Sahrawis

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
(Redirected from
Sahrawi people
)
See also: Beidane

Sahrawis
صحراويون
Berber peoples, Haratin, Gnawa, Afro-Arabs, Tuaregs, other Maghrebis[8]
Map of the tribes of Western Sahara

The Sahrawis, or Sahrawi people (

West African and other indigenous populations.[9]

As with most peoples living in the Sahara, the Sahrawi culture is a mix of Arab and indigenous African elements.[9] Sahrawis are composed of many tribes and are largely speakers of the Hassaniya dialect of Arabic.[10]

Etymology

The

Arabic
word Ṣaḥrāwī صحراوي literally means "Inhabitant of the Desert". The word Sahrawi is derived from the Arabic word Ṣaḥrā' (صحراء), meaning desert. A man is called a "Sahrawi", and a woman is called a "Sahrawiya". In other languages it is pronounced in similar or different ways:

History

Early history

Almoravid dynasty of Morocco and Andalusia, and several emirates
in Mauritania.

In the 11th century, the

Beni Hassan
.

This tribe entered the domains of the

Hassaniya, remains the mother-tongue of Mauritania and Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara to this day, and is also spoken in southern Morocco and western Algeria, among affiliated tribes. Berber vocabulary and cultural traits remain common, despite the fact that many if not all of the Sahrawi/Moorish tribes today claim Arab ancestry; several are even claiming to be descendants of Muhammad, so-called sharifian
tribes.

The modern day Sahrawis are a mixed ethnic group of Arabs, West Africans & diverse Berbers. The people inhabit the westernmost Sahara desert, in the area of modern Mauritania, Morocco, Western Sahara, and parts of Algeria. (Some tribes would also traditionally migrate into northern Mali and Niger, or even further along the Saharan caravan routes.) As with most Saharan peoples, the tribes reflect a highly mixed heritage, combining Arab, and other influences, including ethnic and cultural characteristics found in many ethnic groups of the Sahel. The latter were primarily acquired through mixing with Wolof, Soninke and other populations of the southern Sahel, and through the acquisition of slaves by wealthier nomad families.

In pre-colonial times, the Sahara was generally considered Blad Essiba or "the land of dissidence" by the Moroccan central government and

caravan trade. Central governments had little control over the region, although the Hassaniya tribes would occasionally extend "beya" or allegiance to prestigious rulers, to gain their political backing or, in some cases, as a religious ceremony. The Moorish populations of what is today northern Mauritania established a number of emirates, claiming the loyalty of several different tribes and through them exercising semi-sovereignty over traditional grazing lands. This could be considered the closest thing to centralized government that was ever achieved by the Hassaniya tribes, but even these emirates were weak, conflict-ridden and rested more on the willing consent of the subject tribes than on any capacity to enforce loyalty.[18]

European colonialism

Modern distinctions drawn between the various

Spanish Morocco
respectively. These colonial intrusions brought the Muslim Saharan peoples under Christian European rule for the first time, and created lasting cultural and political divides between and within existing populations, as well as upsetting traditional balances of power in differing ways.

The Sahrawi-Moorish areas, then still undefined as to exact territorial boundaries, proved troublesome for the colonizers, just as they had for neighbouring dynasties in previous centuries. The political loyalty of these populations were first and foremost to their respective tribes, and supertribal allegiances and alliances would shift rapidly and unexpectedly. Their nomadic lifestyle made direct control over the territories hard to achieve, as did general lawlessness, an absence of prior central authority, and a widely held contempt for the kind of settled life that the colonizers sought to bring about. Centuries of intertribal warfare and raids for loot (ghazzu) guaranteed that the populations were well armed and versed in guerilla-style warfare. Tribes allied to hostile European powers would now also be considered fair game for cattle raids on those grounds, which tied the struggle against France and Spain into the traditional power play of the nomads, aggravating the internal struggles.

Uprisings and violent tribal clashes therefore took place with increasing frequency as European encroachment increased, and on occasion took the form of anti-colonial holy war, or Jihad, as in the case of the Ma al-'Aynayn uprising in the first years of the 20th century. It was not until the 1930s that Spain was able to finally subdue the interior of present-day Western Sahara, and then only with strong French military assistance. Mauritania's raiding Moors had been brought under control in the previous decades, partly through skilful exploitation by the French of traditional rivalries and social divisions between the tribes. In these encounters, the large Reguibat tribe proved especially resistant to the new rulers, and its fighters would regularly slip in out of French and Spanish territory, similarly exploiting the rivalries between European powers. The last major Reguibat raid took place in 1934, after which the Spanish authorities occupied Smara, finally gaining control over the last unpatrolled border territories.

