Is Bedouin heritage still engraved in Qatari Badu?

Qatar embracing Pearl diving heritage by the Dhow

Donald P. Cole defines Bedouins, in his article entitled “Where have the Bedouin Gone?” as “nomads and essentialized as representatives of segmentary lineage organization and tribalism.”

 Over 50 years ago, Qatar wasn’t what it is today. It was composed of tribes of Bedouins that traveled all around Qatar. They all lived off their farms, fishing, and pearl diving, which they would sell at a market. The order of the family was pretty similar to other Bedouins in the Arab world. In other words, the men would lead the household go to the market and sell their produce, while the women would take care of the house, clean and cook.

As Qatar evolved so did the Bedouins. The tribes started settling down in different areas of Qatar and Doha. For example; one area next to Qatar Foundation is called Al – Hawajer, because most of the family of Al-Hajri live there. A lot of areas in Qatar are named after certain families that have existed for generations and have helped the country become what it is today.

There are various similarities amongst Bedouins all over the Arab world; they all have a different dialect of Arabic, some families even have different dialects amongst each other, and from the rest of Qatari citizens. We can notice today who are the descendants of Bedouins by the way they pronounce certain words, such as “Shloonish,” which is the way the non Bedouin Qataris would say; “how are you?” The Bedouins pronounce it “Shloonik” or “Shloonis” depending on the families. Their clothing, and also Bedouin marriages are still very strict, in the sense that the groom can’t see the bride until the wedding night, even if they are married on paper, they can only see her after the ceremony, which are gender separated. Also they marry into the family, usually cousins.

When it comes to schools, most Bedouins families have their children go to non-mix gendered education institutions, especially young girls.

Although, youth Bedouins aren’t like they used to be before, they still embrace their heritage; for example, 4 years ago in ABP there was a poetry contest among youth. There were a lot of male young Bedouins having poetry “battles.” Today’s youth Bedouins are literate and get an education to take on their family businesses which have existed for generations, for instance families that had a farm that grow their own produce, opened “Jam3iayas,” which are small chains of food stores.

 You would think that the old style of living of Bedouins extinct, but not really, most Bedouin families still have their farms, but not the whole family dedicates it’s life to it. The farms are usually located along side the highways from Doha to other parts of Qatar such as Fuairit and Zikreet. While I was picking a friend up from his house, located next to QF, I came along this tiny “farm” that had sheep. 

It was shocking to see that some families still have farms within the urban city.

Pictures I took in a neighborhood by QF

In short, despite the fact that Qatar evolved, along with its citizens (Bedouins and other Qatari citizens,) Bedouin heritage is still engraved in Qatar’s culture. Simple examples where that heritage is embraced; Souq Waqif, the dhow port (traditional Qatari boats, used to be fishing boats,) when you go to sealine there are a lot of tents by the sea, which belong to certain families. They usually go there during weekends for a family getaway. QIT, a tourism agency, have regular trips to the desert for tourists, expats, and for anyone who is willing to experience staying in a “Kheima” (tents), where they can enjoy the beach, the traditional food, the camel rides and the cold night bonfires.

Bedouin tents today.

What makes Bedouins in Qatar a subculture are, their different dialects, their different ideologies of marriage and education, their way of living, their traditional wear and their strong religious beliefs.

Traditional Badu women wear.

I believe that Bedouins became part of a subculture quite recently. It wasn’t before urbanization, that they became a minority. As most of Bedouins families moved to the city and started living amongst civilization. However, not all of them abandoned that past. Some Bedouins families still embrace their rich heritage and can be considered as part of a subculture.