by Annalisa Monticelli and Monika Savier According to the legend - maybe inspired by a true story, who knows? - all Arabian horses derive from the five mares owned by the Prophet Mohammed (“Khamsa ar-Rasul”). Abbayyah, Saqlawiah, Kuhaylah, Hamdaniah and Hadbah created a family, a genealogical tree, a strain that has survived until today as a common denominator among horses from various countries in the world. 198 • Desert Heritage Magazine The Bedouin Dr. Nagel (2005) wrote in Desert tribes tried to Heritage: breed horses “The Bedouins gave highest attention to that were pure the female line. Each Arabian mare had in the strain, at to belong to one of the known strains, if least as far as not, this mare was not considered to be a the maternal line pure bred Arabian horse. Any foal born was concerned. by such a mare received as well the strain Over the centuries name of its mother, and this system went sub-strains were on to apply to all the following genera- added to the five tions. The strain of the father, however, main ones until there was neglected. To make it clear, the sire were 2-300 different was known, but his strain name had no maternal lines, which can place in this system of genealogy. all be traced back to the Curiously, in this respect the Arabs fol- main strains. How can this be lowed an old Roman principle which explained? says: “Mater semper certa est.”- “The European researchers in the Arab dam is always sure”. desert give a variety of explanations. It is If we look at a pedigree from a scientific a fact, however, that for centuries the angle, the genetic influence of the pater- inclusion of a horse in a strain (defined nal line (and his strain) changes, from according to its belonging to a maternal the point of view of its biology and phe- line) was also an attempt to give a cha- notype, exactly as the genetic maternal racteristic to the phenotype rather than line. And to breed “pure in the strain” just the genotype. According to Raswan horses, i.e. always using stallions of the (1930) and other researches, the same family, undoubtedly increases the Kuhaylans represented the masculine risk of extreme inbreeding and reduces phenotype, characterized by powerful the range of breeding choices aimed at musculature, back, broad croup and chest improving the phenotype of the mare. and a small head. The Saklawis, on the But the Bedouins knew this already, they other hand, represented the “feminine” simply did not have many chances to horse, elegant, with a light bone structu- find new compatible stallions when their re, long lines, a light head with a small mares were on heat. Today, with the glo- nose but less hardy than Kuhaylans. balization of semen available anywhere According to ancient texts the Munigis, in the world within 24 hours, the selec- the third main strain, represented the tion of the stallion is dictated by other riding horse. criteria (i.e. economic ones). Judith Forbis (1976) also distinguishes Apart from following the religious dogma three main strains but talks about more and breeding purebred Arabians (asil), the than 100 Kuhaylan sub-strains, 32 Bedouins understood that certain lines Saklawi sub-strains and so on. The were moredesirable in the marketplace. Bedouin tribes, who did not know how Their way of defining a more or less to record the pedigree of a horse, found noble strain was certainly rooted in an it easier to breed a strain and classify the attempt to escape the economic unifor- horses according to that strains. mity of the market and to obtain more It is worth also to analyze the belonging money for some genetic lines, regardless to a strain, which is always defined of the horse's phenotype. according to the maternal line. These strain-based value definitions have survived until today in the breeding world. make researches more easy. And what if the definition of a horse strain was wrong in What do you do if you discover that there has been a gap the first place? Today's horses certainly do not decrease in ever since the beginning or that the interpretation of the value, but if the strain is missing, their real genealogical sources is forced? identity is incomplete and the breeder is left wondering, so to speak. A minor revolution full of new stimuli. One of these mares is Yamama. Among her descendants That is what is happening among pedigree history lovers. there is Prince fa Moniet, Mohafez, El Aziza, Elf Layla When you mention Bint Yamama, people instinctively Walayla, Imperial Bareez… and many others. After com- refer to the white Kuhaylah-Jellabiyah mare bred by bing through ancient texts for a long