They represented a distinct community that had come into existence following the end of the Aksumite–Persian wars in the 6th century when Iranian soldiers began intermarrying with Arab women in Sanaa and throughout Yemen.
[1] These couples' offspring and their descendants held an ethnic and cultural identity that was influenced by their mixed heritage from the Sasanian Empire and the Himyarite Kingdom, though they eventually assimilated into the society of the latter.
According to a commentary by the 10th-century Arab historian, Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani in the Kitab al-Aghani, these people were, up until this time, referred to as Banū al-Aḥrār (بنو الأحرار, lit.
[2] The names were defined as such due to a narration that told of a strong storm that hit ancient Yemen and revealed a stone inscription that stated: "Who rules Dhamar?
The Sasanian leaders in Yemen, including Badhan, Fayruz al-Daylami, and Wahb ibn Munabbih, responded favorably to Muhammad's diplomatic missions and formally converted to Islam by 631.
Following Badhan's death, his son Shahr replaced him as governor but was killed by the rebellious Arab tribal leader al-Aswad al-Ansi, who had claimed prophethood during the Ridda Wars.