Banu Harith

The Banu Harith (Arabic: بَنُو الْحَارِث‎‎ Banū al-Ḥārith or Arabic: بَنُو الْحُرَيْث‎‎ Banū al-Ḥurayth, Hebrew: בני חורית‎‎ Bnei Chorath) is one of the Jewishtribes of Arabia which once governed the city of Najran, now located in southern Saudi Arabia.

The Banu Harith descend from the Qahtanite people, one of the most prominent Arab tribes originating from Yemen. The earliest recorded ancestor of the Qahtanites is Joktan, one of the two sons of Eber. The Qahtanite people are divided into the two factions, the Himyarite and Kahlani tribes. The Kahlani tribe can be further broken into smaller sub-groups which include the Banu Harith which was established by Harith bin Ka'b. The Banu Harith converted to Judaism during pre-Islamic times. They wore a jambiya on their belt and worked primarily in goldsmithing and repairing arms.

The Banu Harith allied with Banu Madh'hij in order to launch an attack on Najran and they were able to successfully conquer the city. Banu Harith lived peacefully beside Banu Hamdan and they were the most powerful house which ruled Najran for many centuries. This was brought to an end during the Christian invasion. After the Christian acquisition of Najran, a sub-clan of the tribe emigrated to the Dhank region of Oman while another emigrated south and founded the district of Bani Al Harith in Sana'a.

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