The Arabian, Part II
by Liana Cibery

Arabian horses can be divided into many strains and types. I have only been able to touch on a few of the different types, as there are numerous types, strains, and documentation on each.

Egyptian Arabians

The rarest of pure Arabian horses, to be recognized as a "Straight Egyptian" is to be named one of the few. The highly desired Straight Egyptian Arabian is one of the finer types. Straight Egyptians compromise only three percent of the registered Arabians world-wide. These horses are noted for their beauty, extreme intelligence and trainability. To be deemed Straight Egyptian, a horse must be considered by the Pyramid Society as one tracing in all lines of the desert that were owned by Abbas Pasha I or Ali Pasha Sherif, or trace in all lines to horses owned and bred by the Royal Agriculture Society.

Famed Straight Egyptian horses include the famous Ruminaja Ali, perhaps the best loved Egyptian stallion of all time. Sired by Sheik Al Badi, by *Morafic, by *Nazeer, out of Bint Magidaa, most highly prized Egyptian Arabians can be traced to him.

Thee Desperado has been embraced by Arabian breeders of all bloodlines. Owned by Arabians, LTD in Texas, he has the mark of excellence. A grandson of Ruminaja Ali and The Egyptian Prince, Thee Desperado demonstrates classic Arabian qualities. His credits include Unanimous Grand Champion Stallion at Scottsdale, Top Ten US National Championships, and Top Ten in the Canadian National Championships. He has also proven himself as a sire, being Leading Sire of halter champions in 1997, 1998, and 1999 at the Egyptian Event.

The most famous of all Egyptian Arabian studs would undoubtedly be the Ansata Stud. Importers of *Ansata Ibn Halima, son of *Nazeer, Judith Forbes could be called the master of Egyptian breeding. Ansata bred and related horses have won U.S. Nation, Scottsdale, Egyptian Event, the Salon du Cheval in Paris, the European Nations Cup, Qatar and Middle East Championships, and other prestigious shows.

Born in 1956, *Morafic has had a great impact on the Egyptian Arabian breed. Sire of the stallion *Dalul, 1972 and 1975 US National Top Ten Stallion, and grandfather of Ruminaja Ali, *Morafic is a grey stallion sired by Nazeer. Born and bred in Egypt, at the Egyptian Agricultural Organization, he was imported to Texas. Of the Saklawi Jedran Strain, he passed away in 1974 at the young age of eighteen. He was being treated for colic, and instead, it was found to be a large blood clot. In 1969, *Morafic would be classified as a Living Legend.

*Nazeer, a grey stallion born in 1934, is one of the most popular lines of Straight Egyptian horses today. In the United States in particular, Egyptian Arabians were being bred according to how many "lines to Nazeer" the resulting offspring would have. In the 60s, 70s, and 80s, Nazeer line-breeding was carried on to such an extent that very few Straight Egyptian Arabians today can be found that do not carry at least one line to Nazeer. His progeny include Aswan, *Bint Moniet El Nefous, *Ansata Ibn Halima, *Morafic, and *Ramses Fayek.

*Fadl, the 1930 grey stallion, imported by Babson, was sired by Ibn Rabdan. To own a horse with the lines of *Fadl is truly desirable.

All in all, the Egyptian horses are the most sought after type of Arabian today. There are many more horses who have been not been mentioned, and cannot be mentioned due to space limitations.

Russian Arabians

Made famous by the Tersk Stud in Russia, the Russian Arabian demonstrates conformation, beauty, type, a powerful trot and overall form and function. Many great names come from the Russian Arabian type. Russian horses who are now living in the United States, as well as their descendants are actually described as Polish, due to the fact that, although born in Russia, they were imported from Poland.

Aswan, a grey stallion, "...provided one of the greatest twentieth century influences on the Russian bred Arabian. A gift from Egypt, he brought tremendous type, refinement, and Arabian charisma to Russia's Arabian breeding program."

"*Nariadni's extraordinary beauty, large eyes, long neck, and elegance are legendary. His ability to reproduce his size, correctness, compact structure and motion have made his offspring sought after prizes everywhere Arabian horses are owned and admired."

*Napitok, imported from Russia, has also had an admirable impact on the breeding of Russian horses. A direct descendant of Aswan and Priboj, he combines all of the desirable lines of the Russian Arabian horse. In 1975, he was the Canadian National Champion park horse. His get have succeeded as performance horses, race horses, and halter horses.

"*Muscat needs no introduction to the Arabian horse world. This big, bold, and beautiful chestnut Russian Arabian stallion was sired by *Salon our of Malpia. In 1978 *Muscat was traded by Howard F. Kayle Jr. for 2 one million dollar Standardbred stallions at the state run Tersk Stud in Russia. Originally utilized to sire the world's finest halter and breeding horses, his performance offspring have been equally legendary with international wins in everything from the most elegant English and Western competitions to reining, cutting, dressage, and endurance. When he was standing at Tersk as a young stallion, he was rated Elite in the Russian Stud Book, the highest rating for a stallion. In 1980, *Muscat took the Arabian community by storm with his Triple Crown victories at US National, Canadian National, and Scottsdale Grand Champion Stallion."

