Ethnic Groups of SWA & NA

1. Ethnic Groups of SWA & NA SSWG3g. Describe the major ethnic and cultural groups in North Africa/Southwest Asia; include major customs and traditions.

2. Race: categorizes humans by heredity, physical characteristics, geographic ancestry (skin color) • Ex. White, black, Asian, Pacific islander, Native American • Ethnicity: a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry • Ex. African American, French, Kurd, Arab, Scottish • Nationality: country of allegiance or national identity. My be the same as your ethnicity • Ex. French, American, Chinese, Kuwaiti, Egyptian • Everyone has a race and a nationality but some may not have an ethnicty Race? Ethnicity? Nationality?

3. Arabs are the primary ethnic group of SWA & NA • Arabs’ religion is primarily Muslim, but there are Jewish & Christian Arabs as well. • Arab culture • Speak Arabic • Family is very important & gender roles are not equal • Muslim men often wear turbans; women sometimes wear form of Muslim dress. • Homes vary from place to place Arabs

4. Arabs

5. Bedouins are nomads in the deserts of NA & SWA. • They are known for rich oral poetic tradition, their herding lifestyle, emphasis on community and their traditional code of honor. • They are considered to be “true Arabs”. Bedouins

6. Persians are a non-Arab ethnic group • Persians primarily live in Iran (and some of Afghanistan) • Persians are primarily Shia Muslim • Created Zoroastrianism • Culture • Speak Farsi • Sport of polo, algebra, and our modern road system originated here • 1001 Arabian Nights • Women in Iran wear the veil • Men and women are generally equal • Known for their rugs and art Persians

7. Persian

8. Kurds are a non-Arab ethnic group • Kurds primarily live in Turkey, Iran, Syria & Iraq • They want their own homeland—Kurdistan • State-less Nation • Their religion is primarily Sunni Muslim • Culture • Speak Kurdish • Kurdish folklore is about reverence for elders (particularly women), hospitality, courage, valor, and the love of freedom • Women are not required to wear the veil & relative equality between men & women • Kurds love music, poetry and dancing • Primarily farmers & herders Kurds

9. Kurds

10. Berbers are a non-Arab ethnic group • Berbers primarily live in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt • Their religion is primarily Sunni Muslim • Culture • Men & women unequal in gender roles • Disappearing because they are assimilating with Arabs • Primarily spoken language w/many dialects • Live in clay huts or goat hair tents in rural areas • Primarily herders • Couscous Berbers

11. Berbers

12. Jews are a religious group living mostly in Israel. • Jews claim Palestine as their rightful homeland, but were driven out during the Jewish Diaspora (around 600BC) • Early 20th century, Zionism (or desire for a Jewish homeland) started. • This was influenced by the Holocaust • In 1948, Jews were given Israel by the UN, forcing Palestinians (Muslim Arabs) who lived there to move to other areas. Jews

13. Wailing Wall Dome of the Rock Holy Place Pics