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Tribe-State Relations. A short case study on Jordan. Basics. British mandate Creation of Transjordanian state Monarchy under Emir Abdallah From Talal to Hussein, 1951-1953 (Hussein dies 1999) Qualified Independence (1946). Population. Pre-1948: Settled peasants
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Tribe-State Relations A short case study on Jordan
Basics • British mandate • Creation of Transjordanian state • Monarchy under Emir Abdallah • From Talal to Hussein, 1951-1953 (Hussein dies 1999) • Qualified Independence (1946)
Population • Pre-1948: • Settled peasants • Semi-nomadic tribal confederations • Post-1948 • Abdallah claims and takes West Bank, parts of Jerusalem • Eastern part of Kingdom now contains 94% of land but 30% population • Palestinian West Bank families and refugees (458,000 out of total pop of about 1.5 million) • Post 1967 • Population, today • About 5 million people • About 30-45% of Jordan’s population descended from tribal groups (Bedouin and non-Bedouin) • 70% Urban
Map of the tribes of Jordan (today) Reproduced from The tribes of Jordan at the beginning of the 21st century by Ghazi bin Muhammad bin Talal (Amann: Turab Press, 1999)
Tensions • Hashemite officials vs local elites • Town vs country • “Jordanian” vs “Palestinian”
Tribes and Politics: the military • Integrating tribes • John Glubb and the Arab Legion • WWII economic benefits to tribes • Bedouin loyalty to the state • 1957 Zerka “uprising”: renewal of tribal loyalties • “Black September” 1970: Monarchy vs the Palestinian national movement (PLO)
Tribes and politics: Ideologies • Jordanian national identity vs the Palestinian “other”: tribal components • King Hussein as “sheikh of the Jordanian tribe” • Tribal “set pieces” and visits • Themes in Jordanian national identity • Pre 1989 Arab revolt, family lineage of Hashemite kingdom, and Jordan’s tribal character • Post 1989 Hashemite lineage and Arab-Muslim unity • External consumption emphasizes tribal identity (tourism ministry) • Internal consumption: “Jordan First” (Abdallah)- “Unity in Diversity!” • Bedouin efforts to create national, print community Jordanian military in Maan patrol under a “Jordan First” billboard. Photo: Merip.org
notes • Both states and tribe are “security-oriented collectives” whose paramount concerns are defense and economic security