Ibn Khaldun’s Theory of the ‘Asabiyya’ and the Tribal Politics of Trade in Fars and Kerman Provinces

The Mongol conquest of the Khwārazm-Shāhs (490-628/1097-1231) wasprimarily motivated by controlling the central trade routes including the silk roadsfor the flow of wealth and commerce from the China Sea to the Mediterranean.A generation after Chinggis Khān (c. 1162-1227), with direct orders from MöngkeQā'ān and armed with the special forces of Chinggis, Hulegu Khān was appointedto oversee the western fringes of the Mongol controlled territories. While Hulegumanaged to defeat the Ismā’ilis and move on to overthrow the ‘Abbāsids andconquer Baghdād (656/1258), he was opposed by Berke Khān, the MuslimCommander, whose forces under Negüder Noyān fled to the eastern provincesunder the dominion of the Il-Khāns. Apparently, they joined forces withQara'unās, vanguard of the Mongol forces on the borders of India and thusbecame a source of instability for the commercial routes in Kerman and Farsprovinces. During the rule of the Mongol Il-Khans, Arghūn Khān was dispatchedby the Central Mongols to Jiroft to protect the trade routes of the Oghān andJermān. However, gradually from mid-8th century onwards the dispatched unitsfor the purpose of ensuring security turned into rebellious self-serving groups,whether it was the Āl-e Mūzzafar or the Āl-e Īnju. In due time however, theywere absorbed into the new formidable forces of the Timurids. This study seeksto examine Ibn Khaldun’s theory of the ‘Asabiyya, as it applies to human society(‘Umrān). From Ibn Khaldun’s perspective, society is an organic whole guidedby the ‘Asabiyya (social cohesion). Nomadic and sedentary communities,compete for land, power and wealth, thus creating a cyclical system that leads tothe rise and fall of civilizations. It is the purpose of the study to examine howthis particularly chaotic period corresponds with Ibn Khaldun’s theory of‘Asabiyya.