At the end of the 19 th century, Alawites rose up against the Ottoman government demanding more autonomy. The rule of Ottoman sultan Abdulhamid II r. The Alawites enjoyed little benefit from the centralized Ottoman government and its largely Sunni-based policies that attempted to convert locals to Sunni Islam through building of mosques in Alawite villages and Sunni training of Alawite children.
The Alawite region became a part of Syria as a byproduct of the notoriously secret Sykes-Picot Agreement between France and Britain. It was placed under the French mandate after the end of World War I. After defeating and evicting the British-backed Syrian King Faysal in , France, in a divide-and-rule strategy, partitioned Syrian territories into four parts, one of which was Latakia, where most of the population was Alawite.
By promoting separate identities and creating autonomous zones in Syria along the lines of ethnic and sectarian differences, the French mandate aimed to maximize French control and influence in Syria. Muslim and Christian minorities were the main allies of the French against the Arab nationalism rooted among the urban Sunni elite. Furthermore, Alawite territory was geographically crucial because French forces could use it to control the whole Levant coast.
During the mandate era, many local leaders supported the creation of a separate Alawite nation. Alawite cooperation with French authorities culminated on July 1, when Alawite territory became an independent state. The new state had low taxation and a sizeable French subsidy.
This independence did not last long. In return, Alawites helped maintain French rule in the region. Alawitepeasants, who were not only religiously repressed and socially isolated by mainstream Sunni Muslims but also economically exploited by their fellow Alawite landowners, rushed to enlist their sons for the mandate army. As a result, a large number of Alawites from mountain and rural areas became officers and they formed the backbone of the political apparatus that would emerge in the s.
French policy ultimately served its purpose to increase the sense of separateness between the political center and the autonomous states in Syria's outlying areas. Alawite leaders, such as Sulayman Ali al-Assad, the grandfather of Hafez al-Assad, rejected any type of attachment to an independent Syria and wished to stay autonomous under French protection.
Yet the Alawite community remained divided over the future of the community. Despite a deep sense of religious difference, an increasing number of Alawites and Sunni Arabs were coming to believe that the inclusion of Alawites in a unified Syria was inevitable. People both within and without Syria worked toward a rapprochement between the predominant Muslims and minority Alawites.
For instance, Muhammad Amin al-Husseini, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, who was the Sunni Muslim cleric in charge of Jerusalem's Islamic holy places from to and known as a leading Arab nationalist, issued a fatwa declaring Syrian Alawites to be known as Muslim. With this fatwa , al-Husseini aimed to unite the Syrian people against the Western occupation.
Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the Stanton Foundation. Skip to main content. The Ohio State University. Department of History. Home Topics Africa. Middle East. North America. International Relations Religion Education Sports. Search form Search. That brushes over a much more complex society. The Syrian regime was built by Hafez al-Assad ruler from to , who reserved top positions in the military and intelligence services for the people he most trusted: Alawite officers from his native area.
However, Assad also drew the support of powerful Sunni business families. At one point, Sunnis constituted the majority of the ruling Baath Party and rank-and-file army and held high government positions. Nevertheless, Alawite families over time cemented their hold on the security apparatus, securing privileged access to state power.
This generated resentment among many Sunnis, especially religious fundamentalists who regard Alawites as non-Muslims, but also among the Alawite dissidents critical of the Assad family. When the uprising against Bashar al-Assad kicked off in March , most Alawites rallied behind the regime as did many Sunnis. Some did so out of loyalty to the Assad family, and some out of fear that an elected government, inevitably dominated by politicians from the Sunni majority, would take revenge for the abuse of power committed by Alawite officers.
Many Alawites joined the feared pro-Assad militias, known as the Shabiha , or the National Defense Forces and other groups. Sunnis have joined opposition groups such as Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, Ahrar al-Sham, and other rebel factions. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance.
Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights. Measure content performance. The Arab Alawites are a part of a syncretic and highly secretive offshoot of Islam, thought to be open only to men and, in this case, an initiated few.
The esoteric Alawite faith is considered by some to be close to Shiism. Recently, the Alawite identity has evolved; following the Islamic Revolution, Iran reached out to the Alawites, disseminating propaganda suggesting that they are really Shiites, in the hopes of justifying Shiite Iranian support for the Alawite-backed regime in Damascus.
The Alevi faith, on the other hand, is a relatively unstructured interpretation of Islam, open to both genders and, historically, even to non-Muslims. Alevism is unique among Muslim sects, as it does not segregate men and women, even during prayers. The Alevi faith is also syncretic in nature, mixing Islam and Sufism, as well as harboring respect for some traditions of Christianity and the Turks' pre-Islamic religion, Shamanism. Unlike the Alawite faith, Alevism lacks written traditions and does not emphasize religious practice.
An additional key difference between the two nearly eponymous sects is that while the Alawite faith might be considered an offshoot of Shiite Islam, the Alevis are neither Sunnis nor Shiites.
Around eighty percent of the world's Muslims are Sunnis and another fifteen to twenty percent are Shiites. Other groups, such as the Alevis, make up such a relatively small portion of the Muslim faith that many are simply unaware of them. This leads to a fallacy: Many assume that because the Alevis are not Sunnis, they must be Shiites, confusing them with the similarly named Alawites. This myth is common even among some Muslims who assume that the Alawites and Alevis are identical.
Surprisingly, this misconception even exists among the Turkish Alevis. It is not unlikely to meet Alevis who, due to their lack of religious education because of their deep secularization in the twentieth century, assume that Alawite is just another name for Alevi.
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