كنت أقرأ هذا الاسبوع عن القبائل في عُمان و تحويل هذا النظام الاجتماعي منذ نفوذ الثروة النفطية و سلطة السلطان قابوس من حوالي 1970. و أصبحت هذه المقارنة بين الحضر و البدو ملموسة عندما ذهبتُ إلى الشرقية خلال العيد و زارتُ بعض الاماكن التي تجرب التغييرات في الوقت الحاضر.
I was reading this week about the tribes of Oman and the transformation of this social system since the influence of oil wealth and the rule of Sultan Qaboos from roughly 1970. And this comparison between the Hadar (settled peoples) and the Bedu (nomadic peoples) became concrete when I went to Ash-Sharqiya (region in Oman) during the Eid holiday and visited some places that are experiencing changes in the present day.
كما تعلمتُ من مقالة ج.ي. بيتيرسون "قبائل و سياسات في جزيرة العرب الشرقية", بالقياس إلى جزيرة العرب الشرقية, كان هناك في عمان تاريخ الحضارة, من قبل غزه العرب إلى إقليم عمان. هذا الحق, بالإضافة إلى وجود الطائفة الدينية "الإباضية", يميز عُمان من الدول الاخرى الخليجية, كما تمتعت عمان حضارة متواصلة (2). مع ذلك, القبائل كانت موجودة في عمان, بشكل حضرة او بدوية.
As I learned from J.E. Peterson’s article “Tribes and Politics in Eastern Arabia,” in comparison to Eastern Arabia, a history of civilization was present in Oman before the invasion of the Arabs to the Oman territory. This fact, in addition to the presence of the religious sect Ibadhism, distinguishes Oman from the other Gulf countries, as Oman enjoyed continuous civilization (2). However, tribes were present in Oman, in hadar/settled or bedu/nomadic form. 
طابق توقيت انخفاض نفوذ القبيلة في عمان من توقيت اكتشاف النفط في السلطنة و توطيد سلطة نظام السلطنة بعد عرش قابوس بن سعيد المعظم. تبع انتاج و تصدير النفط, انتقل أكثر من الناس إلى المدن, استفادة من الأمن الوظيفي و الخدمات المتاحة. قد اكتسبت الحكومة الفلوس من تصدير النفط أن توفر الخدمات إلى الموطنين, نفس الخدمات التي كانت توفيرها القبائل من قبل, مثلاً, تخصيص الماء. فضعف دور القبيلة في عمان بشكل ملوحظ و أضافاً أكثر و أكثر العمانون أنتقلوا إلى مراكز الحياة و أنشأوا المستوطنات. أصداء النظام القبلي موجودة الآن في السلطنة, و نشاهدها في تعيين الوزراء (واحد من هذه القبيلة و واحد من القبيلة القوية الاخرى للحفاظ على التوازن), او في مشاعر الانتماء بالقبيلة و الصلة الواضحة ممثلة في الاسم الكامل. The timing of the decrease in influence of the tribe in Oman corresponds with the timing of the discovery of oil and the consolidation of the power of the Sultanate regime after the accession of Qaboos bin Saed al-Muatham. Following the production and export of oil, more people moved to cities, benefiting from job security and the available services. The government had acquired money from exporting oil to provide services to citizens, the same services that tribes were providing before, for instance, water allocation. So the role of the tribe weakened in Oman noticeably and additionally, more and more Omanis moved to centers of life and established settlements. Echoes of the tribal system are present today in the Sultanate, and we witness them in designating ministers (one from this tribe, one from another strong tribe, to preserve the balance), or in feelings of belonging to a tribe and the clear link represented in the full name.
حسناً, وصلنا إلى اليوم الحاضر في عمان. إذا بقى شخص في العاصمة مسقط فسوف يرى السيارات الجديدة, النظارات الشمسية المصممة, و قلق للأسلوب و الديكور. على العكس, نفس الشخص سيتخيل أن البدو و سلالة البدو (هؤلاء الناس مستقرون الآن لكن بجذور في البيداء), سيتخيل أنهم ربما فقير و بسيط و بدون الاستخبارات المتطورة. لكن, في الرحلة بسيارة من مسقط إلى قرية صديقه, أخبرنا صديقنا فيصل عن الواقع.
