IOverview
Zaydism is a Shia branch named after Zayd ibn Ali, a great grandson of Ali ibn Abi Talib, who rose against the Umayyads and was killed at Kufa in 740. Like other Shias, Zaydis believe leadership of the community belongs to Ali's descendants. Unlike them, they do not hold that Imams are designated in a fixed chain, that Imams are infallible, or that an Imam lives in occultation.
In law and ritual Zaydism is often described as the Shia branch closest to Sunni Islam. Almost its whole history is bound up with the northern highlands of Yemen, where Zaydi Imams ruled, on and off, from 897 to 1962.
IIHistory
In 740 Zayd ibn Ali rose against the Umayyad caliph at Kufa and was killed. Those who saw his act as the model of a true Imam came to be called Zaydis. Two centres emerged in the 9th century. One lay by the Caspian Sea in what is now northern Iran, where Zaydi Imams set up a state from 864. The other was in Yemen, where Yahya ibn al-Husayn, known as al-Hadi ila al-Haqq, founded an imamate at Sa'da in 897. The Caspian community later passed to Twelver Shiism under the Safavids, leaving Yemen as the branch's main home.
- 740Zayd's uprisingZayd ibn Ali was killed at Kufa and became the model of the Imam who rises.
- 864A Zaydi state by the CaspianIn Tabaristan, lasting in some form until about the 12th century.
- 897Al-Hadi arrives in YemenHe founded an imamate at Sa'da. The Hadawi school of law bears his name.
- 1597The Qasimi imamateImam al-Mansur al-Qasim led resistance to the Ottomans, opening a long period of Zaydi rule.
- 1918 to 1962The Mutawakkilite KingdomA state headed by Zaydi Imams in northern Yemen.
- 1962Revolution in North YemenThe imamate was overthrown and the Yemen Arab Republic proclaimed.
In the early 2000s the Ansar Allah movement, commonly called the Houthis, emerged from the Zaydi milieu of Sa'da, and since 2014 it has been a political and military force in the conflict in Yemen. Scholars of Zaydism note that not all Zaydis support the movement and that it does not speak for the whole Zaydi scholarly tradition. The library records the facts and does not discuss the politics.
IIIBeliefs and Distinctives
In Zaydi teaching the Imam must descend from Hasan or Husayn, be learned, pious, brave and able to govern, and must openly rise and call people to him, known as khuruj, rather than wait to be designated. There may be times with no Imam, and there may even be two Imams in two regions at once.
Many early Zaydi scholars accepted the caliphates of Abu Bakr and Umar as valid, while holding that Ali was more deserving. That view set the branch apart from both Sunnis and Twelvers. In theology traditional Zaydis adopted much of Mu'tazili thought, above all on divine justice and human free will. In law the Hadawi school predominates. The scholar Muhammad al-Shawkani (1759 to 1834), of Zaydi background, drew part of Yemen's learned class toward Sunni Hadith methods, and that influence is still felt.
Zaydism is often equated with the Houthi movement. Zaydism is a religious tradition more than a thousand years old, while the Houthis are a political movement born in the early 21st century. The two words are not interchangeable.
IVPractice, Ritual and Daily Life
Zaydis keep the five pillars like all Muslims. Their call to prayer adds the phrase hayya ala khayr al-amal, come to the best of deeds, as Twelvers do. They usually pray with arms at their sides, as Malikis do. The branch does not accept temporary marriage. Traditional centres of learning, called hijra, were scholarly villages where learned families taught law and theology across generations. The Great Mosque of Sana'a and manuscript libraries in Sa'da and Sana'a hold a trove of Zaydi and Mu'tazili texts that international scholars value highly.
VOrganisation and Distribution
Since 1962 Zaydism has had no ruling Imam. Religious authority rests with scholars and with families descended from Ali, known as sayyids. Zaydis live mainly in northwestern Yemen and in Najran province in Saudi Arabia. The library has found no reliable dated survey. Common estimates place Zaydis at around a third of Yemen's population, but the year and method behind that figure have not been checked, so it should be read as an order of magnitude.
VIIn Vietnam
The library has found no source for a Zaydi community in Vietnam. No Zaydi body appears among the Muslim organisations recognised by the state.
VIISymbol of the Branch
No symbol of its own is recorded with a source for this branch, so the library uses the common symbol of the path.
VIIIOther Branches of Islam
Sunni Islamأهل السنة والجماعة Ahl al-Sunna wa al-JamāʿaThe largest branch.Uses the common symbol of the path
Twelver Shia Islamاثنا عشرية Ithnā ʿAshariyya, also Imāmiyya or JaʿfariyyaThe largest Shia branch.Zaydi Shia Islamالزيدية al-ZaydiyyaA Shia branch named after Zayd ibn Ali (d.Uses the common symbol of the path
Ismaili Shia Islamالإسماعيلية al-IsmāʿīliyyaSeparated in 765 by recognising Isma'il, son of Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq, as successor.Ibadi Islamالإباضية al-IbāḍiyyaA third branch, neither Sunni nor Shia.Uses the common symbol of the path
Sufismتصوف TaṣawwufNot a third branch beside Sunni and Shia but an inner, devotional dimension present in both.
Cham IslamIslam, termed Hoi giao Islam in official documentsCham Muslims in Vietnam following Sunni Islam of the Shafi'i school.Cham BaniBani, Awal. Termed Hoi giao Bani in official documentsA distinct form among the Cham of former Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan, rooted in Islam and blended with Cham tradition.Uses the common symbol of the pathIXSources
The library cross-checks the sources below. Where they disagree, the page gives both.
?Quick Questions
Are Zaydis Shia?
Yes. Zaydis hold that leadership belongs to Ali's descendants. But they reject a fixed chain of designated Imams and the idea of a hidden Imam, which sets them apart from Twelvers and Ismailis.
Why is Zaydism seen as close to Sunni Islam?
Because in law and ritual many Zaydi positions match Sunni schools, and many early Zaydi scholars accepted the first two caliphs as valid. This is a comparison, not a judgement.
Are Zaydis and Houthis the same?
No. Zaydism is a religious tradition dating to the 8th century. The Houthis are a political movement that arose from the Zaydi milieu in the early 2000s and do not represent all Zaydis.