Bedouin

Bedouins
Bedouin in southern Jordan
Populations
Total population	45 million
Syria
Sudan
Other
Language (s)	Arabic dialects : Najdi Hassaniya Bedawi
Religion (s)	mainly: Sunni , in a minority Shiite and other religions
change

Bedouin woman in Jerusalem between 1898 and 1914.

Head of Bedouin shepherds in 1880 by Felix Bonfils.

Bedouins are nomadic culture of Arab living in desert regions of the Middle East where they practiced the breeding of goats , and sheep and camels.

They represent about 10% of the population of the Middle East . A Bedouin family comprises the Head, his or her spouse (s) and unmarried children.

The Bedouins, who once crossed the deserts of the peninsula of Arabia or Palestine regardless of frontiers, represent Syria just under 1% of the population. The government has been sedentary for years these nomadic unrepentant. Pastors for most (and sometimes off), the Bedouin still continue to travel with horses and camels.

In Israel , the government is trying to settle these populations in the Negev and Galilee , serving in the Israeli army (often as border guards) unlike other Israeli Arabs who often do not perform military service. Despite all this, the Bedouins are poorly integrated into Israeli society and are struggling to be fully accepted .

Traditions

Family and Tribe

Bedouin society is organized on blood ties. The family (that is, an individual, his parents, brothers and sisters, his spouse, his children) is a first level of links, then comes a broader concept of family (uncles, cousins, etc..), beyond which is the clan, and finally the notion of tribe (with possible ramifications) or confederation of tribes. The look of these groups has a fundamental influence on individual behavior. The honors and disgraces of an individual are shared by his family or his tribe (which can lead to large celebrations, or ruthless reprisals).

The size of the tribes varies widely, from few thousand to hundreds of thousands. It may happen that large and wealthy families are new tribes, or that tribes in crisis (economic, demographic, etc..) Integrate more stable groups. Each clan, tribe, or confederation acknowledges the authority of a sheikh. This is not a leader, but a wise man, whose opinions have considerable legitimacy.

Bedouins (and Arabs generally) are meant descendant of the biblical figure Ishmael , the son of Abraham.

Breeding

Agricultural activity is primarily pastoral Bedouin. The main animals are raised sheep , the goat and camel.

Camels

Traditionally, camels (with a bump, also known as " camel ") are the main animals bred by the Bedouins. Their physiological characteristics (excellent adaptation to environments desert ) make them particularly valuable for the Bedouins, who raise them with great care.

Camels are used as pets or pack up. The Bedouin also receive resources such as milk or meat from small (which gives greater value to females), or wool.

The camel is the animal most prestigious livestock Bedouin. Breeders are generally much attention to their camels, and appoint each of them. With the importation of modern means of transportation by Europeans (at the end of World War I ), the camel has lost much of its value, and a section of the Bedouin economy collapsed. This is a factor in the gradual abandonment of the traditional Bedouin lifestyle.

New Living

During the twentieth century, the Bedouin society has undergone great changes, tending to remove or alter a number of traditions. These changes have mainly been driven by the encounter with the Western way of life, from the 1920s, when France and Great Britain received mandates to govern the newly created Arab countries.

Among these changes, we can mention the appearance of motor vehicles, who in many cases replaced camels (pack animals and mounts Traditional), causing the collapse of a major component of the Bedouin economy.

The country in cutting the territories inhabited by Bedouins has also restricted the movement of families and tribes in their annual migrations. (Even if these international movements have a specific tolerance in the case of nomadic Bedouins.)

The recruitment of a large number of Bedouin in national armies has meanwhile significantly curtailed tribal clashes. (A regular army can not tolerate its soldiers clash between them, or they attack the soldiers of another army without being ordered).

Bedouin famous

• Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud , King of Saudi Arabia
• Auda ibu Tayi (Howeitat tribe), who took part in the Arab Revolt during the First World War.
• Muammar Gaddafi

References

Leave a Reply