Ethnic Groups of the

Middle East

Lets take a look at various ethnic groups in the Middle

East

First … what exactly is an ethnic group?A group of people

sharing a common culture, religion, and/or language.

Berbers of North Africa

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.

Over the last several hundred years many Berber people have converted to Islam.

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.

Berber populations in Morocco and Algeria, plus smaller numbers in Tunisia,

Libya and Egypt

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.

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.

Bedouins

Arabic word meaning “desert dwellers”

Nomads of Middle East and North Africa

Bedouins

originated in

Arabian Penins

ula region.

They have adapted to the severe climate of desert, having an extensive knowledge of the

desert, location of water, and seasonal changes.

They used their knowledge of the deserts to act as paid guides, controlling ancient trade routes.

Other than goods, what else might the Bedouins have taken with them as they traveled across the desert?

Islam

Bedouins live in family units headed by a sheik – a position that is handed down from the father to the eldest son.

They are mostly Muslims who speak Arabic and prefer the nomadic way of life, herding animals such as camels, sheep, and goats.

Today, many Bedouins are camel breeders.

They live mostly in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Israel, Jordan

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.

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.

Another custom … women tend the flocks, pitch the tents, take down the tents, and cook the

meals.

The Kurds

Spread across remote sections of Turkey, Iran, Syria and Iraq- collectively these regions are called Kurdistan

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

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.

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

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.

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.

With the end of Hussein they have reason to hope again – however, have

a saying “Kurds have no friends except the

mountains.”

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.

Druze

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.

They believe in only one God as well as reincarnation.

Druze live in mountainous regions of Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Golan Heights and Jordan

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

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.

Today, Persians can be found living in Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan,

Pakistan and the Xinjiang province of China.

Today, most Persians are Shi’ite Muslims.

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.

Persian rugs are considered to be the most detailed hand-made works of art.

Architecture is one area where Persians have made great

contributions.

More examples of the beautiful

architecture

Shah Mosque

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.

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.