Āl al-'Aṭṭās and Ḥaḍramī Arab Migration to the Malay World

Abstract:Ḥaḍramī Arab migration to various Indian Ocean littoral states had been taking place for centuries. Ḥaḍramīs can be found in eastern Africa, South Africa, India and most of the nations that make up the Malay world, with greater concentrations in Indonesia, and sizeable communities in Malaysia and Singapore. The ancestors of the Ḥaḍramī communities in the Malay world originate from the Ḥaḍramaut region in the southern part of Yemen, and among families from the Ḥaḍramaut that have traversed the Indian Ocean over the centuries, many belonged to the various houses of the Bā 'Alawī. One such house is the Āl al-'Aṭṭās, a clan that has produced generations of Sufis, scholars, entrepreneurs, artists and politicians in the various countries of the Indian Ocean. This article discusses the genealogy of the Āl al-'Aṭṭās—their beginnings in the Ḥaḍramaut, their migration, and their accomplishments in various fields in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.