Shahawan clan • عشيرة شهوان اليزيديين

The Shahawan clan is based in Dere Khane and Shekh Khenis villages and has four mukhtars.

• Mukhtar Abbas Hassan, over about 80 families
• Mukhtar Eddi Khalaf Ammar, over about __ families
• Mukhtar Mahsen Khalil, over about __ families
• Mukhtar Nuri Khizem خزيم, over about __ families

Shahawan origins

There were three brothers and one sister living in Turkey, near Cizre. This was after Shekh Adi times, under the Ottoman eras (someone suggested about 600 years). One of the brothers was named Shaho and is the namesake for the clan. The governor of Cizre demanded the sister as his bride, resulting in a dispute and the governor killed one of the brothers.

The remaining two brothers and sister came to the Haleqi tribe area for some time, which is around Khana Sor area, as guests of that tribe. The leadership of the Haleqi tribe, recognizing the good character of the two brothers and sister, recommended they intermarry: a Haleqi bride for one of the brothers; and the sister marrying a Haleqi groom. There are three fig trees in Haleqi tribal area behind Se Shemis temple which are said to have been planted there by Shaho.

After time, the Haleqi tribe warned one of the Shahawan men that one of the Shahawan wives was committing adultery — the one who would later convert to Islam. This was before gun times, so the brother kept his knife by his side and watched his wife. He saw a Haleqi man come to his wife, and the brother killed them both.

This prompted Shaho and his brother to run away with some non-Ezidi Moslawi bazargan (people who roam on horseback selling things). The two brothers reached Mosul, where one of the two brothers converted to Islam by force. The one who converted to Islam established the Moslawi clan of Salim Mala Alo, which still resides there.

Shaho came back to Ezidi areas, and established his clan, the Shahawani.