Bedouin

Bedouin, derived from the Arabic badawi بدوي, a generic name for a desert-dweller, is a term generally applied to Arab nomadic groups, who are found throughout most of the desert belt extending from the Atlantic coast of the Sahara via the Western Desert, Sinai, and Negev to the eastern coast of the Arabian desert. It is occasionally used to refer to non-Arab groups as well, notably the Beja of the African coast of the Red Sea.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Starting in the 1950s and 1960s, many Bedouin started to leave the traditional, nomadic life to work and live in the cities of the Middle East, especially as grazing ranges have shrunk and population levels have grown. In Syria, for example, the Bedouin way of life effectively ended during a severe drought from 1958 to 1961, which forced many Bedouin to give up herding for standard jobs. Similarly, government policies in Egypt, oil production in Libya and the Gulf, and a desire for improved standards of living have had the effect that most Bedouin are now settled citizens of various nations, rather than nomadic herders and farmers.

Arabic: redirect Arabic language...

Arab: The Arabs (Arabic: عرب ʻarab) are an originally Arabian ethnicity widespread in the Middle East and North Africa....

Sahara: The Sahara is the world's second largest desert (second to Antarctica), over 9,000,000 km² (3,500,000 mi²), located in northern Africa and is 2.5 million years old. The entire land area of the United States of America would fit inside it. Its name, Sahara, is an English pronunciation of t...

Bedouin related Images and Photos (experimental)

Bedouin Bleu

Bedouin Sur Son Dromadaire

Bedouin Girl Hanging the Laundry Outside Mud-Built "Beehive" Houses as Srouj Syria

Edward William Lane as 'A Bedouin Arab' 1828