lets take a look at various ethnic groups in the middle east
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Ethnic Groups of the
Middle East
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Lets take a look at various ethnic groups in the Middle
East
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First … what exactly is an ethnic group?A group of people
sharing a common culture, religion, and/or language.
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Berbers of North Africa
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The people called Berbers (they call themselves Amazigh – others gave them the name Berber) lived in North Africa long before the arrival of
Arabs, dating back more than 4000 years ago.
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Over the last several hundred years many Berber people have converted to Islam.
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Thousands of years ago trade routes were established from western Africa to the
Mediterranean connecting southern Europe with much of sub-Saharan Africa. Berber
merchants were responsible for bringing goods from these cities to the north.
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Berber populations in Morocco and Algeria, plus smaller numbers in Tunisia,
Libya and Egypt
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Berbers tend to be concentrated in the mountain and desert regions of these countries. Most Berbers are farmers while others are year-round pastoral nomads.
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In some countries, such as Morocco, there is a tendency to regard the Berbers as backward and lower-class citizens, partly because their culture is strongest in the less-developed rural areas. Many of the children
drop out of school because they are taught in Arabic, which is a foreign language to them.
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Bedouins
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Arabic word meaning “desert dwellers”
Nomads of Middle East and North Africa
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Bedouins
originated in
Arabian Penins
ula region.
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They have adapted to the severe climate of desert, having an extensive knowledge of the
desert, location of water, and seasonal changes.
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They used their knowledge of the deserts to act as paid guides, controlling ancient trade routes.
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Other than goods, what else might the Bedouins have taken with them as they traveled across the desert?
Islam
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Bedouins live in family units headed by a sheik – a position that is handed down from the father to the eldest son.
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They are mostly Muslims who speak Arabic and prefer the nomadic way of life, herding animals such as camels, sheep, and goats.
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Today, many Bedouins are camel breeders.
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They live mostly in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Israel, Jordan
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However, as oil and government has grown, Bedouins are beginning to settle down along the outskirts of towns and villages. Today, Bedouins make up only about 10% of the Middle Eastern population.
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A Bedouin custom – when Bedouins meet a stranger in the desert, the stranger is given the best food and
drink, and becomes the honored guest.
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Another custom … women tend the flocks, pitch the tents, take down the tents, and cook the
meals.
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The Kurds
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Spread across remote sections of Turkey, Iran, Syria and Iraq- collectively these regions are called Kurdistan
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Most are Sunni Muslims, however, those in Iran are Shiite – small
number are Jewish
However, practice a more modern form of Islam – ex: - women do not wear a
chador
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The Kurds expected to become an independent nation after World War I. However, they were denied a country
of their own.
Today, they are the largest ethnic group in the world without a land to
call their own.
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Attempts to gain a country of their own …
1922 – A Kingdom of Kurdistan was proclaimed in northern Iraq – lasted 2 years – then overrun by British and Iraqi troops1925 – another attempt in Turkey – lasted 2 months1928 – another attempt – eastern Turkey – lasted 4 years 1946 – with help of USSR another Kurdish state established in northern Iran (USSR’s intentions – to destabilize Shah’s regime in Iran) Soviets pulled out following year and Kurds were massacred by Iranians
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The reoccurring theme … powerful nations support Kurds for tactical reasons, only to decide later that they are expendable … Again – 1970’s – US and Iran both urged Iraqi Kurds to rebel – after Iran and Iraq came to terms, Kurds were abandoned and then were slaughtered once more – thousands died.
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Continuing attempts … Partiya Karkaren Kurdistan or PKK – militant group of Turkish Kurds – fight for self-rule - regarded as a terrorist group by Turkey, US and European Union1980’s – Turkey’s government leveled 3000 Kurdish villages who supported the PKK 1980’s - Saddam Hussein persecuted Iraq’s Kurds1988 – Hussein’s military believed to have slaughtered 200,000 Kurdish civilians using poisoned gas, such as mustard gas and nerve gas – his goal –to eliminate non-Arab from Iraq1991 – Kurds rose up when US encouraged them to overthrow Saddam with the first Gulf War But they were annihilated when Saddam fought back – more than 10,000 Kurds were thought to have died.During Saddam’s trial in July 2006, he was charged with genocide for these deeds.
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With the end of Hussein they have reason to hope again – however, have
a saying “Kurds have no friends except the
mountains.”
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In today’s occupied Iraq, Kurdish regions in the north are partially self-governing with their own political
leaders. These regions are considered some of the most peaceful regions in Iraq today.
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Druze
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A religion and group of people who call themselves Muslims; however, other Muslims do not consider the
Druze Muslims. The Koran does not seem to play a big
part of their religion. Prayer is not performed in a mosque, a fast is not performed during Ramadan, and a
Druze does not need to perform the haj.
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They believe in only one God as well as reincarnation.
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Druze live in mountainous regions of Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Golan Heights and Jordan
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Iranian ethnic group that speak
the Persian language and
share a common history and culture. The
Persia language is one of the oldest languages still spoken today!
Persians
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Persians are descendents of Aryan tribes that migrated to this area from
Central Asia and later formed the great Persian Empire
Persia was the official name of Iran until 1935.
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Today, Persians can be found living in Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan,
Pakistan and the Xinjiang province of China.
Today, most Persians are Shi’ite Muslims.
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Written evidence in the form of cuneiform found in modern-day Iran tells us that Persia was the name of this area since its birth.
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Persian rugs are considered to be the most detailed hand-made works of art.
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Architecture is one area where Persians have made great
contributions.
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More examples of the beautiful
architecture
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Shah Mosque
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Persian gardens were designed to reflect paradise on earth. English word "Paradise" is thought to come from the Persian word Pardis which refers to these gardens.
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Due to Persia's somewhat central
location, it has served as a
fusion point between eastern and western arts and architecture as Greco-Roman
influence was often fused with
ideas and techniques from India and China.