Plural of alid; members of the Alidae family or descendants of Ali (in Islamic contexts).
From 'Ali,' the cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad, with the suffix '-id' creating a patronymic meaning 'descendant of.' Used historically in Islamic genealogy and taxonomy.
In Islamic history, being an 'alid' was huge—it meant you were a direct descendant of the Prophet's own family, which gave you special religious and political status in Muslim communities for over 1,400 years.
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