Zaidiyyah

Zaidiyyah or Zaidism (Arabic: الزيدية az-zaydiyya, adjective form Zaidi or Zaydi) is an early sect which emerged in the eighth century out of Shi'a Islam, named after Zayd ibn ʻAlī, the grandson of Husayn ibn ʻAlī. Followers of the Zaydi Islamic jurisprudence are called Zaydi Shi'a and make up about 35-40% of Muslims in Yemen.

Origin

The Zaydi madhab emerged in reverence of Zayd’s failed uprising against the Ummayad Caliph, Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik (ruling through 724-743 AD), which set a precedent for revolution against corrupt rulers. It might be said that Zaydis find it difficult to remain passive in an unjust world, or in the words of a modern influential Zaydi leader, Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi, to ‘sit in their houses’.

Zaydis were the oldest branch of the Shia and the largest group amongst the Shia before the Safavid Dynasty in the sixteenth century and currently the second largest group, Zaidi's do not believe in the infallibility of Imāms, but promotes their leadership and divine inspiration. Zaydis believe that on the last hour of Zayd ibn Ali, he was betrayed by the people in Kufa. Zaydis as of 2014 constitute roughly 0.5% of the world's Muslim population.

Zaidi (surname)

People with the surname Zaidi trace their origins to the Arabian Peninsula particularly in what is present-day Saudi Arabia. Zaidi's are a part of the Arab Tribe of Banu Hashim.The Zaidi surname is derived from Zaid ibn Ali, the son of Ali ibn al-Husayn Zayn al-'Abidin, who was the great grandson of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. People with the surname Zaidi trace their lineage to Zaid ibn Ali. Descendants of Zaid ibn Ali who chose to move away from the Arabian Peninsula and have the surname Zaidi are commonly located in Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Descendants of Zaid ibn Ali are known as Sayyid as they are descendants of Muhammad.

The surname Al-Zaidi (Az-Zaidi) can denote one or both of the following:

Also note people of the Indian subcontinent with the surname Zaidi are not associated with the Zaidiyyah madhhab but are generally Ithna Ashari.