I had already written about Malik ibn Abu al-Ghayth (or Malik ibn Balghayth), the muqqadam of ‘Aqura here. Now, two years later, I have confirmed his affiliation to the Yamani party and his career in the XVIth century.
The ‘Aquri priest Yusuf al-Dahdah (1602-1677), a near contemporary who appended many local history notes on the margins of Maronite prayers books he copied for the churches and abbeys of ‘Aqura, had the following to say about the family of Malik ibn Abu al-Ghayth:
And the origin of the family of Bu al-Ghayth is from Yemen, it dwelled in Hauran then in the Ghuta of Damascus; and because of the extent of what befell it at the advent of the Muslims, it left for al-‘Aqura; and from it, there were muqaddams, and they held sway within the Yamani [faction].
Yusuf al-Dahdah added that Malik had four sons: Sa’d whose nickname was Shalaq, As’ad, Ghayth and Mikhail.
Whether the prayer books on the margins of which these notes were penned have survived is unclear to me. I only know the writings of Yusuf al-Dahdah from Father Luwis al-Hashim’s book “Tarikh al-‘Aqura“.
What is most significant in the testimony of al-Dahdah is the record of the affiliation of Malik’s family to Yemen, Hauran then the Ghouta of Damascus. First, and most generally, this adds to the existing evidence for the multiple links between ‘Aqura and the oasis of Damascus (the Ghouta). Second, it establishes ‘Aqura as a haven for persectuted Christian communities from inner Syria such as the Hauran and the Ghouta. Third, it helps illustrate and validate the claims some Lebanese Christian families make about their Arab origins, well before the popularity of Arab nationalist ideas led them to link their ascendance to the Ghassanids (a short for prominent, noble Arab Christians).
Maronitica 