The Sahrawi-Moorish tribes remained largely nomadic until the early to mid-20th century, when Franco-Spanish rivalries (as well as disagreements between different wings of the French colonial regime) managed to impose rigid, if arbitrary, borders on the previously fluid Sahara. The wide-ranging grazing lands of the nomads were split apart, and their traditional economies, based on trans-Saharan caravan trade and raiding of each other and the northern and southern Sahel neighbors, were broken. Little attention was paid to existing tribal confederations and zones of influence when dividing up the Saharan interior.

Different colonial practices

French and Spanish colonial governments would gradually, and with varying force, impose their own systems of government and education over these territories, exposing the native populations to differing colonial experiences. The populations in

sultanate in some areas, while Spain exercised direct administration in others. Spanish Sahara was treated first as a colony, and later as an overseas province, with gradually tightening political conditions, and, in later years, a rapid influx of Spanish settlers (making Spaniards
about 20% of the population in 1975). By the time of decolonization in 1950s–1970s, Sahrawi tribes in all these different territories had experienced roughly a generation or more of distinct experiences; often, however, their nomadic lifestyle had guaranteed that they were subjected to less interference than what sedentary populations experienced in the same areas.

Debate on pre-colonial allegiances

The period of colonization radically changed existing power structures, leaving a confused legacy of contradictory political affiliations, European-drawn borders with little resemblance to ethnic and tribal realities, and the foundations of modern political conflict.

For example, both sides in the Western Sahara conflict (Morocco vs. the Polisario Front) draw heavily on colonial history to prove their version of reality. Proponents of the Greater Morocco ideology point to some Sahrawi tribes calling upon the Moroccan sultan, who until 1912 remained the last independent Islamic ruler of the area, for assistance against the Europeans (see Ma al-'Aynayn). Pro-independence Sahrawis, on the other hand, point out that such statements of allegiance were almost routinely given by various tribal leaders to create short-term alliances, and that other heads of tribes indeed similarly proclaimed allegiance to Spain, to France, to Mauritanian emirates, and indeed to each other; they argue that such arrangements always proved temporary, and that the tribal confederations always maintained de facto independence of central authority, and would even fight to maintain this independence.

The

ruling on the matter in 1975, stating that there had existed ties between the Moroccan sultan and some (mainly northerly Tekna) tribes in then-Spanish Sahara, but that these ties were not sufficient to abrogate Western Sahara's right to self-determination. The same kind of ruling was issued with regard to Mauritania, where the court found that there were indeed strong tribal and cultural links between the Sahrawis and Mauritanian
populations, including historical allegiance to some Moorish emirates, but that these were not ties of a state or government character, and did not constitute formal bonds of sovereignty. Thus, the court recommended the United Nations to continue to pursue self-determination for the Sahrawis, enabling them to choose for themselves whether they wanted Spanish Sahara to turn into an independent state, or to be annexed to Morocco or Mauritania.

Decolonisation attempts

Further information: Decolonisation of Africa

The Western Sahara conflict

Main article: Western Sahara conflict

The area today referred to as Western Sahara remains, according to the United Nations, one of the world's last remaining major

disturbances in Moroccan-held territories as well as the ongoing dispute over the legal status of the territory guarantees continued United Nations
involvement and occasional international attention to the issue.

The Polisario Front

Flag of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, a partially-recognized Sahrawi state, used by the Polisario Front
Main article: Polisario Front

The Polisario Front is the Western Sahara's national liberation movement, fighting for the independence of the Western Sahara since 1973—originally against Spanish rule; after 1975, against Mauritania and Morocco; since 1979, against Morocco only. The organization is based in Algeria, where it is responsible for the

Tarfaya Strip in Morocco, or any part of Mauritania. Since 1979, the Polisario Front has been recognized by the United Nations as the representative of the people of Western Sahara.[20]

Demographics

Ethnic background: Berbers and Arabs

Group of Saharawi women.

As described above, the

Black African and other indigenous populations (e.g. indigenous Soninke
speaking groups). Even though cultural arabization of the Berber people was thorough, some elements of Berber identity remain.

Some tribes, such as the large

Beni Hassan, even though intermarriage with other tribes and former slaves have occurred; a few, such as the Tekna tribal confederation
, have retained some Berber dialect of the area. Often, though not in the case of the Tekna, the Berber-Arab elements of a tribe's cultural heritage reflects social stratification. In traditional Moorish-Sahrawi society, Arab tribes of the Tekna confederation claimed a role as rulers and protectors of the disarmed weaker Berber tribes of the Takna confederation. Thus, the warrior tribes and nobility would be Arab.

