The tribal confederation of the ʿAnezeh: Social actors between the centres of change

Combining historical and anthropological research, this project explores the role of the large tribal confederation during a period of intense change: from the end of the Ottoman period to the establishment of the Arab nation state in Bilad al-Sham (ca. 1850 – 1950).

History is explored from two angles: as a reconstruction of the past and of visions of the past on the bases of data and reports; and as the realization of the past in present time oral tradition.

The strained relationship between nomadic tribes and state authority extending to the steppes is at the core of the enquiry.

In the period, groups of the ʿAnezeh were actively involved in military conflict and in the administration of the steppes, and they often took opposite sides. Both, intra tribal strive and the mobilising effects of constructed descent, illustrate paradigmatically nature and functioning of tribal society.

The research intends to document the appearance and accommodation of change in all practical and ideological aspects of nomadic people’s life seen from their present perception and lore.

The decline of mounted and armed camel nomads and the emergence of new forms of individual political agency, new economic opportunities and controversial narratives of the past are part of that change.

Giving a voice to the inhabitants of the vast “empty” territories of Bilad al-Sham is meant to contribute to the understanding of the tribal legacy of Near Eastern history and to expose present day’s contradictory politics of managing the arid zones which cover most of the region’s territory.

The project is conducted by the Collaborative Research Centre (DFG) at the universities of Leipzig and Halle (Germany) and the Orient-Institut.
Responsible: Stefan Leder (Beirut), Annegret Nippa (Leipzig)