Al-Rifai family
| Al-Rifāʿī ٱلرِّفَاعِي | |
|---|---|
| Sayyid family / Sufi lineage name | |
| Parent family | Al-Musawi of Banu Hashim |
| Country | Abbasid Caliphate |
| Current region | |
| Place of origin | Wasit, Iraq |
| Founder | Ahmad al-Rifaʽi (traditionally) |
| Connected families | Al-Gilani (al-Gaylani, al-Kilani) family Al-Zoubi family Al-Bizri family Atassi family |
| Traditions | Sunni (Shafiʿi; Ashʿari); Sufi Rifaʽi tariqa |
| Cadet branches |
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The Al-Rifai (El-Rifai, El-Refai, Rifai) family (Arabic: ٱلرِّفَاعِي, romanized: al-Rifāʿī) is a widely attested Arab family and lineage historically connected to the Rifaʽi tariqa, a prominent Sufi order founded by the Iraqi saint Sayyid Ahmad al-Rifaʽi (d. 1183). In medieval and early modern sources the order is associated with the marshlands of Iraq between Wasit and Basra, expanding into Syria and Egypt and developing multiple regional branches.
While many contemporary bearers of the surname al-Rifaʽi trace their origin to the saint's progeny as Sayyids (descendants of the Prophet Muhammad through al-Husayn ibn Ali), modern genealogical scholarship urges caution: claims of uninterrupted descent for dispersed branches often lack documentary chains over several centuries. Despite this claimed Husaynid lineage which is traced back to the Twelver Shia Imam Musa al-Kazim, the al-Rifaʽis are Sunni Muslims.