Polish Arabians

*Witez II was in the 1945 Army importation from Germany, but had been bred in Poland. He was foaled in 1938 and sired by *Witez. He was the most popular of the Remount sires. *Witez II was the sire of Witezar, who became the 1966 American Horse Show Association Horse of the Year with 4,034 points, twice as many as any other horse of any other breed in the history of the AHSA competition. In 1985 a study was conducted to determine Racing's Foundation Sires. *Witez II led this list with 20 Race Horses to his credit. The majority of the other 23 stallions on the Racing Foundation Sires list had not even been foaled when *Witez II died! The blood of *Witez II is still winning.

Crabbet Arabians

The Crabbet Stud, not named for the creators, but for the house on the property at the time of the inheritance, was a strong factor in the breeding of Arabians. The Crabbet Stud in Sussex, England was owned and managed by Mr. Wilfrid and Lady Anne Blunt and later by their daughter Judith Blunt Lytton, well known as Lady Wentworth. The Blunts personally chose their foundation stock from the Egyptian desert and imported these Arabians to their farm.

Lady Wenworth led the Crabbet Stud to its strongest seasons as a breeding facility with her prize Arabian, Skowronek, who sired three of the most famous Arabian stallions in the history of Arabian breeding: *Raseyn, *Raffles, and Naseem.

In 1952, Bint Sahar foaled the stallion Fadjur. In 1953, for the sum of $65, Marjory Tone of Jack Tone Ranch became the new owner of Fadjur. In his lifetime he was an exceptional sire. Great-great grandsire of the well known endurance horse RO Grand Sultann, Fadjur also produced many National Champions. Not only did Fadjur sire champions, but was a champion himself. Fadjur started his career in the show ring when he was four and was officially retired from showing when he was 23 years old. In that time, he was US Top Ten Stallion five times, Canadian Top Ten Stallion once, and US National Reserve Champion twice. Fadjur officially became a hero within the Arabian breed when he was chosen to be a "Living Legend" twice in Arabian Horse World's popularity polls of the late 1960s and early 1970s. He died shortly before his 31st birthday in 1983.

Domestic Arabians

The last type of Arabian that must be mentioned is the domestic Arabian, which is of no specific descent.

The most well known of all is Khemosabi++++. Sired by Amerigo, out of Jurneeka, Khemosabi was born on Mother's Day in 1967. As of his 29th birthday, Khemosabi sired 1225 offspring, more than any other Arabian stallion in the history of the breed. Khemosabi is also the leading living sire of Arabian peformance and halter champions.

Bay El Bey, owned and bred by Shelia Varian of Varian Arabians, is one not to be forgotten. Born in 1969 and died in 1996, he was sired by Bay-Abi. His ability as a sire is not to be equaled. His get include Barbary, a phenomenal English Pleasure horse, Bey Shah, and the legendary Huckleberry Bey. He is also the grandsire of Desperado V, the Varian's prize stallion.

While there are many more types of Arabians, I have been unable to locate sufficient information to describe their characteristics.

Al Khamsa

This description of the Arabian horse refers more to strain than type. The five basic families of the breed, created by the Bedouins, are known as "Al Khamsa", and include Kehlian, Seglawi, Abeyan, Hamdani, and Hadban.

"The Kehilan strain was noted for depth of chest, masculine power and size. The average pure strain in Kehlian stood up to fifteen hands. Their heads were short with broad foreheads and great width in the jowls. Compared to the Kehlian, the Seglawi was more refined with fine bones, long faces and necks, giving them a more feminine look. They were known to be quick but were lacking the endurance of other strains. The Seglawi typically stood at 14.2 hands. A strain similar in build to the Seglawi is the Abeyan: they were also refined and had longer backs than the typical Arabian. These horses were usually small and had more white markings than other strains. The Hamdani were often considered plain, with an athletic if somewhat masculine, large boned build. Their heads were more often straight in profile, lacking an extreme Jibbah. This strain of Arabian stands taller than most, up to 15.2 hands. Known for their gentle nature, the Hadban were smaller versions of the athletic Hamdani; they kept the muscular frame despite their average size of 14.3 hands.

One variation of the story of 'Al Khamsa' refers to the five favorite horses of the prophet Muhammad (AD 570-632). According to the legend, a tribe of Bedouin, after a long journey in the desert, released their mares to run to a watering hole to quench their thirst. As a test of their loyalty, the mares were called back to their owners before reaching the water, and of the many mares, only five returned faithfully without drinking. These became the five original favorite mares of the Bedouin, and each was given a strain name which would carry on with its descendants."

For more information on the Arabian Breed, please contact one of the following:

International Arabian Horse Association
10805 E Bethany Drive
Aurora, CO 80014

Arabian Horse Registry
P.O. Box 173886
Denver, CO 80217

Bibliography:

The Ultimate Horse Book
1991 - Elwyn Hartley Edwards

The Arabian Horse Booklet
1989 - The Arabian Horse Registry

Various websites including the IAHA and AHR

Answers to Arabian Scramble Quiz:

1. Bloody Shouldered
2. The Black Stallion
3. Mohammed
4. Jibbah
5. Egyptian
6. Ruminaja Ali
7. Lady Wentworth
8. Hamdani

Scramble: THE PUREST BREED

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