Quick note to myself
I just noticed this entry in Lady Anne Blunt’s Journals, dated March 4th, 1910. I am making a note for myself:
“This morning the mare of Amin Husseyn Koja Zade was brought to Jamil. She has no Ali Pasha Sherif’s stud connection but is by a quite other Shueyman, but a good horse that belonged to Prince Aziz – her dam a mare of the Khedive – Amin, an elderly man, was in some position at the Court at one time. She is not a bad mare — rather in Kehilan Mimrieh style.“
I need to look back at the documentation of the Khedive’s non-APS mares, particularly Carmen (Halabia), Venus and Makkaouia. I remember an Amin or an Abu Amin somewhere there. Maybe there is a connection there. I really need to get to the bottom of who Abu Amin was, this has been hanging for too long.
Yes! VENUS (KDV) Egypt I
c1890 chestnut Hadbah Inzihiyah mare imported in 1893 to Egypt by Hassan Abu Amin Agha, later in the stud of Khedive Abbas II.
NOTES: The above information (except for the birthdate, which is an Al Khamsa estimate) is from the RAS History p63. Venus is referenced as the dam of Hadba (KDV) in the 1932 official RAS pedigree for *Bint Bint Durra.
And HALABIA (KDV)
Egypt I
c1890 Saqlawiyah Jidraniyah mare in Abu Amin Halabi’s stables, Egypt.
NOTES: The above information (except for the date, which is an Al Khamsa estimate) is from the pedigree on p12a of the RAS History. According to Judith Forbis [1976, p261], a Saqlawiyah Jidraniyah mare named Carmen or “Hallabieh” was purchased in 1895 by Khedive Abbas II from Abu Amin Halabi. Lady Anne Blunt [J&C 2.18.1916] describes a mare from the RAS as being a sister to El Halabi, both being out of a mare from Aleppo (in Arabic, Halab).
Both from Al Khamsa Arabians III, good lord, over 10 years ago!
A quick overview of the various parts of Arabic/Islamic male names in the XIXth century may help. A name was constituted of different parts:
The kinya: Abu Amin, “father of Amin”, people were often referred as father of their firstborn son;
The laqab: it’s the title: Agha, Pasha, Bey, Zadah, Sheykh, etc.
The ism: that’s the first name, Mohammed, Ahmed, Hussayn, etc.
The nisba: where the person came from, or resident last, or was born: al-Halabi (from Aleppo), al-Masri (from Cairo), al-Qudsi (from Jerusalem);
The mihna: the person’s profession: al-Haddad (the smith), al-Sayigh (the jeweler), al-Qadi (the judge), etc.
The mihna and the nisba later became the last names as understood in the West, when western colonial power standardized civil registries. The ism stayed at the first name. The rest was dropped from civil registries, except in a few cases (e.g., my brother, who retains the title of Shaykh on his passport, I had mine removed).
So an Arabic/Islamic name looked like this in the XIXth century, Muhammad, father of Amin, Bey, from Aleppo = Muhammad Abu Amin Bey al-Halabi. The nisba came last, and the title before it. The order of the two other parts (the ism and the kinya) did not matter.
Edouard … you need to consider also that “Abu” isn’t always used as Kinya (father of) … in the relatively modern Arabic dialects especially the Bedouin one it can also mean “son of”! … In our community here in Egypt it is often like this … So Hassan Abu Amin might also mean Hassan son of Amin.
But Hassan Abu Amin Agha, Abu Amin Halabi, and Amin Hussein Koja Zade, they all ring a bell of course!
Edouard, look at this entry:
https://al-maktaba.org/book/31371/552#p1
Hussein Koja Zade a Syrian judge who died 1838!
As per your post, Amin Hussein Koja Zade (most probably a Syrian immigrant to Egypt), an elderly man in 1910, was at some position at the court. If he is son of the former then he must be born before 1838.
I do not know if this helps.
Yasser: You have a very good lead here. Let us keep digging!
The possible father has many titles: Qadi al-Qudat (his function as a chief judge), Sayyid (descendant of the prophet) Husayn (his first name) Afandi (Mister) Khoja (his family name) Zada (Sir). His name pared down: Husayn Khoja.
The name of the man in the Journal of Lady Anne: Amin (son of) Husayn Khoja. Looks like his son. We need to find a trace of the son in Cairo.
PS: did you notice the “father” was buried in the cemetery named after my ancestor in Damascus? 🙂
Foo, I tried going to that link, but Arabic is not my strong point. Like, at all!
Yes, I noticed the cemetery 🙂 … but actually it is another person buried their, a great Mufti as per the book.
Jeanne, it’s basically an entry about a Syrian judge whose name is Hussein Koja Zada who died in 1838. It is a brief half-a-page entry in a long listing of Syrian figures.
Hi Edouard,
Could you please also put the naming information in a separate entry? I think it might be helpful.
Thanks! And please stay safe, all.
I don’t understand, Jenny?
Oh, sorry!
Maybe re-title this thread so that people could find the information about names & their parts more easily later.
Or copy just the info on names into its own blog post. Whatever is easier.
Concur, Jenny. I found that fascinating.