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Bedouins....
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Bedouin, derived from the Arabic badawi, a generic name for a
desert-dweller, is a term generally applied to Arab nomadic groups, who
are found throughout most of the desert belt extending from the Atlantic
coast of the Sahara via the Western Desert, Sinai, and
Negev to the
eastern coast of the Arabian desert. It is occasionally used to refer to
non-Arab groups as well, notably the Beja of the African coast of the
Red
Sea.
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The Bedouins were traditionally divided into related
tribes, each led by a Sheikh. Traditionally they would herd camels, sheep,
and goats, while riding on highly prized horses, moving according to the
seasons for grazing lands. For centuries and into the early 20th century the
Bedouin were known for their fierce resistance to outside government and
influence. |
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Few places in the desert are capable of supporting the
life of even a small community for an extended period of time, and so the
bedouin of the Sinai, like those of Arabia and the
Negev, would stay on the
move. With herds of sheep and goats as well as camels, the Sinai bedouin
migrated from one meagrely fertile area to another--each offered sustenance
and shelter for time, while the others were naturally replenished. |
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In such an unforgiving environment, any violation of
territorial rights was viewed with severe disfavor. It is a hallmark of
bedouin culture that such trespasses were neither easily forgiven nor
quickly forgotten. At the same time, a shared respect for the dangers and
hardships of the desert imbued bedouin culture with a profound and justly
celebrated sense of hospitality. In the vast silence and brooding solitude
of the Sinai, simply encountering another person was--and in some regions
still is--a rather unusual and noteworthy event. A new face was cause for
great interest, for happy generosity and careful etiquette, and for common
civility, all values celebrated in bedouin poetry, sayings, and songs. |
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