Teresa Bernheimer is Senior Lecturer in the History of the Near and Middle East at SOAS, University of London. She is co-editor of Late Antiquity: Eastern Perspectives (2012) and Early Islamic History. Critical Concepts in Islamic Studies (2014).

• Introduction; 1. The 'Alids from the 'Abbasid Revolution to the Seljuqs; 2. To Be or Not to Be: Genealogy, Money, and the Drawing of Boundaries; 3. Kinship and Social Hierarchy: Marriage Patterns; 4. The Headship of the 'Alid Family; 5. The 'Alids as Local Nobility; 6. 'Alid Dynasties; Conclusion.

The study is meticulousand well-referenced, with ample support from primary sources in addition to active engagement with contemporary literature… valuable to anyone wishing to study the social phenomenon of the ‘Alids or medieval Islamic history in general.

Teresa Bernheimer is Senior Lecturer in the History of the Near and Middle East at SOAS, University of London. She is co-editor of Late Antiquity: Eastern Perspectives (2012) and Early Islamic History. Critical Concepts in Islamic Studies (2014).

• Introduction; 1. The 'Alids from the 'Abbasid Revolution to the Seljuqs; 2. To Be or Not to Be: Genealogy, Money, and the Drawing of Boundaries; 3. Kinship and Social Hierarchy: Marriage Patterns; 4. The Headship of the 'Alid Family; 5. The 'Alids as Local Nobility; 6. 'Alid Dynasties; Conclusion.

The study is meticulousand well-referenced, with ample support from primary sources in addition to active engagement with contemporary literature… valuable to anyone wishing to study the social phenomenon of the ‘Alids or medieval Islamic history in general.

Teresa Bernheimer is Senior Lecturer in the History of the Near and Middle East at SOAS, University of London. She is co-editor of Late Antiquity: Eastern Perspectives (2012) and Early Islamic History. Critical Concepts in Islamic Studies (2014).

• Introduction; 1. The 'Alids from the 'Abbasid Revolution to the Seljuqs; 2. To Be or Not to Be: Genealogy, Money, and the Drawing of Boundaries; 3. Kinship and Social Hierarchy: Marriage Patterns; 4. The Headship of the 'Alid Family; 5. The 'Alids as Local Nobility; 6. 'Alid Dynasties; Conclusion.

The study is meticulousand well-referenced, with ample support from primary sources in addition to active engagement with contemporary literature… valuable to anyone wishing to study the social phenomenon of the ‘Alids or medieval Islamic history in general.