[3] The Jarwanids came to power some time in the 14th century, after expelling the forces of Sa'eed ibn Mughamis, the chief of the Muntafiq tribe based in the Iraqi city of Basrah.

Contemporary sources such Ibn Battuta and Ibn Hajar[4] describe the Jarwanids as being "extreme Rawafidh," a term for Shi'ites who rejected the first three Caliphs, while a 15th-century Sunni scholar from Egypt describes them as being "remnants of the Qarmatians."

A Twelver scholar of the 14th century, Jamaluddeen Al-Mutawwa', belonged to the house of Jarwan.

[5][6] According to Al-Humaydan, who specialized in the history of eastern Arabia, the Jarwanids were Twelvers, and the term "Qaramita" was used simply as an epithet for "Shi'ite.

"[7][8] Jarwanid rule came to an end in the 15th century at the hands of the Jabrids, a clan of the Banu Uqayl Bedouins.