Okay, we’ve arrived to the present day in Oman. If a person stayed in the capitol of Muscat he would see new cars, designer sunglasses, and a worry for style and décor. On the contrary the same person would imagine that the Bedu and the offspring of the Bedu (those people settled now but with roots in the desert), he would imagine that they are perhaps poor and simple and without sophisticated intelligence. But, on the car ride from Muscat to his friend’s village, our friend Faisal informed us on the reality.
بإيجاز, قال فيصل أن يتظاهر نسبة لا يستهان الناس في العاصمة, لاسيما الشباب, بأنهم لديهم الثروة. و بسبب سهولة الحصول على القروض, يستعير الناس كثير من المال لغرض استخدامها للاشياء المادية, أفراط التسوق و بقاء مدينين لسنوات. أفترض أن انتشار هذه الظاهرة سيؤدي إلى مشاكل كثيرة في مستقبل عمان. المزيج من الديون الشخصية و انحدار تصدير النفط و لذلك انحدار متوقع ثروة الحكومة كلها تمثل مسألة خطيرة تلوح في الأفق لعمان. و يتعكس الموضع كله التفكير على المدى القصير النموذجي في عمان...
ثم, وصلنا إلى قرية محمود. طبعاً, كنا استقبلنا بكرم الضيافة الاسطوري العماني. بعد زيارة النساء, قابانا الجد في العائلة و لللآسف ليس لدي صورة منه بسبب رغبتي أن أكون محترمة. مصره كان ملفوف في أسلوب البدو و حمل عصا ليساعده في الممشى. قال محمود بعد الزيارة "قريتنا ليست متطورة" لكن عندما سألت الناس فيها عن الاختلاف بين الحياة في مسقط و الحياة في القرية (لأن قضى معظمهم الوقت خارج القرية, مثلاً للتعليم) أكدوا أن لطف القرية في العلاقات بين الناس. يعرفون كل الجيران و يفعلون الزيارات إلى الجيران و أفراد الأسرة كثيراً. الحياة في العاصمة منفصلة, و أنا موافقة. حتى لو, كما قال فيصل, سعى معظم الناس في القرية إلى نوع الحياة في العاصمة, في الحقيقة, يفضلون نظام الحياة في الريف في نواح عديدة.
Then, we arrived at Mahmoud’s village. Of course, we were received with the legendary Omani hospitality. After visiting the women, we met the grandfather of the family and unfortunately I don’t have a picture of him because of my desire to be respectful. His masar (turban fabric) was wrapped in the bedu style and he carried a cane to help him walk. After the visit Mahmoud said “our village is not developed” but when I asked people about the differences between life in Muscat and life in the village (because most of them spent time outside the village, for instance for schooling) they stressed that the 'niceness' of the village is in the relationships between people. They know all of their neighbors and make visits to the neighbors and members of the family often. Life in the capitol is separated, and I agree. Even if, as Faisal said, most of the people in the village aim for the type of life in the capitol, in reality, they prefer the structure of life in the countryside in many ways.
عندما ذهبنا إلى مزرعة الجمال (أحبها!) تبينت الطبيعة الحديثة لهؤلاء البدو سابقاً. همس محمود في أذني, أن غالب, صاحب مزرعة الجمال, لديه مصنع الحلوة و معطم صغير أيضاً. بعد ذلك, في السيارة, قال فيصل أن كثير من البدو أو البدو أصلاً, أغنياء الآن, لكن ليس من الممكن أن نرى أشرات هذه الثروة من سلوكهم او بيوتهم مثلا. When we went to the camel farm (I love them!) the modern nature of these formerly bedouin peoples became clearer. Mahmoud whispered in my ear that Ghalib, the camel farm owner, had a Halwa (Oman sweet) factory and small restaurant as well. After that, in the car, Faisal said that many Bedu or those originally Bedu, are rich now, but it’s not possible for us to see the signs of this wealth from their behavior or their homes for instance.
فهذا هو, تاريخ بسيط عن تطور دور القبيلة في عمان و ملاحظاتي المتعلقة عن الاختلاف بين الحضر و البدو و ال"ما في بين" في عمان اليوم.
So that’s it, a simple history on the developed role of the tribe in Oman and my observations relating to the differences between the “settled”, “bedu”, and the “in between” in Oman today.
Beautiful post.
