Arabian Horse Education Center
Arabians horses have a rich and wonderful history that has entwined with some of history's greatest figures like Napoleon and George Washington. Purebred Arabians are purebred Arabians, however, they are classified into different bloodlines classes such as Domestic, CMK, Crabbet, Polish, Spanish, Russian and Egyptian.
In addition to being classified by region; Arabians are sometimes even classified by a highly regarded breeder or farm responsible for propegating a particular line, such as a sire line. Examples of this would be 'Babson' Arabians, which are in fact, Egyptian, however the reference is towards the breeder, Henry Babson. Other popular breeder and farm references are: Hearst, Kellogg, ( which also falls under CMK ), Pritzlaff, Gainey ( made famous by Ferzon and Fadjur ) and Gleannloch breeding and Al Marah just to name a few.
To a newcomer, it can be very confusing trying to learn and distinguish between the many different bloodlines. Even for those of us knowledgeable about Arabians, it is nice to know more about the horses we have in our barns!
The Arabian Horse Association has a tremendous resource for learning bloodlines. We have broken it down into the common bloodlines, simply click the link to read an in depth article about each bloodline.
Domestic Arabians are Arabians that are born in the USA and also those of mixed bloodlines. Why Arabians born in America aren't called American Arabians is really a mystery.
Crabbet Arabians are Arabians bred at or descended from horses bred at Crabbet Park by Lady Wentworth. Mr. W.K. Kellogg was one of the largest Crabbet Arabian importers, introducing Arabians to Americans in the early 20th century.
Arabian horses have been present in European countries for centuries, often used to improve on Thoroughbreds and other heavy breeds. Arabians were introduced to Poland byTurskish invaders centuries ago. Wars, Arabian horses and Poland has been a commonality for centuries. Poland has become one of the foremost producer of athletic and beautiful Arabian Horses.
Like other European countries, the value of Arabian blood to improve upon other horse breeds made it very desirable to have this beautiful creature of the desert. Royalty and nobles in Russia were no different than the elite in other countries who coveted the blood of these treasures... However organized breeding of purebred Arabians wasn't to begin until the late 1800's. Russian Arabians are a combination of bloodstock 'acquired' from Poland and then later infused with the blood of one of the most beautiful Straight Egyptian Stallions, Aswan. This combination has really put Russian Arabians in the forefront of quality and type.
Spain has always been revered for the finest horse flesh in the world, Arabians were no exception. In 1847, the young 16 year old Queen Isabel II preferred a more agile better tempered mount. She concentrated on breeding purebred arabians, keeping records of her private stock. She sent a buying commission to the desert to search for the best bloodstock in order to revive and to improve the declining horse population. She was the first to keep accurate records, and thus one of the oldest registrars of Arabians horses was established. Spanish Arabians were selected with the utmost care and quality. Today they are amongst the most beautiful Arabians.
Egypt is a country with a wealth of history and the Arabian is there to share in it's glory. Evidence of the domestication of horses emerged in Syria, dating 2000 BC. In an excavation, halters adorned the bones of horses and horses in artistic drawings. In 1330 AD, the first pedigrees recorded referred to the Arabian by name, although there was no mention of strains or types. As time went on, early travelers questioned the crossing of apparently different "breeds" by the people of the Desert. These were not, in fact, different breeds but strains, or families, of the same breed.
In Modern times, some Arabian enthusiast believe Egyptian Arabians to be the purest of the purebred Arabian horses. Whether or not this is true is open for opinion and debate. Modern Egyptian Arabians have an imcomparable desert type that when crossed on other bloodlines of Arabians, offers the chance to enhance and improve those lines.
Arabian Horses that are of pure Egyptian lineage are referred to as 'Straight Egyptians'. What is a Straight Egyptian?