Bedouins-msg

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Bedouins-msg - 10/18/13

The Bedouin peoples of the Middle East.

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NOTICE -

This file is a collection of various messages having a common theme that I have collected from my reading of the various computer networks. Some messages date back to 1989, some may be as recent as yesterday.

This file is part of a collection of files called Stefan's Florilegium. These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org

I have done a limited amount of editing. Messages having to do with separate topics were sometimes split into different files and sometimes extraneous information was removed. For instance, the message IDs were removed to save space and remove clutter.

The comments made in these messages are not necessarily my viewpoints. I make no claims as to the accuracy of the information given by the individual authors.

Please respect the time and efforts of those who have written these messages. The copyright status of these messages is unclear at this time. If information is published from these messages, please give credit to the originator(s).

Thank you,

Mark S. Harris AKA: THLord Stefan li Rous

Stefan at florilegium.org

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From: Hroowyna Standohtor <ladyhroowyna at yahoo.com>

Date: Tue Jun 24, 2003 6:49:47 AM US/Central

To: bryn-gwlad at ansteorra.org

Subject: [Bryn-gwlad] Bedouin Garb

This is for the young lady who asked me about Bedouin Garb at Sara's Drum night, last Thursday.

Hope this helps, you can contact me via Ffynnon Gaths web page. I'm the Hospitaler, Lady Hroowyna Standohtor or email me here.

http://www.trmkt.com/sedu.html

http://www.zawaj.com/weddingways/bedouin_color.html

http://www.richmondreview.co.uk/books/lastbedu.html

http://www.travellady.com/articles/article-acrossnegev.html

http://mystic-caravan.com/bedu.htm bedouin jewels

The women wear long sleeved, ankle long dresses, and beneath them ankle long pantaloons. The dresses are beautifully embroidered and sometimes dyed in beautiful colours. A black headcloth (Tarha) covers their hair and their faces are hidden behind their veils (Burga) which is embroidered and fixed with gold and silver coins to show the financial status of the family. A sling arrangement by which a Bedouin woman carries her baby on her back also becomes part of her headdress, for the sling is supported across here forehead. It is called the Shakaban. Bedouin women signal their status with their headgear - while all women are required to keep their heads covered.

The Tareq Rajab Museum holds some examples of Al Sedu or bedouin weaving. Old pieces from Kuwait are hard to find, because they were made to be used until they wore out.

It was the bedouin women who were responsible for producing these beautiful, functional storage and saddle bags, camel trappings, floor and cushion coverings. The largest single item the woman wove was the tent itself, bayt al sha'ar or 'house of hair'. Woven in long strips from goat or sheep hair, or a mixture of both, it provided shelter from the wind, warmth in winter and shade in summer. Since the fibres expanded when wet, the tent was also waterproof. The tent was usually owned by the oldest woman in the family, who had probably woven it herself. The combination of the chocolate brown, black and white strips of a tent lying low in the vastness of the desert with its dividing curtain of red, beige and yellow patterns was an extraordinarily beautiful sight.

The layout of the tent reflected the activities carried out within it. It was divided by a curtain into a men's and a women's section. The former was for entertaining visitors, the latter for cooking, looking after children and sleeping. Women did not enter the male section, unless the men were away when they would take over the duty of hospitality if visitors arrived. The women would, however look over the partition and listen to the conversations taking place on the other side. They passed loud comments on the tribal affairs under discussion, and were never slow to give their advice. That advice was listened to with respect and often taken.

The designs woven into their weaving reflected Islamic traditions and even now the human figure is rarely seen. The geometric patterns are made up of vertical or horizontal stripes along with stylized scorpions, combs, maybe an incense burner or a tribal wasm or motif. Since the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in l990, an occasional gun or a FREE KUWAIT have been added to the repertoire. In the past some tribes were famous for a particular motif. Small triangles arranged in a bright staggered pattern and much used in northern Arabia, was called after the woman who first created it - Janah hanbaliyyeh. Its overall effect is vibrant and exuberant. The tent dividers had gaily decorated ends with patterns that varied from tribe to tribe. The back and sides of the tent could be raised in summer to help with shade and ventilation, even so summer temperatures could go as high as 50C in the shade.