ReplyDeleteDoubtless, as you indicated, Oman is witnessing a tension between tribal socio-cultural systems and modern institutional system. The move from the first to the second was largely at the surface level. Omani people are still carrying their tribes and its entailments to schools, universities, towns and working places. The government failed, or probably purposely refused, to make a deep fundamental transformation.
Is such a transformation required or not? If yes, is it supposed to be evolutional or evolutional in nature? what is to be changed or left behind, and what is to be maintained and empowered?
If no, how could a society survive and thrive using a traditional style in face of the globalization, and to some extent Americanization, movement?
Thanks! Asifa for the arabic quality, but practice makes...well, not perfect, but certainly better Arabic.
ReplyDeleteWhat I am wondering is: To what degree do tribes influence society today? We look at this institutionally (power and authority of sheiks today)? Socially (where and how people associate; marriage)? Economically (balance of wealth)? I've very curious about this.
I am certain that the government strategically reduced the authority of tribes (naturally, to shore up the legitimacy of the regime). But at the same time, it couldn't feasibly dismantle the tribal networks. A) Because that would be impossible, they are not concrete, but fostered through blood connections and history; and B) because the regime would have lost legitimacy in the eyes of the people if it didn't show respect for this aspect of culture. Do you agree with how I interpret this?
I think that Omanis today are struggling to keep the good parts of their tribal or more rural/nomadic history while phasing out the negative aspects. On the "good side" I would place: respect for family, connection with the community, appreciation for the simple life and nature. On the "bad side" I think of wasta most importantly.
I think that the tribal network would fade at a greater pace if the government began strictly enforcing laws and a meritocracy. When people are judged on their individual actions and abilities, the "self" becomes more important than the person's connection to a tribal network. AKA no getting out of speeding tickets or getting a job based on who you know. That obviously leaves us with unsafe drivers on the roads and inefficient ministry employees for instance!
I think the importance of family and community could be retained and I would LOVE to see Omanis turn away from cars and shopping and littering and back to a simplier lifestyle :)
Since everything seems to originate with the Sultan, maybe he needs to, clearly (not ghier mubashar!) give the Omani people a vision for Oman's future and the societal expectations of the "Omani" that is a part of this society.
So many thoughts on this! I love your comments please keep them coming.
Dot,
ReplyDeleteI actually think the question of replacing tribal nepotism with meritocracy while somehow preserving the strong focus on family and community ties is an open one, and not something easily done at all. If fact I doubt it is possible.
One can look to the west, with America as the extreme, for examples. In places that value merit above else, family and community ties ended up weakening until extendin to only the base nuclear family. And even those ties are (relative to us in Oman) weak.
Do you have any thoughts on that? I could be BS'ing...
-Omani in US
Somewhat relevant to the discussion, I want to quote the following text from http://www.gladwell.com/2008/2008_11_10_a_adversity.html:
ReplyDelete"One of the reasons that the Parsi in India, the East Asians in Africa, the Chinese in Southeast Asia, and the Lebanese in the Caribbean, among others, have been so successful, sociologists argue, is that they are decoupled from the communities in which they operate. If you are a Malaysian in Malaysia, or a Kenyan in Kenya, or an African-American in Watts, and you want to run a grocery store, you start with a handicap: you have friends and relatives who want jobs, or discounts. You can't deny credit or collect a debt from your neighbor, because he's your neighbor, and your social and business lives are tied up together. As the anthropologist Brian Foster writes of commerce in Thailand:
"A trader who was subject to the traditional social obligations and constraints would find it very difficult to run a viable business. If, for example, he were fully part of the village society and subject to the constraints of the society, he would be expected to be generous in the traditional way to those in need. It would be difficult for him to refuse credit, and it would not be possible to collect debts. . . . The inherent conflict of interest in a face-to-face market transaction would make proper etiquette impossible or would at least strain it severely, which is an important factor in Thai social relations".
The minority has none of those constraints. He's free to keep social and financial considerations separate. He can call a bad debt a bad debt, or a bad customer a bad customer, without worrying about the social implications of his honesty."
-Omani in US
Come to think of it, the above quote maybe (at last partly?) explains why Muscat's merchant families were so much more successful than the tribes of the interior. No baggage/expectations of a thousand years of community history to tie them down.
ReplyDeleteSorry I am spamming your blog with so many comments today; things keep occuring to me after I hit Submit.
-Omani in US