Sahrawi in Rissani Morocco ca. 2008

However, most tribes, regardless of their mixed heritage, tend to claim some form of Arab ancestry, as this has been key to achieving social status. Many (the so-called

Reguibat. A Berber-descended zawiya (scholarly) tribe who in the 18th century took up camel nomadism and warrior traditions, they simultaneously took on more and more of an Arab identity
, reflecting their new position alongside the traditional warrior castes of Arab Hassane origin, such as the Oulad Delim and the Arabic-speaking tribes of the Tekna confederation.

Social and ethnic hierarchy

Generally speaking, the Hassaniya populations were (or are) divided into several groups, of different social status.[21]

Saharawi woman.

At the peak of society were the

igawen
). All these groups were considered to be among the bidan grouping.

Below them ranked servile groups known as

wells etc.[citation needed
]

An important reference on Sahrawi population ethnography is the work of Spanish anthropologist Julio Caro Baroja, who in 1952–53 spent several months among native tribes of the Spanish Sahara. He published a 1955 book on the subject.[22]

Population

According to the Ethnologue database, there were more than three million

Hassaniya speakers in 2006, of whom 2.7 million resided in Mauritania.[23] The number of Hassaniya speakers identifying as Sahrawi in the modern political sense is unknown, and estimates are hotly contested by partisans in the Western Sahara conflict. Most estimates however center around 200,000 to 400,000.[citation needed] These populations are centered in southern Morocco, Western Sahara, and in the Tindouf Province of Algeria, where large number of refugees
from Western Sahara are located.

Languages

Main article: Hassaniya Arabic

Sahrawis' native language is the

Beni Hassan Arabian tribes of the Western Sahara. It has almost completely replaced the Berber languages originally spoken in this region. Though clearly a western dialect, Hassānīya is relatively distant from other North African variants of Arabic. Its geographical location exposed it to influence from Zenaga and Wolof. There are several dialects of Hassaniya; the primary differences among them are phonetics. Today Hassaniya is spoken in south-western Algeria, northern Mali, Mauritania, southern-Morocco and Western Sahara. (Mauritania has the biggest concentration of speakers) [citation needed]. Some Sahrawis speak Tashelhit and/or Moroccan Arabic
as a second language due to interaction with neighboring populations.

Modern Standard Arabic and the Amazigh language (a standardized version of Moroccan Berber languages) are the official languages of the Moroccan administered part of Western Sahara. While Standard Arabic is the only official language in Mauritania, Algeria and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.

The current Moroccan constitution (adopted in July 2011) mentions, in its 5th article, the Hassaniya language and recommends its preservation as a cultural heritage of Morocco.[24]

Due to the past colonization of

Sahara Film Festival, Western Sahara's only film festival[citation needed
], showing mainly Spanish-language films.

The refugees

Main article: Sahrawi refugee camps

After the

camps in Tindouf were named after towns in the Western Sahara (Awserd, Laayoune, Smara and Dakhla).[27]

Saharawi refugee camp in Tindouf Province, Algeria

As of January 2018, the number of Sahrawi refugees living in the five camps in Tindouf is estimated about 174.000, of whom 125,000 were entitled to food and nutrition assistance by UNHCR and 90,000 individuals regarded "most vulnerable refugees".[3] The Moroccan government has contended that the figure is much lower, around 45,000 to 50,000, and that these people are kept in the refugee camps against their will by Polisario.[28]

Mauritania housed as of 2009 about 26,000 Sahrawi refugees, classified by UNHCR as "people in a refugee-like situation". Many of them moved back and forth from the camps in Tindouf, Algeria.[5]

Additionally, between 3,000 and 12,000 Sahrawis live in Spain, their former colonizer.[6][7]

In 2018, thirty Sahrawi refugees died in an air crash of Algerian Air Force Il-76. They had been visiting Algiers for various medical and bureaucratic reasons. Sahrawis from the refugee camps are regularly provided with free flights in Algerian military transport aircraft.[29]

Culture

Main article: Culture of Western Sahara
See also: Music of Western Sahara and Mauritania § Culture

Religion

Tijaniyya. Further, among the Hassaniya tribes, certain lineages reputed to be descended from Mohammad, the chorfa, have played an important role in intertribal religious society.[30]

Tribalism

See article on tribalism and the list of Sahrawi tribes.

The tribe was the historical basis of social and political organisation among the Hassaniya-speaking tribes of the Sahara, well into the colonial and arguably post-colonial period. Traditionally, Hassaniya Sahrawi society was completely tribal, organized in a complex web of shifting alliances and tribal confederations, with no stable and centralized governing authority.

