The Asha’irah qabilah originated in southern Iraq. Its members are the descendants of al-Ash‘ar bin Adad bin Zayd bin Yashjab bin ‘Urayb, who traced his lineage to Y‘arub bin Qahtan. The name al-Ash‘ar means “hairy”, as he was born with a full head of hair.

The Asha’irah are subdivided into Adgham, Manama, the As'ad, and the Shara‘ibah.

Abu Musa al-Ash'ari was one of the sahabah or companions of the prophet Mohammad. He witnessed the battle of al-Qadissiyah, and was later chosen to represent ‘Ali bin Abi Talib in arbitration with Mu‘awiyya ibn Abi Sufyan over the Battle of Siffin, while the representative of Mu‘awiyya’s camp was ‘Amr ibn al-‘As.

Other members of the tribe:

- Malik al-Ash‘ari, whom the Prophet married to a women from the Hashimi tribe.

- Abu ‘Amir, cousin of Abu Musa al-Ash‘ari. At the Battle of Hunayn, Abu 'Amir, along with a group of the Prophet’s companions, came upon a group of ten men fleeing the scene of the battle. He called on them to convert to Islam. When they refused, Abu ‘Amir proceeded to kill nine of them, sparing the tenth after he agreed to convert.

Source:  الاشاعرة
Translated from the Arabic by Andrew Leber, Brown University, Class of 2012.