Database: Life of a Nomad

It is difficult to evoke the nomadic world of Arabs without falling into clichés. Bedouins, the "inhabitants of the desert" in Arabic, were historically mobile pastoralists who herded sheep, goats, and camels, systematically moving from place to place seeking water and pasture for their animals. To this day, it is a tribal and hierarchical society where the immediate environment plays an important role. Establishing camps with large tents, the most common of which is made of woven goat or camel hair, offers protection agains the sun, sand, and dust. Inside, men and women live in separate spaces and guests are received in accordance to the Bedouin values of generous hospitality. They played a notable role in the trans-Arabian trade, providing animals, usually camels, for transport and serving as guides, offering protection for the commercial caravans, pilgrims, and other travelers. It is a life full of incredible adaptation to the constraints of the environment.