Who Is The Bedouin Woman

May 1, 2014

Many women everywhere have the same hopes and dreams. To marry a good man, live in a nice house and go on to have beautiful children.

But there is much mystery surrounding the life of Bedouin women as they are rarely seen in public. With a deep-rooted history of honour and tradition, most are required to stay within the home, take care of the house and look after their family.

In return, we Bedouin men place our women in very high regard, calling them our "Queens". In the Muslim religion, we believe that men and women are created from one soul to be partners to each other. Men and women have the same religious responsibilities, and we hope both will receive the same rewards on the day of judgment.

As sons, brothers, husbands and fathers we have a duty to give the women in our lives a comfortable home, love, protection, security, food, clothing and warmth. Therefore women take pride of place in the home and usually want for nothing.

The roles in a Bedouin marriage are clearly defined. The husband works to bring money for the family to live. The wife cleans, keeps the house and garden tidy, looks after the animals, cooks, brings up the children and makes sure there is always a welcoming fire for guests. She works very hard to make sure that she does a good job for her family.

Bedouin women usually marry another Bedouin, although if a foreign man who is a good Muslim and a decent person asks the family for a woman's hand in marriage, sometimes this is allowed in our culture.

In the past, it was the parents who chose the husband for their daughter as with either a very nomadic lifestyle or a daughter who never left the home, it was unlikely that she would be able to meet any men herself.

Now Bedouin marriages tend to be based around love or at least a mutual respect for each other that could grow into something more.

The men and women who are looking to marry always listen to what other people in the community say about their potential partner. Reputation is everything and we need to know that the person we spend our life with is admired and respected.

We will discuss Bedouin weddings in more detail in next week's blog.

Bedouin women cover their bodies with long traditional dresses called galabaya. These are usually brightly coloured and patterned. They also cover their hair (and sometimes their face) with a headscarf. This is because of our Islamic faith and also in our culture no man should look to any part of a woman's body, out of respect. The only man who should see her body is her husband. In turn, traditionally Bedouin men also wear long white galabaya and a headscarf.

In every culture there are successful marriages, and ones that don't work out. The Bedouin are no different, and within a marriage each person has their right to be treated fairly according Bedouin Law and our code of ethics.

Please note that there really is no typical Bedouin woman. Her life will depend on her tribe, her family, who she marries, and whether she lives in the city, desert or in a coastal or tourist area. She could live in Sinai or other parts of Egypt and this will make a difference to her life. Some women are able to work, and others are not. Some women leave the home daily and others prefer or are expected not to leave it at all.

If you'd like to read a story based on the lives of several Bedouin women who have been interviewed in South Sinai, please click here.

Who are the Sinai Bedouin?

April 24, 2014

“Knowledge is light. And all who contribute bring light to our world.”

Our goal at the Bedouin Way is not only to give you an authentic experience when you join our mountain dinners and other safaris, but also to teach you about our way of life, culture and traditions. Week by week, we’ll write in detail about different topics that might interest you.

To start things off, Sofian Noor (one half of The Bedouin Way) gives you an overview of the Sinai Bedouin, written from his perspective. Sofian is from North Sinai and the Sawarka tribe. He's a safari guide, driver, and cook.

Being Bedouin

The Bedouin are always looking for freedom, respect and food for our families. We are very proud of our culture and we will never let that die.

We have important rituals that we live by every day. For example we wake up early in the morning and light the fire ready for breakfast, tea and coffee. We always end the day the same way.

The Bedouin are resourceful. We can make anything from almost nothing, as this is what we have always had to do living nomadically. We use everything and don't throw things away. Plastic bottles are sometimes used for cups, candles and containers. Leftover food is given to the animals. Glass vessels are used for tea. Metal cans for water.

Our houses are not important to us in the Western sense. Instead of spending money on paint, furniture, beautiful curtains or modern kitchen equipment, we place our priority on providing a good welcome for guests. We are proud and happy with our home as long as we have Bedouin seating areas (carpets and cushions on the ground), a good fire that is always lit, coffee and tea. We like things to be simple.

Every tribe has a different dialect and that's how we can recognise each other and which tribe a person is from.

There are no longer any Christian Bedouin in Sinai. We are Muslim.

We have our own Bedouin Law, which is highly respected. It is never disregarded or taken lightly.

We love coffee without sugar but tea with sugar (some would say too much!).

