چکیده:
Arabic literature is exceptionally rich in references to the Bedouin component
of society. The main terms used by Arabic authors to refer to the Bedouin
and their ways of life reveal the significant approach to nomadism in the Near
East and Arabic North Africa and expose specific concepts which changed over
time. Arabic terminology, in our reading, does not support a sharp and categorical
dichotomy between sedentary and Bedouin ways of life, although distinctions
based on socially mediated normative contexts appear marked, and Bedouin may
thus appear simply as a social category, so that their actual way of life may fade
into insignificance. What we suggest is to explore the extent to which the category
“Bedouin” is applied in different cultural and conceptual contexts. Various historical
attitudes may be distinguished approximately, not only on the basis of the
terms applied, but also in light of the semantic features determining their application.
Whereas in the early Islamic period, Bedouin tribal groups (aʿrāb) not
allied with the emerging Muslim community of Medina were regarded with contempt,
particularly with respect to their political role, they gained – and to some
extent preserved previous – prominence in the classical period as representatives
of the linguistic and cultural Arab heritage. This position was undermined,
almost parallel to the critical appraisal by Ibn Khaldūn, when a general attitude
of urban-inspired distrust and exotic fantasy towards the Bedouin gained ground.
This development was accompanied, and sometimes overshadowed, by the continuous
ambivalence of the figure of the Bedouin, not only expressed in terms of
ubiquitous stereotypes, but also reflecting specific experiences in various realms
of the relationship between Bedouin and non-Bedouin Arab society.
خلاصه ماشینی:
org Brought to you by | New York University Bobst Library Technical Services Authenticated Download Date | 2/21/16 10:29 PM Introduction A multitude of specific terms are used in relation to the Bedouin component of Arab societies: the terms derived from the root bdw, such as ahl albādiya, the people of the steppe and related terms, as well as the terms used for the steppe, bādiya, pl.
Brought to you by | New York University Bobst Library Technical Services Authenticated Download Date | 2/21/16 10:29 PM AlAzharī uses the term alḥāḍira both for those who settle in cities or popu lated regions, and for the nomads returning to their summer encampments after their seasonal wanderings.
Brought to you by | New York University Bobst Library Technical Services Authenticated Download Date | 2/21/16 10:29 PM Nomadic mobility in general is designed to exploit natural resources through extensive pastoralism; its radius, or its extent in terms of distance and time, together with the social forms it takes, depend on local factors.
Brought to you by | New York University Bobst Library Technical Services Authenticated Download Date | 2/21/16 10:29 PM In ancient Arabic epigraphy and poetry, reference is often made to maʿadd, a collective term for a number of tribes⁸⁵ which served to represent a hard life, far removed from the comforts offered by settled living.