In order to understand who the Bedouins are, it is necessary to penetrate the history, life, lifestyle of these people. By the way, their name does not serve as a designation of a particular nationality, but indicates only a free way of life. Bedouin is a desert inhabitant wandering from place to place. That is how it was customary for Europeans to name all the inhabitants of the Arab world. Translated from Arabic, "Bedouin" is a "nomad" or "inhabitant of the desert."
Desert Children have never been tied to one place, regardless of their nationality or religion. Nomads developed territories with rather severe climate conditions.
History of Development and Religion
Bedouin is usually a native of the Arabian Peninsula. It is this land that is considered their primeval homeland. Subsequently, the nomads spread through the Egyptian and Syrian deserts. And after the Muslim Arabs conquered Africa in the 7th century, the Bedouins also spread over the Sahara desert, as a result of which these lands became the second homeland of nomads. Being warlike, the Bedouin tribes gradually conquered new territories. And by the end of the 7th century, the lands of nomads significantly increased and stretched from Persia to the Atlantic Ocean.
In order to understand who the Bedouins are by faith, you need to go back several thousand years ago. As is known from historical sources, they were originally pagans, but later, approximately in the fourth century, the Bedouins began to profess Christianity. Three centuries later, the nomads converted to Islam and began to speak Arabic.
Methods of self-government
The Bedouins, like most tribes, have a hierarchy where the sheikh acts as the head. This person is considered the elder of the clan, it is he who deals with all organizational issues of the tribe and resolves various conflicts. Interestingly, this title is transmitted exclusively through the male line.
Also in the Bedouin society, the “Kadi", (a person of clerical rank, military leader and judge) plays an important role. His responsibilities also include conducting the marriage process.
Bedouin is a desert nomad
The main residence of the Bedouins is the Syrian and Arabian Desert, the Sinai Peninsula, as well as the Sahara Desert, located in North Africa. Nomads always preferred to live in arid regions, while most other peoples chose territories with milder climates, settled near rivers and reservoirs.
Inhabitants of the desert live in many countries of the world, including Israel, Egypt, Jordan. And also in such countries as Tunisia, Morocco, Libya and others.
Given that these are constantly nomadic people, their census is quite problematic. Therefore, at the moment, the figure of 4.5 million Bedouins is considered conditional. It indicates the estimated number of all nomads in the world. More than one million Bedouins live in Syria. The largest clan of this country is the Ruwallah tribe.
Desert Culture
The Bedouins are inherent in the ancient tradition of blood feud, because conflicts between tribes were not uncommon. In this regard, in the course of history, based on the way of life and religiosity, a mechanism for resolving conflicts was formed. This question is directly dealt with by the sheikh if the warring parties turn to him. The head appoints the amount of moral compensation, and after its payment the incident is considered to be exhausted.
The Bedouins, like other tribes, form their political and social structure on a patriarchal basis. All nomads are divided into Hamullah clans and tribes. They live in childbirth in huts and tents, and in each family there can be more than forty villages. Bedouins (a photo of them is presented to your attention in the article) are considered excellent hunters and excellent riders, as well as interesting storytellers and good dancers.
Camel - food or vehicle?
Because of the frequent migrations, the Bedouins use a limited amount of everything necessary, and the reason for this is the peculiarity of the way of life. Only camels are suitable for moving and transporting goods through deserts, which limits the possibility of transportation in large volumes. For the same reason, Bedouin tents quickly assemble and disassemble. Basically, they consist of panels made of sheep wool, which easily fit on a frame of poles and poles.
The main activity of nomads is the breeding of camels, goats and sheep. For these people, a camel is a valuable animal. It serves both for transporting goods and for riding. At the same time, the two-humped animal supplies the owners with wool, and is also a valuable selling item.
One of the most important products of the Bedouin's daily menu is camel milk.
Supplement to food are rice, dates, sorghum and wheat flour products. Nomads eat meat exclusively on holidays and other special celebrations, for which they slaughter a sheep and cook it on an open fire. Mint tea and coffee are their favorite hot drinks.
Most of the modern Bedouins, as well as previous generations, continue to lead a nomadic lifestyle, engaging in farming and raising livestock. But many of these days are mainly engaged in serving tourists. Demonstrating to them at the same time "the life and customs of the Bedouins." To a greater extent this is inherent in the Egyptian and Sinai nomads. As for the Israeli Bedouins, they received help from the state in the form of benefits and privileges, due to which most of them settled, creating settlements and villages. Subsequently, many Bedouins went from raising livestock to modern professions.