They are the American and British companies that controlled the Middle East's oil production after World War II. It is a Cartel, which dominated the global Petroleum Industry from the mid-1940s to the mid-1970s.

Origin of the Name "Seven Sisters"

This name was the common term for the seven transnational oil companies of the "Consortium for Iran" Oligopoly. First used and popularized in the 1950s by businessman Enrico Mattei, head of the Italian state oil company Eni, after he was rejected to join the Consortium, referring to the seven mythological Pleiades sisters fathered by the titan Atlas.

The "Seven Sisters" group consisted of:

1. Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (originally Anglo-Persian; now BP)

2. Royal Dutch Shell (now Shell)

3. Standard Oil Company of California (SoCal, later Chevron)

4. Gulf Oil (now merged into Chevron)

5. Texaco (now merged into Chevron)

6. Standard Oil Company of New Jersey (Esso, later Exxon, now part of ExxonMobil)

7. Standard Oil Company of New York (Socony, later Mobil, now part of ExxonMobil)

Preceding the 1973 oil crisis, the Seven Sisters controlled around 85% of the world's petroleum reserves.

They were politically influential; they were able to exert considerable power over Third World oil producers. They kept prices stable at moderate levels. This was done to not incentivize governments in both the consumer and producer countries to impose regulations on the oil industry.

As of today, the surviving companies from the Seven Sisters are BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Shell, which form Four members of the "Supermajors" group.