ABSTRACT
The Arab conquest of Egypt in 641 brought in its wake the first waves of migration of Arab tribes from the Arabian peninsula. The first settlers were tribes that had originated in southern Arabia (Qaḥṭān or Yaman), and in the eighth century there began the settlement of tribes originating in northern Arabia (ʿAdnān or Qays). They were long-standing rivals, so the northern tribes settled for the most part on the western bank of the Nile, and the southern tribes on the eastern bank. Some of the tribes that arrived in Egypt settled permanently shortly after their arrival, and very soon began to resemble, and become integrated into, the veteran peasant population. This was chiefly because they settled in the agricultural areas of the Nile. The chronicler al-Maqrīzī wrote at the opening of his work:
Know that the Arab who took part in the conquest of Egypt have disappeared with the passing of time, and most of their traces have disappeared. In the land of Egypt there remain only remnants of these Arab. 1
Iʿlam ʿan al-ʿarab al-ladhīna shahadū fatḥ miṣr qad abādahum al-dahr wa-jahalat aḥwāl akthar aʿ kābhum wa-qad baqiyat min al-ʿarab baqāyā bi-arḍ miṣr fa man baqiya
