The Battle of Dhi Qar (Arabic: يوم ذي قار), also known as the War of the Camel's Udder,[3] was a pre-Islamic battle fought between Arab tribes and the Sassanid Empire in Southern Iraq. The battle occurred after the death of Al-Nu'man III by the orders of Khosru II.[4]
The dating of the event is disputed. The Encyclopædia Iranica entry on the subject says:
"According to certain Muslim traditions, the battle took place in the year 1/623 or 2/624... Ebn Ḥabīb... dated it earlier, between 606 and 622, but modern scholars have narrowed this range to 604-11"[2]
The battle of Dhū-Qār is reported in many classical works of Arabic history and literature. The longest, but not necessarily most representative, version is Bishr ibn Marwān al-Asadī's Ḥarb Banī Shaybān maʻa Kisrá Ānūshirwān (Arabic: حرب بني شيبان مع كسرى آنوشروان).[5]
Despite the small number of troops involved, the decisive victory of the Arabs is seen as the beginning of a new era, since it gave the Arab tribes a new confidence and enthusiasm.