House of Thani

The House of Thani (Arabic: آل ثاني, romanised: Āl Thānī) is the ruling family of Qatar, with origins tracing back to the Adnanite Banu Tamim tribe. Currently, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani leads the house.

Source: Wikipedia

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House of Thani

Officially, the House of Thani rules Qatar as a constitutional monarchy, but the wide powers retained by the emir and his family have it bordering an absolute monarchy and autocracy.

History and structure

House of Thani

The Al Thani family can be traced back to Mudar ibn Nizar, a claimed descendant of the Biblical figure Ishmael. The tribe moved from the Najdi town of Ushaiger, a settlement north-west of Riyadh, and settled at the Gebrin oasis in southern Najd (present-day Saudi Arabia) before they moved to Qatar. They settled in Qatar around the 1720s. Their first settlement in Qatar was in the southern town of Sikak, and from there they moved north-west to Zubarah, Al Ruwais and then to Fuwayrit. They settled in Doha in the 19th century under their leader Mohammed bin Thani. The group was named after his father Thani bin Mohammed.

The family is made up of three main branches: the Bani Ali, Bani Hamad, and Bani Khalid. As of the early 1990s, the family numbered an estimated 20,000 members.

The family and their relatives and associates own significant properties in the Mayfair district of London, with an estimated quarter of Mayfair's 279 acres, including two of the area's best known luxury hotels—The Connaught and Claridge's. The area has acquired the nickname "Little Doha".

Rulers

House of Thani

• Sheikh Mohammed bin Thani, ruler of Qatar (1851–1878) • Sheikh Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani, ruler of Qatar (1878–1898, 1905–1913) • Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Thani, ruled Qatar between 1898 and 1905 (after his brother abdicated in favour of him) until he was killed in 1905, to be replaced again by Jassim • Sheikh Mohammed bin Jassim Al Thani, ruler of Qatar (1913–1914) • Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani, ruler of Qatar (1914–1949) • Sheikh Ali bin Abdullah Al Thani, ruler of Qatar (1949–1960) • Sheikh Ahmad bin Ali Al Thani, ruler of Qatar (1960–1972), first to bear the title "emir" • Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani, emir of Qatar (1972–1995) • Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, emir of Qatar (1995–2013) • Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, emir of Qatar (2013–present)

Family tree

House of Thani

'Genealogical table of the Ruling Āl Thāni (Ma’ādhīd) Family of Dōhah in Qatar', produced in 1915

<table><thead><tr><th>House of Thani</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td>Muhammad bin Thani (1) r. 1847–1878</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td>Jassim bin Muhammad (2) r. 1878–1913</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td>Abdullah bin Jassim (3) r. 1913–1949</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td>Ali bin Abdullah (4) r. 1949–1960</td><td></td><td>Hamad bin Abdullah</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td>Ahmad bin Ali (5) r. 1960–1972</td><td></td><td>Khalifa bin Hamad (6) r. 1972–1995</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td>Hamad bin Khalifa (7) r. 1995–2013</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td>Tamim bin Hamad (8) r. 2013–present</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>