Encyclopedia of Islam

Further reading: Michael Cook, Forbidding Wrong in 

Islam: An Introduction (Cambridge: Cambridge Uni-

versity Press, 2003); Yitzhak Nakash, The Shiis of Iraq

(Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1994); 

Andre Raymond, The Great Arab Cities in the 16th–18th 

Centuries: An Introduction (New York: New York Uni-

versity Press, 1984); Lewis Werner, “Suq—4,000 Years 

Behind the Counter in Aleppo.” Saudi Aramco World 55 

(March/April 2004): 24–35; Paul Wheatley, The Places 

Where Men Pray Together: Cities in Islamic Lands, 7th 

through the 10th Centuries (Chicago: University of Chi-

cago Press, 2001).

Bedouin

The Bedouin are a

rab

 dwellers of the desert who 

traditionally follow a nomadic lifestyle. Their 

name is based on an Arabic word meaning to be 

plain, to be open (badaa), from which the word 

desert (badiya) is formed, which suggests that 

deserts are thought of as wide-open lands or 

plains. The meaning of the word Bedouin stands 

in contrast to the Arabic word for civilized town 

dwellers (hadar). Bedouin is often, but not always, 

used as a synonym for Arab. Bedouin peoples 

have historically lived in the desert regions of 

the Arabian Peninsula, s

yria

, J

ordan

,  i

srael

 and 

p

alestine

,  i

raq

,  e

gypt

, North Africa, and outly-

ing areas of Africa and Central Asia. People liv-

ing in c

ities

 and towns stereotype the Bedouin 

as an uncultured lot, yet the Bedouin are also 

recognized for their strong sense of tribal honor, 

egalitarianism, generosity, courage, and poetic 

eloquence. Medieval Muslim scholars thought the 

“pure” Arabic of the q

Uran

 was closely related to 

the Bedouin dialect of the q

Uraysh

 tribe, but most 

modern scholars believe it was a common poetic 

language used throughout western Arabia. Several 

have noted that values of Bedouin culture are 

embedded in the religious language of the Quran. 

Bedouin traditionally make their living by herding 

pastoral 

animals

 (sheep, goats, 

camel

s, 

horse

s,

and cattle), which they lead to different grazing 

areas and water sources within their tribal territo-

ries on a seasonal basis. Because of their seasonal 

migrations and lifestyle, they dwell in tents that 

can be easily transported from place to place.

Historical and ethnographic studies reveal 

that pastoral peoples such as the Bedouin live in 

a symbiotic relationship with town dwellers. For 

example, they trade animal products for agricul-

tural products and goods produced by settled 

populations. In times of drought, Bedouin take up 

residence in urban lands until conditions improve. 

On the other hand, town dwellers have relied on 

Bedouin warriors for their defense and to guide 

caravans to their destinations. Bedouin warriors 

were also known for their raids on other nomadic 

tribes, caravans, and settlements. Today the Bed-

ouin, like other nomadic peoples in the Middle 

East and elsewhere, are being forced to become 

more sedentary by extensive conversion of lands 

to agricultural development and government set-

tlement policies. In the kingdoms of s

aUdi

 a

rabia

and Jordan, however, the Bedouin have been 

recruited to form elite corps in their royal armed 

forces. Bedouin ideals still color the cultural life of 

peoples living in the Arabian Peninsula, as can be 

seen in styles of dress, social customs, and fond-

ness for camping in the desert.

The religious outlook of the Bedouin is rec-

ognized for its simplicity. In pre-Islamic Arabia, 

K  98  

Bedouin

---

the features of the landscape (rocks, trees, and 

springs) and religious shrines were the focal 

points of their religious activity, which included 

pilgrimage and animal sacrifice. In addition, four 

specific months of the year were held to be sacred 

times when warfare was prohibited for Arabs liv-

ing in the vicinity of m

ecca

. The early Muslim 

community in m

edina

 built alliances with Bed-

ouin tribes and won their 

conversion

 to i

slam

,

which was expressed by performance of Islamic 

prayer

 and 

almgsgiving

. However, Bedouin also 

allied with m

Uhammad

’s opponents, and when he 

died in 632, many tribes that had converted to 

Islam when he was alive attempted to abandon 

it. This led to the Wars of a

postasy

, in which the 

Muslim forces under the leadership of the caliph 

a

bU

  b

akr

 (r. 632–634) proved victorious. The 

rebellious tribes were reincorporated into the 

Muslim community, and they played an important 

role in the early Arab Muslim conquest of the 

Middle East, North Africa, and Spain. Indeed, the 

conquest was really conducted as an extension of 

Bedouin-style warfare involving small-scale raids 

rather than massive troop movements.

The Arab historian i

bn

  k

haldUn

 (d. 1406) 

developed a theory of the rise and fall of civiliza-

tions based on his knowledge of the involvement 

of Bedouin Arabs in the early conquests and the 

subsequent emergence of Islamicate civilization 

in the Middle East and North Africa. This theory 

rested on the thesis that civilizations originate 

with tribal solidarity (asabiyya) and the ability 

of one tribe to dominate others. Eventually, this 

dominance leads to the accumulation of wealth 

and power and the birth of urban institutions. 

Religion reinforces the moral basis of urban civi-

lization and tempers the destructiveness of social 

forces, but eventually civilization succumbs to the 

onslaught of new, more vigorous tribal groups. 

A recent example of this pattern can be seen in 

the rise of Saudi Arabia, which began in the 18th 

century when the Saudi clan formed a multitribal 

fighting force motivated by the religious ideology 

of m

Uhammad

 

ibn

 a

bd

 

al

-W

ahhab

 (d. 1792).

See also 

agricUltUre

; 

Food

 

and

 

drink

; 

honor

and

 

shame

.