Vladimir V. Orlov

This article, exploring the case of Morocco, investigates demographic, structural, hierarchical, spiritual and ethical background of social importance, attributed to descent from Prophet Muhammad (sharifism) in traditional life of Muslim societies. The author makes distinction between the concepts of ‘sharifs’ and ‘aristocracy’, as well as clarifies the intricacies of maintenance of corporate spirit, cohesion and sociopolitical mobilization of sharif-s in the Muslim Far West. The article also provides explanatory account for sharifian benefits and privileges, historically accepted by Moroccan society and ruling circles.

Using the example of Alaouite Morocco and the Egyptian province of the Ottoman Empire, the authors discuss the historical retrospective of the political and ideological interrelationship between the ruling circles of the Arab lands and the influential clans of the descendants of the Prophet Muhammad (sharifs), who lived in North Africa since the early Middle Ages. The reasons for the political alliances between the Alaouite dynasty and the provincial sharifian families are explained, as well as the factors behind the sharifs’ participation in the political life of Ottoman Egypt. The ecological, political, and socio-cultural grounds for the long-term preservation of peripheral land-use patterns in these countries are considered. The authors turn to the study of the functioning of pious endowments (waqfs), land grants (azibs), and tax-farming holdings (iltizams) provided in favor of the sharifs. The historical and cultural prerequisites for the transformation of waqfs, azib lands, and iltizams into private property are clarified. Special attention is paid to the legal status of users of azibs and iltizams and to the political status of residents of lands granted as azibs.