al sabah

English - English

Definition of al sabah in English English dictionary

or l ab ("ab family") Ruling family of Kuwait since 1756. In that year the Ban Utb, a group of families of the Anizah tribe living in what is now Kuwait, appointed a member of the ab family, ab ibn Jbir (r. 1752-64), to be their ruler. The dynasty frequently depended politically or militarily on outsiders but maintained its autonomy. Its dependence on the Ottoman Empire in the late 19th century was subsequently a cause for Iraq to claim hegemony over Kuwait. It later enjoyed the patronage of the United Kingdom and, more recently, the support of the U.S. Despite the existence of deliberative institutions in modern Kuwait, the dynasty retains absolute power

Hyphenation

al sa·bah