Arab superiority
Although the Prophet said all were equal before Allah, founders of 3/4 sunni madhabs explicitly mentioned superiority of Arabs. Even Zaydi Shias give them the same special privileges.
-Sayyids (plural Sadah) (descendants of the Prophet) -Quraysh (the tribe the prophet was from) -other Arabs -non Arabs
Only Maliki school doesn’t preach Arab superiority.
In his Iqtiḍāʾ, Ibn Taymiyyah declared, “Any who would adhere to ahl al-sunnah wa-l-jamāʿah [i.e., be an orthodox Sunni] must believe that the Arab race is superior to the non-Arab races, be they Hebrews, Aramaens, Romans, Persians, etc.”
Marriage restrictions
“Ibn Hanbal, the founder of the Hanbali school said that mawla (non Arabs) men are unsuitable to marry Arab women. Non-Quraysh men can’t marry Quaraysh women, non Arab men can’t marry Arab women.” PL_TW
“Abu Hanifah, the founder of the Hanafi school (who himself was a non Arab) said Ajam (non Arabs) are unfit to marry Arab women.” PL_TW
In SE Asia: “While a Hadhrami (sayyid) man can marry a local woman, the reverse is not permissible. Children born of a Hadhrami man will be considered Hadhrami as well.” “All Saiyids are united on the issue…never marry their daughters to anyone but a Saiyid or Sharif…” PL_TW
“Shias are not as conservative when it comes to intermarriages between Arab women and non-Arab men unlike Sunnis, although they also prefer Sayyid-Sayyid more.”
Leadership restrictions
“In maritime Southeast Asia, Muslims with Arab ancestries are considered superior to native converts. Many Sultanates in Indonesia were founded by Sayyids.” PL_TW
Preference to Arab culture
- Arab culture was given more preference by the rulers against the native customs in Spain.
Stipend for sayyids
Sayyids are also entitled to special stipends from khums (compulsory tax paid by all Muslims). Aurangzeb exempted Sayyids from punishments.
“The Ottomans gave special stipends to the Sayyids. Many people forged ancestries from the Prophet and his family in order to become eligible for such stipends.”
Reactionary movements
- Medieval age- Andalusi Shu’uubiyya