The Al Thanis[3] can be traced back to
Mudar bin Nizar. The tribe moved from Nejdi town of
Ushaiger and settled at the Gebrin oasis in southern
Najd (present-day
Saudi Arabia) before they moved to Qatar.[4] Around the 17th century, the tribe lived in
Ushaiger, a settlement north-west of
Riyadh. They settled in Qatar around the 1720s. Their first settlement in Qatar was in the southern town of Sikak, and from there they moved north-west to
Zubarah and
Al Ruwais.[5] They settled in
Doha in the 19th century under their leader
Mohammed bin Thani.[4] The group was named after the father of Mohammad,
Thani bin Mohammad.[4]
The family is made of four main factions: Bani Qassim, Bani Ahmed, Bani Jaber, and Bani Thamer.[6][7] As of the early 1990s, the number of the family members was estimated to be about 20,000.[7]
The leadership transitions in 1913, 1949, 1960, and 2013 were all
abdications.[6] These abdications were to a nephew in one incident and sons in the others.[6][8]
The family and their relatives and associates own significant properties in the
Mayfair district of London, with an estimated quarter of Mayfair's 279 acres including two of the area's best known luxury hotels,
The Connaught and
Claridge's. The area has acquired the nickname "
Little Doha".[9]