[2] They were sharīfs (tribal nobles) of the Abs, which was part of the larger Qaysi group resident in northern Syria and Upper Mesopotamia from the early Muslim conquests of the 630s.
[1] According to interpretations of Michael the Syrian's chronicle, Qurra served as governor of his native province, Jund Qinnasrin (northern Syria) or possibly Armenia during the last years of Caliph Abd al-Malik (r. 685–705).
[3] His administrative experience, coupled with the tribal origins he shared with the mother of al-Walid I, likely propelled his career during that caliph's rule.
[4] Al-Walid appointed Qurra governor of Egypt in 709 in place of his own brother Abd Allah, whose corruption was blamed for famine in the province.
According to Hugh N. Kennedy, "in some ways Qurra is the best-known of all the Umayyad governors of Egypt", since "it is from his period of office that the richest collection of administrative papyri survive".