Bahrain's Sunni population historically consisted of three main groups. The first was the Al Khalifa family and their tribal allies. The second group, known as Najdis, were merchants who left the Arabian interior to pursue business opportunities on the coast. Their Sunni faith and Arab ancestry helped them form close ties with the ruling family. The third group, the Hawala – likely referring to the Sunni Achomi/laristani people of Bahrain which are often conflated with the actual Huwala Arabs,Dialect, Culture, and Society in Eastern Arabia: Glossary. Clive Holes. 2001. Page 135. as they are claimed to have been merchant families who claimed Arab heritage and depicted their migration to the Gulf as a return to their ancestral lands after living in southern Iran, and have been Initially referred to as 'Ajam' due to their strong cultural and linguistic ties to Iran, many Hawala emphasized their Sunni faith and Arab identity over time to integrate with the dominant Sunni community. Unlike the tribesmen, who saw commerce as an unsuitable occupation, the Hawala were deeply involved in long-distance trade, multilingual, better educated, and more open to external ideas. This group played a key role in introducing anti-colonial nationalism to Bahrain during the rise of Gamal Abdel Nasser.
Bahrain's Sunni population historically consisted of three main groups. The first was the Al Khalifa family and their tribal allies. The second group, known as Najdis, were merchants who left the Arabian interior to pursue business opportunities on the coast. Their Sunni faith and Arab ancestry helped them form close ties with the ruling family. The third group, the Hawala – likely referring to the Sunni Achomi/laristani people of Bahrain which are often conflated with the actual Huwala Arabs,Dialect, Culture, and Society in Eastern Arabia: Glossary. Clive Holes. 2001. Page 135. as they are claimed to have been merchant families who claimed Arab heritage and depicted their migration to the Gulf as a return to their ancestral lands after living in southern Iran, and have been Initially referred to as 'Ajam' due to their strong cultural and linguistic ties to Iran, many Hawala emphasized their Sunni faith and Arab identity over time to integrate with the dominant Sunni community Unlike the tribesmen, who saw commerce as an unsuitable occupation, the Hawala were deeply involved in long-distance trade, multilingual, better educated, and more open to external ideas. This group played a key role in introducing anti-colonial nationalism to Bahrain during the rise of Gamal Abdel Nasser.