The traditional life of the bedouin woman was one of hard work. In addition to weaving there was the bearing and rearing of children, cooking, as well as the pitching and striking of the tent as the tribe moved to other pasturages. In the old days, the women also made the clothes for the family. When the Singer sewing machine was introduced early in the twentieth century, it immediately became a part of every household, bedouin or urban.

Wool for weaving came from the tribe's flocks and was black, brown and shades of beige and white. White wool could be dyed red, yellow, green and dark blue or black. Indigo might have been used as a dye, though it is not really known if this was so. Indigo, if it was used would probably have been obtained from India and arrived via the Kuwaiti trading ships that plied between Kuwait and India. Kuwait town was a centre for many bedouin tribes, who came in at regular intervals to buy their essential supplies. Most dyes were obtained from plants collected and prepared by the women themselves. Later on dyes were bought from the town druggist shop.

In the spring when the weather was at its most beautiful and temperate, the sheep were sheared by men using big scissors. The rough wool was combed out by the women, and if they happened to be near the sea, it was washed thoroughly. Spinning the wool into thread was done at any time of the year and women and girls, whether herding the sheep, walking or merely sitting were always busy with the spindle.

The process of weaving is known in Arabic as Al Sedu, which is also the name of the loom. Threads are stretched between four pegs hammered into the ground to form a long rectangle. Being flat it can easily be rolled up and carried from place to place. The loom was set up in or just outside the women's portion of the tent. To make the tent, the wool was woven into long brown or black strips, which had to be carefully and painstakingly sewn together. Then the tent cloth was raised on long tent poles and the sides tautened by long ropes. The size of a tent depended on the importance of the family concerned. A wealthy one might have a tent with four or five central ridge poles, while a poor one might only have one. As sections of the tent wore out, the women would weave new strips or sometimes buy them from other bedouin and stitch them together .

With the discovery of oil, the whole Arabian peninsula faced a period of very rapid change. This brought more affluence but also began to destroy many fine traditions. Weaving ceased to be a necessity and the art began to die. A group of concerned Kuwaitis, alarmed at the rapid disappearance of weaving, formed Al Sedu Society to encourage the women to continue weaving as well as sell their products. As weaving had previously been for personal use only, it was a new concept to persuade the women that it could be worth their while to weave for sale. Many of the women have returned to their looms and continued to produce work of a high standard for the market. The invasion of Kuwait by the Iraqis disrupted the efforts to keep alive Al Sedu, but young people are still interested in the art and continue to learn how to weave the age old saddlebags, tents strips , as well as pieces that look so elegant as an interior decoration.

Headwear or hats

There is a small but interesting section of headwear such as a few silver'Tantour or Shihabiyyin once worn by the Druze women. This headdress, worn by married women until the late nineteenth century might speculatively have originated from either China or Mongolia. Certainly the Christian woman of Orfa (now in Turkey) are supposed to have worn a very similar head-dress, as did the Jewesses of Algeria. The Hennin of mediaeval Britain and France is considered to have been brought to Europe through the Crusaders. The common factor in all these hats could be related to the Mongolian invasions of the thirteenth century as well as earlier incursions. A Chinese general during the time of Ghengiz Khan spoke of a cap or hat that the wives of Mongolian chiefs wore. Called a Gu-gu' and constructed of wire and then covered with purple cloth. The Gu-gu was about three feet high and had the appearance of a bamboo. (Mongol Jewellery, Martha Boyer, [ages 105/9). It is also possible that the Tantour descends from the towering calathos headdress that originated from Phoenician idols. As late as the early nineteenth century it was still worn by Cypriot women in Larnaca, Cyprus. Many other countries have worn similar tall headdresses and it still seems a distinct possibility that the Tantour of Lebanon originated from the Mongols.

There are a variety of hats and headwear, including Palestinian coin hats , embroidered caps from India, Oman, as well as a variety of women's headwear from the Turkoman of Iran and Afghanistan. There are examples from Tunisia, Syria, Morocco, the Pamirs, Iran etc.

