian leader in Iraq who led a series of revolts against the Abbasid Caliphate in the 900s, until his defeat and death in January 907. Early life and career He was born in the village of al-Maysaniyya, near the town of Saw'ar in the Kufa area, adjacent to the Hadd canal. His father was one of the first followers of the Isma'ili missionary (dā'ī) Abu Muhammad Abdan. Already in his youth, Zakarawayh was appointed a dā'ī for his native district of Saylahin. There he was active among the Banu Tamim, a Bedouin tribe living between the fertile lands of the Euphrates and the Syrian Desert. In 899, a major rift occurred in the Isma'ili movement, when Abu Muhammad Abdan and his brother-in-law Hamdan Qarmat denounced the movement's secret leadership at Salamiya, which had been taken over by Sa'id ibn al-Husayn, the future founder of the Fatimid Caliphate. Shortly after that, Hamdan Qarmat disappeared, while Abu Muhammad was murdered in the same year at the instigation of Zakarawayh, apparently on the instructions of Salamiya. After Hamdan's disappearance, the term "Qarmatians" was retained by all Isma'ilis who refused to recognize the claims of Sa'id, and subsequently of the Fatimid dynasty. Hamdan's and Abu Muhammad's followers threatened to kill Zakarawayh, who was forced to go into hiding. Uprising of Zakarawayh's sons in Syria From 900, from his refuge at Saw'ar, he resumed his missionary work among the Syrian Desert Bedouin tribes of Asad, Tayy, and Tamim. His efforts there were less than successful, so in 901 he sent his son al-Husayn, who was called the ṣāḥib al-shāma ("Man with the Mole"), to the western Syrian Desert, for missionary work among the large tribal group of the Banu Kalb. Husayn was successful in converting the Kalbi clan of the Banu'l-Ulays and some of the Banu'l-Asbagh, claiming to preach on behalf of an imam descended from Muhammad ibn Isma'il. The success was such that Zakarawayh sent a nephew and then another son, Yahya, who was known as the ṣāḥib al-nāqa ("Master of the She-camel"), and who assumed the leadership of the movement. The brothers' followers adopted the name of al-Fāṭimiyyūn ("Fatimids"). Their successful conversion of the restive Bedouin provided them with a potent military force, but one with limitations: the Bedouin were more concerned with extracting booty from the settled communities, and were ill-suited to campaigns of conquering and holding territories. The brothers launched raids against the Abbasid and Tulunid provinces of the Levant, even laying siege to Damascus from December 902 to July 903, where the ṣāḥib al-nāqa was killed. The ṣāḥib al-shāma then took over, until he was defeated and captured at the Battle of Hama in November 903. The motivations of Zakarawayh and his sons have been variously interpreted by modern scholars. Traditionally this movement has been regarded as wholly Qarmatian in character, and a threat to Sa'id, which prompted the latter's flight from Salamiya; the ṣāḥib