History

The Sinai Bedouin are a group of tribes descending from immigrants, who arrived from the Arabian Peninsula between the 14th and 18th centuries. However the Bedouin of St Catherine originated from Eastern Europe, travelling there when the monastery was being built between 548 and 565.

There are around 33 tribes across North and South Sinai and we came here with nothing. There are also Bedouin across Egypt.

Today our lives have changed dramatically due to the modern age of tourism and technology, however we try to maintain our traditions as far as possible to make sure that our way of life is never lost or forgotten.

Our generation is far more interested in politics than our fathers and forefathers. Most Bedouin only really started to talk about politics after the Egyptian Revolution of 2011 when we became affected.

Camels, Goats, Sheep and Livestock

Animals are crucial to the Bedouin. Each tribe has its own stamp for our camels, so we can spot which tribe a camel belongs to straight away. We use our camels for moving around, clothing, meat, and milk – the milk is very healthy and good for the body in many ways.

Goats are traditionally the main animal we keep as we can use them for milk, cheese, meat, their skin and fur. We can get 70% of what we need in life from them. We also keep sheep as they provide the same sustenance.

Bedouin don’t really keep cows as they eat too much and cost more money to keep if we want them to be fit and healthy. However, one tribe in North Sinai does keep them - the Remeilat.

In the past, we moved seasonally with our livestock to make sure our animals ate good food. We would then come back to our “home” when the time was right. This still happens with the traditional desert-dwelling Bedouin.

Those of us who live in the desert tend to hunt for food and those who live by the sea rely more on fishing.

In general terms, the Bedouin of the North eat more meat and the South Sinai Bedouin love to eat fish.

At One with Nature, the Environment and our Bodies

The Bedouin live our lives by carefully observing the sun, the moon, the stars, our environment and our animals. We know where we are, the time of day, and what weather we can expect by learning how to read all of these things. In a world without television, radio, telephones, computers and other technology we have learnt how to be at one with nature from previous generations. And this skill still runs through the veins of every Bedouin.

Because we are nomads and have never relied on traditional doctors, we take our medicine from nature - herbs, plants. We can treat anything from stomachaches and colds to headaches and fevers this way. Perhaps if you’ve been to Sinai and tried our organic remedies you will agree that they work.

When it comes to eating, drinking and knowing about our bodies, we learn from an early age to eat healthy food, always in small amounts. We make our meals at home or in the desert, grow our own vegetables, eat meat we have reared and cook fish we have caught by our own hands. When we want to sleep or take a rest, we do.

Thank You

We hope you have found Sofian’s summary of the Sinai Bedouin interesting. If you would like to subscribe to our blog by email you can do so on this page, and if you have any suggestions for future topics you’d like to read about we would be very happy to hear them.

Best wishes to you all.

Sofian and Mondi.

The Bedouin Way

April 11, 2014

“My father rode a camel, I shall ride a pick-up
and my son will drive a Cadillac; however my grandson will drive a donkey.”

We hope you enjoy taking a look around our website and learning a little more about Bedouin life and culture.

To give you some history behind The Bedouin Way, Mondi and Sofian have been friends for a very long time. We both live in Dahab, although Mondi from El-Tor (the capital of South Sinai) and Sofian is from the North of Sinai. We have worked together for many years on safaris and trips, so only a few weeks ago we decided it would be a good idea to do something on our own to promote Bedouin culture and help to educate the people who might be interested.

Our friends all know we can cook. So our main business is preparing Bedouin dinners in the mountains every Saturday (or other days and locations if requested). On these evenings, we not only want our guests to enjoy our food, but our aim is also to allow you to enjoy a genuine Bedouin experience that's served from the heart. We want you to ask us questions about Bedouin life so that you can paint a clearer picture of where we are from and what being Bedouin actually means.

We may be based in South Sinai, but in many ways the Bedouin Way is the same across the Middle East.

So this journal or blog will sometimes be longer but occasionally it may just have a photograph and a caption. Through writing here, plus updating our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram profiles regularly with anything that comes to mind, we hope that day by day you learn a little more about The Bedouin Way.

We will leave you with words by our good friend Ly Layla:

"Then
Time comes
To count the blessings
All stars and smiles
And end your day
In Bedouin way."

Thank you for visiting and we hope to see you soon.

Mondi and Sofian.