Lawmaking, conflict resolution and central decision-making within the tribe, was carried out by the

shaykhs) and religious scholars. Occasionally, larger tribal gatherings could be held in the form of the Ait Arbein (Group of Forty)[citation needed], which would handle supratribal affairs such as common defence of the territory or common diplomacy
. During colonial times, Spain attempted to assume some of the legitimacy of these traditional institutions by creating its own Djema'a, a state-run political association that supported its claims to the territory.

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ^ "Africa :: Western Sahara - The World Factbook - Central Intelligence Agency". cia.gov. 17 November 2020. Archived from the original on 17 November 2020. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  2. ^ Shefte, Whitney (6 January 2015). "Western Sahara's stranded refugees consider renewal of Morocco conflict". The Guardian.
  3. ^ a b Sahrawi Refugees in Tindouf, Algeria: Total In‐Camp Population. UNHCR, March 2018
  4. ^ Morocco overview-Minorities-Saharawis Archived 19 January 2013 at the Wayback Machine World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples
  5. ^ a b World Refugee Survey 2009 - Mauritania. USCRI, 17 June 2009. Archived
  6. ^ a b "La policía detuvo a saharauis en Jaén al pedir la residencia". El País. 16 June 2010. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
  7. ^ a b Carmen Gómez Martín. La migracion saharaui en Espana. Estrategias de visibilidad en el tercer tiempo del exilio. Retrieved 21 August 2012. Page 52, Note 88:"Actualmente es imposible aportar cifras exactas sobre el número de saharauis instalados en el país, ya que no existen datos oficiales elaborados por la administración española o por las autoridades saharauis. A través de la información recogida durante el trabajo de campo de la tesis se calculó su número entre 10.000–12.000 personas, instaladas de preferencia en la costa mediterránea (Cataluña, Comunidad Valenciana, Murcia y Andalucía), Islas Canarias, País Vasco y Extremadura" (in Spanish)
  8. ^ "Western Sahara: Kitesurfing in the Dakhla Danger Zone". BBC. 25 December 2016.
  9. ^ a b atlasofhumanity.com. "Sahrawi People". Atlas Of Humanity. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  10. ^ Julio, Javi (21 November 2015). "Desert schools bloom in Sahrawi refugee camps – in pictures". the Guardian. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  11. ^ "Ufficio delle pubblicazioni — Manuale interistituzionale di convenzioni redazionali — Allegato A5 — Elenco degli Stati, dei territori e delle monete". europa.eu.
  12. ^ S.A., Priberam Informática. "Significado / definição de saarauí no Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa". Priberam.pt. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  13. ^ "Rajoy viaja para Rabat para manter boas relações com Marrocos | VEJA.com". Veja.abril.com.br. 17 January 2012. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  14. ^ "No meio do caminho havia a Venezuela – Internacional – Estadão". Internacional.estadao.com.br. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  15. ^ "União Africana —". 26 May 2015. Archived from the original on 26 May 2015. Retrieved 2 April 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  16. ^ "Angola: Luanda reafirma apoio à causa do povo saarauí – Inforpress – Sapo Notícias". Noticias.sapo.cv. Archived from the original on 10 August 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  17. ^ "Archived copy". lcweb2.loc.gov. Archived from the original on 10 January 2009. Retrieved 15 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  18. ^ [1] Archived 7 August 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  19. ^ "Proclamation on Recognizing The Sovereignty Of The Kingdom Of Morocco Over The Western Sahara". US Embassy. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  20. ^ ODS Team. "ODS HOME PAGE" (PDF). un.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 September 2012.
  21. ^ "About this Collection – Country Studies | Digital Collections | Library of Congress". The Library of Congress. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  22. ISBN 978-84-96235-28-1
    .
  23. ^ Lewis, M. Paul (ed.), 2009. Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Sixteenth edition. Dallas, Tex.: SIL International.
  24. ^ Article 5 of the 2011 Moroccan constitution
  25. ^ "Quienes somos?". spsrasd.info. Archived from the original on 25 September 2011.
  26. ^ ACAPS Briefing Note: Algeria: Sahrawi refugees in Tindouf, 19 Jan 2022 (See pdf)
  27. ^ National Geographic Magazine, December 2008
  28. ^ Country of origin information report: Algeria, p. 143. UK Border Agency, 30 Sep 2008
  29. ^ "Argelia: Mueren al menos 257 personas al estrellarse un avión militar en Boufarik". RTVE.es (in European Spanish). 11 April 2018. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  30. ^ Western Sahara? 30-days.net

Sources

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to People of Western Sahara.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sahrawis&oldid=1218162320"