time, Desert Prince Mohamed Ali. And what about the other two Heritage can now tell you her story. mares, Yemama-Bay and Yemamah / Yamama? Yemama-Bay is also traditionally associated to the HOW MANY YAMAMAS? Kuhaylah-Jellabiyah strain, but she was owned by Lady A horse has always been associated to a bloodline and Anne Blunt and was bred in the desert. vice versa. Yemamah / Yamama, on the contrary, is the only one to This is often done to follow a tradition, a habit or to be associated to the Saqlawi Gidran breed of Ibn Sudan, Bint Yemama Yemama -Bey Mesaoud/Ibn Yemameh (Saqlawi I° x Yamama/ (a stallion desert bred x a As Saghir Yemamah) Kuhaylah Jellabiyah of Ibn (Aziz / Aziz II x Yemameh) grey mare born in 1893 Khalifa Strain) chestnut stallion, born in 1887 bred by Prince bay mare , born in 1885. bred by Ali Pasha Sherif Mohamed Ali bred by a desert tribe, (Egypt) , owned by (Egypt) owned by Lady Anne Lady Anne Blunt , Blunt -Sheykh Obeyd Stud. sold in Russia in 1900. How many mares called YAMAMA were there in Egypt the great stallion MESAOUD purchased by Lady Anne towards the end of the 19th century? Blunt? Based on the very little information - no written docu- Finally, the same Arab name can be transcribed or translated ments are available - there were at least two. in many different ways when using the Western alphabet. In that period, individual identities were irrelevant, and the same applied to people and to horses. What was rele- In 1892, Khedive Abbas Hilmi II ascended to the throne vant was the family of origin: that explains the appearance succeeding to his father, Khedive Tewfik and continued of Yamama-Yemamah-Yemameh, with all the variations of the family tradition of breeding Arabian horses. Abu-Ibn-Bint-Bint. In addition to that, it was not rare for One of the first mares that became part of his stud was the same horse to have several names, if described as a foal the white YEMAMEH, bought by his friend and ally Ali or as an adult. Pasha Sherif. He was the son of the Governor of Syria, Who would have thought, for example, that IBN YEMA- President of the Chamber of Commerce and President of MEH AS-SAGHIR, registered on the list of horses for the Law Counsel. This mare was the dam of the famous sale at the auction of Ali Pasha Sherif in 1889 was actually Mesaoud (Aziz/Aziz II x Yemameh) born in 1887. Desert Heritage Magazine • 201 Mr. and Mrs. Blunt, keen admi- stallion, bred by Ali Pasha Sherif, with rers of Ali Pasha Sherif's hor- a “perfect head”, as Lady Anne Blunt ses, went to visit his stud herself said. Kasida's dam was MAK- and were impressed by the BULA II/MAKBULA AL AZIZA, a outstanding beauty and white mare mare sired by the renow- quality of YEMAMEH. ned Saqlawi Wazir and bred by Ali Pasha Sherif. Lady Anne Blunt had a few examples of the Kasida was the dam of Kasima, a bay KUHAYLAH JEL- mare, born in 1905, bred at Crabbet LABIYAH strain Park. Dam of KAZMEYN, bay stal- in her stud in lion born in 1916 at Crabbet Park. Sheikh Obeyd: The stallion Kazmeyn /Kazmeen was the chestnut sold to R.A.S- Egypt in 1920. KASIDA, Kazmeyn was the sire of Bint Samiha born in 1891 a - the dam of Nazeer, Bint Sabah - the daughter of dam of Bint Bint Sabbah and Bukra, Nasr: a bay Zareefa, the dam of Maisa and El Dahman Shahwan Sareei. Makbula / Makbula II Kasida Kazmeen (Wazir x Bint Bint (Nasr APS x Makbula / (Sotamm x Kasima) Jellabiet Feysul) Makbula II 1886) bay stallion born in 1916 white mare ,born in 1886 chestnut mare bred by Lady Anne bred by Ali Pasha Sherif, owned born in 1891 Blunt -Crabbet Park, by Lady Anne Blunt, sold to bred by Ali Pasha Sherif , owned by R.A.S.-Egypt Russia in 1900. owned by Lady Anne Blunt. in 1920 The origin of the bay Yamama is rather Right now this is unclear, because the vague. The historic tradition says that, like General Stud Book initially described her as Makbula II and her dam Makbula I, she Abeyah! In Lady Anne Blunt's Journal, the descends from the legendary and famous entry for 4 December 1907 talks about a JELLABIET FEYSUL WAZIRIA, impor- conversation between Moharrem Pasha and ted from the Royal Studs of Ibn Khalifa Mutlak (Lady Anne's manager and facto- (Bahrain), for the collection of the Viceroy tum) on Yemama, the bay mare and her gray of Egypt Abbas Pasha I and paid a large daughter Yashmak. The Pasha asked who amount in gold. the gray mare was and Mutlak replied “that she was the daughter of that bay mare Moharrem Pasha Yamama-Bey's career as a […] sold to us - to which the Pasha replied “Oh THAT mare started exactly a mare, the Jellabiyah I had from Ali Sherif! I thought she year after her purchase.