There is a small but interesting section of headwear such as a few silver Tantour or Shihabiyyin'once worn by the Druze women. This headdress, worn by married women until the late nineteenth century might speculatively have originated from either China or Mongolia. Certainly the Christian woman of Orfa (now in Turkey) are supposed to have worn a very similar head-dress, as did the Jewesses of Algeria. The Hennin of mediaeval Britain and France is considered to have been brought to Europe through the Crusaders. The common factor in all these hats could be related to the Mongolian invasions of the thirteenth century as well as earlier incursions. A Chinese general during the time of Ghengiz Khan spoke of a cap or hat that the wives of Mongolian chiefs wore. Called a Gu-gu' and constructed of wire and then covered with purple cloth. The Gu-gu was about three feet high and had the appearance of a bamboo. (Mongol Jewellery, Martha Boyer, [ages 105/9). It is also possible that the Tantour descends from the towering calathos headdress that originated from Phoenician idols. As late as the early nineteenth century it was still worn by Cypriot women in Larnaca, Cyprus. Many other countries have worn similar tall headdresses and it still seems a distinct possibility that the Tantour of Lebanon originated from the Mongols.

There are a variety of hats and headwear, including Palestinian coin hats, embroidered caps from India, Oman, as well as a variety of women's headwear from the Turkoman of Iran and Afghanistan. There are examples from Tunisia, Syria, Morocco, the Pamirs, Iran etc.

---------------------------------

Bedouin weaving

The museums holds small but interesting examples of bedouin weaving. Old pieces from Kuwait were hard to find because they were made to be used until they wore out. It was mainly women in the Bedouin world who did the weaving and were responsible for producing the beautiful but functional cushion covers, saddle and storage bags, camel trappings and floor covering. The largest single item a woman produced was the tent itself, the bayt al shaar or house of hair. Woven in strips from goat or sheep hair, the tent privided shelter from the wind, warmth in winter and shade in summer. Since hair and wool fibres expand when wet, it was also waterproof.

The designs woven into their work reflected Islamic traditions and for the most part human figures are rarely seen. Small triangles arranged in a bright staggered pattern and much used in northern Arabia was called after the woman who first created it Janah Hanbaliyyeh. Its overall effect is vibrant and exuberant. The tent dividers had gaily decorated ends with patterns that varied from tribe to tribe and against them would be piled folded quilts and rugs. The back tent curtain could be raised in summer to help with ventilation and extra shade. With the discovery of oil, the whole Arabian peninsula faced a period of very rapid change, while bringing more affluence also began to destroy many fine traditions. Most of the Arabian penninsula countries have made an effort to keep the art alive for future generations and some women continue to make Al Sedu for the market.

From: Lorraine Gehring <lorrainegehring at KC.SUREWEST.NET>

Date: March 19, 2010 12:25:32 PM CDT

To: CALONTIR at listserv.unl.edu

Subject: Re: [CALONTIR] Pavillions

At 01:05 PM 3/18/2010, you wrote:

<<< From http://www.mcdonough.com/writings/new_geography.htm:

The Bedouin tent, for example, shows how simple and elegant-how suited to locale-good design can be.

-- Logan -- >>>

Years ago I read a book completely about Middle Eastern tents -- the type we call bedouins in the SCA.

The author said that the women typically stake the end of a loom outside the tent and weave a long strip of cloth made of goat and camel hair. The weaver starts at the edge of the tent shade and moves back. As the strip grows, the stake is moved further away from the tent.

When finished, the strip of cloth then becomes the newest part of the tent. The top seam is opened and it is added to the top. The oldest, most worn piece -- the piece closest to the ground -- is removed. The tent ages in stages, with the ragged or stained pieces closest to the ground.

Wish I could remember the book. IIRC, the European author lived with the Bedouin for awhile.

Lorraine

Date: Sun, 22 Jan 2012 17:14:51 -0800

From: "David Friedman" <ddfr at daviddfriedman.com>

To: Cooks within the SCA <sca-cooks at lists.ansteorra.org>

Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Desert Tribes?

<<< Out from under the rock for a while. :-)) I have been asked to teach

about middle eastern food at an event next month. Their theme is the

"Desert Tribes". What areas would that seriously cover? Berbers?

Anything in the fertile crescent? Since I have an hour, I would really

like to narrow it down a little. Thanks everyone.

Aldyth >>>

Berbers aren't in the Middle East, they are in North Africa. Middle eastern desert tribes would be mostly bedouin.

You might want to look at God's Banquet: Food in Classical Arabic Literature by Geert Jan van Gelder. As I recall, it has some references to bedouin food.

David/Cariadoc

www.daviddfriedman.com