Sayyid (Arabic: سيد also rendered as syed, seyyed, sayyed, saiyed, or sayed) is an honorific title often given to claimed descendants of the Prophet Muhammad through his grandsons, Husayn and Hasan, the sons of his daughter Fatima Zahra and his son-in-law Ali ibn Abi Talib (who was Muhammad's younger cousin and had been raised in his household). Arabic (; , less formally, ) is the largest member of the Semitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family (classification: South Central Semitic) and is closely related to Hebrew and Aramaic. ... An honorific is a term used to convey esteem or respect. ... Muhammad (c. ... Husayn ibn Ali ibn Abu Talib (c. ... Hasan ibn Ali ibn Abu Talib (c. ... Fatima Zahra also called Fatemeh Al Zahraa or Az-Zahra (Arabic: ) was the daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his first wife Khadija. ... Ali ibn Abu Talib (Arabic: ) (c. ...

Some Muslims also use the term sayyid for the descendants of Abu Talib, uncle of Muhammad, by his other sons: Jafar, Aqeel and Talib. Abu Talib ibn Abd al-Muttalib (d. ...

The term should not be confused with the popular name "Sa'id" or "Saeed", which is an Arabic and Persian word meaning "happy." Arabic can mean: From or related to Arabia From or related to the Arabs The Arabic language; see also Arabic grammar The Arabic alphabet, used for expressing the languages of Arabic, Persian, Malay ( Jawi), Kurdish, Panjabi, Pashto, Sindhi and Urdu, among others. ... Persian (known variously as: فارسی Fârsi, local name in Iran, Afghanistan and Tajikistan, پارسی Pârsi, older, local name still used by some speakers, Tajik, a Central Asian dialect, or Dari, another local name in Tajikistan and Afghanistan) is a language spoken in Iran, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Bahrain, Iraq, Azerbaijan, Armenia...

The word means literally "master"; the closest English equivalent would be Sir or Lord. In the Arab world itself, with the exception of Iraq, the word is still used as a substitute for Mister, as in sayyidsayed John Smith. The same concept is expressed by the word sidi (from Arabic word 'sayyidi') in the western dialects of Arabic. Sir is an English honorary title, one formerly associated with knighthood. ... The Arab world The Arab world ( العالم العربي Al-Alam Al-Arabi) consists of more than twenty countries stretching from Mauritania in the west to Oman in the east. ... Sidi is a title of respect in Western Arabic language (sayyid in other dialects) equivalent to Mr. ... Maghreb arabic is a dialect of Arabic spoken in the Maghreb, including Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, and Libya. ...

Alevis use Sayed as an honorific before the names of their saints. Alevis are adherents of a branch of Islam, related to Shia Islam and practised mainly in (majority Sunni) Turkey, among both Turks, Zazas, and Kurds. ...

Other Arabic honorific terms include sheikh and sharif. The line of Hassani sayyeds who ruled Mecca and Medina and now rule in Jordan, the Hashemites, bore the title Sharif. Shaikh (Arabic: ),(also rendered as Sheik, Shaykh or Sheikh) is a word in the Arabic language meaning elder of tribe, lord, a revered old man, or Islamic scholar. ... Sharif is a traditional Arab tribal title given to those to serve as the protector of the tribe and all tribal assets, property, land, wells etc. ... This article is about the city in Saudi Arabia. ... This article is about the city of Medina in Saudi Arabia. ... The name of this Arab dynasty should not be confused with Hashem one of the names for God in Judaism Hashemite traditionally refers to those belonging to the Banu Hashim, or clan of Hashim, a clan within the larger Quraish tribe. ...

Sayyids often include the following titles in their names to indicate the figure from whom they trace their descent. If they are descended from more than one notable ancestor or Shi'a Imam, they will use the title of the ancestor from whom they are most directly descended. Imam (Arabic: إمام , Persian: امام ) is an Arabic word meaning Leader. The ruler of a country might be called the Imam, for example. ...

¹ The prefixes al, el, an, at, etc. can all be translated by the English word the. They vary according to the following sound, much like the English words a and an. An i, wi, or vi ending could perhaps be translated by the English suffixes ite or ian. The suffix transforms a personal name, or a place name, into the name of a group of people connected by lineage or place of birth. Hence Ahmad al-Hashimi could be translated as Ahmad of the lineage of Hassan and Ahmad al-Harrani as Ahmad from the city of Harran. For further explanation, see Arabic names.
²Also, El-Husseini, Husseini, and Hussaini. Ali ibn Abi Talib (علي بن أبي طالب) (c. ... Hasan ibn Ali ibn Abu Talib (c. ... Husayn ibn Ali ibn Abu Talib (c. ... Ali ibn Husayn, Zayn al-Abideen, (Arabic: علي بن حسين زين العابدين) ‎ (658 - 713) was the fourth Shia Imam (see Shia Imams). ... Zayd ibn Ali (d. ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Muhammad al-Baqir Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (676 - January 31, 743) was the fifth Shia Imam. ... Imam Jafar As-Sadiq (April 20, 702 – December 4, 765), in full Jafar ibn Muhammad ibn Zayn ibn Husayn, was the sixth Shia imam, and a theologian and jurist. ... Imam Musa al Kazim (November 10, 745 - September 4, 799) was the seventh Shia Imam (he is not accepted by the Ismailis as the seventh Imam). ... Imam Ali ar Rida (January 1, 766 - May 26, 818) was the Eighth Shia Imam. ... Imam Muhammad al-Taqi (April 12, 811 - November 27, 835) was the ninth Shia Imam. ... Imam Ali al-Hadi (September 8, 828 _ July 1, 868) was the tenth Shia Imam. ... The stylized signature of Sultan Abdu Hamid of the Ottoman Empire Arabic names are based on a very sophisticated naming system: most Arabs do not simply have first/middle/last names, but a full chain of names. ...

See also

• Habib