Sayyid (also rendered as Sayid, Said or, in Malaysia and The Subcontinent, as Syed) is an honorific title often given to descendants of The Prophet through his grandson, Husain and Hasan (Descendants of Hasan were known as Sharif in the Arab world.).

The word means literally "lord" or "prince"—the closest English equivalent would be Sir. It is traditionally used to refer to those claiming descent from the Prophet Muhammed, through the sons of his daughter Fatima Zahra and son-in-law Ali ibn Abi Talib. Sayyids receive Islamic tax called Khums, a special tax levied under Islamic law. Sayyids are considered spiritually and socially supreme in the Islamic world.

In the early days of Islam, Sayyids were active in spreading Islam throughout the Arab, South Asian Countries and Indian subcontinent. Many Awliya (Saints) were Sayyids who taught the spirituality of Islam. One of famous group of sayyids is one that is called "Ba-alawi", which is used to call a sayyid who is descendant of Alwi.

In the Arab world itself, with the exception of Iraq, the word is still used as a substitute for Mister, as in Syed John Smith.

The surnames of Syeds from which Imam they descend.

1. Imam Ali - Alvi (from sons that are not from Fatima Zahra - daughter of the Prophet Mohammad)

• Below this line are known as Fatimi Syeds *

2. Imam Hassan - Hassani

3. Imam Hussain - reference below

4. Imam Zainul Abideen - Abidi (and Zaidi is specifically from his son Zaid)

5. Imam Mohammad Baqir - Baqri

6. Imam Jafar Sadiq - Jafri

7. Imam Musa Kazim - Musavi, Kazmi

8. Imam Ali Raza - Rizvi, Razavi

9. Imam Mohammad Taqi - Taqvi

10. Imam Ali Naqi - Naqvi

11. Imam Hassan Askari - Askari

12. Imam Mohammad Mehdi - Mehdi

There are also Hashimi Syeds, those who are the descendents of Abu Talib, uncle of the Prophet Mohammad, from his sons Jafar, Aqeel and Talib.

Famous Sayyids

• Shia Imams
• Ali al-Sistani
• Muqtada al-Sadr
• Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi
• Sayyid Qutb
• Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini
• Syed Dildar Ali a.k.a Ghufran Ma'ab
• Syed Kalbe Hussain
• Ali Khamenei
• Syed Ali Naqi Naqvi
• Syed Aqeel-ul-Gharavi

Related articles

• Sharif

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