| |
According to the flyleaf, "this volumecovers the long neglected history of Hadhramaut (southern Arabia)during the modern colonial era, together with the history of Hadhrami'colonies' in the Malay world, southern India, the Red Sea, and EastAfrica." With the publication of Hadhrami Traders, Scholars andStatesmen in the Indian Ocean, 1750s-1960s, the recent history ofthe Hadramawt (spell it as you will) is no longer neglected. Thejoint editors deserve much credit for a most informativecontribution. Ulrike Freitag is a lecturer in Modern Middle Easternand Gender History at Freiburg University and William G.Clarence-Smith is a reader in Asian and African Economic History atSOAS, University of London.
Several things are remarkable about thisbook. First, it is a valuable and original (at this point evenseminal) contribution to Yemeni Studies despite the fact it startedoff as a conference. Second, it was published within two years ofthe original conference in 1995 at SOAS in London. This conferencecomprised some 31 papers, although not all of these have beenpublished here; rather the papers of some participants weresubstantially revised for publication. The result is laudable -- aseries of generally well-written articles as opposed to a mismatch ofwhat showed up at the conference. I would seriously advise anyeditors seeking to edit conference papers in the future to use thisvolume as a guide.
Almost everything about this volume deservespraise. The introduction indeed serves as an introduction and setsthe stage for the reader in a concise and clear way. This isparticularly important given the wide spread of Hadhramis in their"diaspora." The notes on contributors are a good idea for volumes ofthis sort, especially when a reader wants to follow up on somethingread (and there is much one might want to follow up on here). It isencouraging to note the international range of contributors,including those from Malaysia and Indonesia. The glossary ispredominantly of Arabic terms, but a few Indonesian, Swahili, Urduand dutch terms are also included. The bibliography is a valuableguide to resources on the subject. Even the index is done inconsiderable detail. In short, here is a volume that has the readerin mind. And I have yet to discuss the contents...
As can be readily seen from the list ofarticles (given below), these 21 selections cover a lot of territorywith regard to the study of Hadhramis in the past few centuries. These will be of interest not only to scholars of Yemen, but toanyone interested in the Indian Ocean trading network, East Africa,India or Indonesia. While the overall emphasis is on social history,several anthropologists include ethnographic data as well.
This book is first and foremost aboutHadhramis, especially those who went abroad. As Clarence-Smith sumsup in concluding his introductory survey:
Two fundamental and related points arise from this survey. Firstly, the history of Hadhramaut in the modern colonial era can only be understood in the context of its far-flung diaspora. Almost every aspect of life in Hadhramaut was conditioned by the fact that so many men resided outside its borders at any give time. Secondly, Hadhramis played a much greater role in societies scattered around the Indian Ocean than the small size and population of their homeland might have warranted, because they were able to create and sustain networks essential to successful diasporas.
In a comparative perspective, the Hadhramidiaspora displayed certain traits which would repay furthertreatment. One particularly was the remarkable Hadhrami ability toblend in with host societies, while still retaining a distinctidentity. Another was the close intertwining of religious, politicaland commercial activity, which gave an added resilience to Hadhraminetworks. Both strategies were largely dependent on limiting thediapora to the lands of Shafi'õ Islam, however, which lessened theimpact of the Hadhrami diaspora on the global stage (p.18).
It is important to explain the concept of"diaspora" as used in the volume. As Clarence-Smith comments,"diaspora studies" is relatively recent, since the 1980s. It isinteresting to note that the journal Diaspora was initiated inthe early 1990s with Armenian backing. The definition of diasporataken as the starting point is that of Gabriel Sheffer, who said theywere "ethnic minority groups of migrant origin residing and acting inhost countries, but maintaining strong sentimental and material linkswith their countries of origin" (p. 1). Alatas (p. 24) furtherrefines this to the hadhramis as a "trade diaspora." He goes on tonote that diaspora studies were hindered by a tendency to define theconcept soley by the Jewish example, with an emphasis on persecution. Obviously, this is not the case for the Hadhrami migrants. Alatas(p. 26) argues for a broader definition of disapora as "comprisingdispersal from an original centre, collective memory or myth of theoriginal homeland, a feeling of marginality and alienation in thehost country, and continual relating to the homeland, physically oremotionally." This fits the Hadhrami case quite well, as several ofthe articles illustrate in detail.
It is hard to know where to start (and howmuch detail to go into) in reviewing a compilation of this kind. Ican make a rough distinction in my mind between the informationpresented about Hadramis in Hadramaut and those outside in the"diaspora." Much of the volume discusses the role of Hadhramisoutside Yemen, as the contents indicates.
I will focus here in the Hadramawt. Hartwig, for example, provides a short and valuable summary ofHadhrami political history in the last century (I write this knowingthat in two more years such a time-biased statement will notwork...), especially on the struggle between the Al Qu'aytõ (from1843) and the Al-Kathiri (from 1881) sultanates and their interactionwith the British. There is also a chronological chart of eventscomparing South Arabia and India between 1803 and 1888 (p. 49-50). For those interested in the skeleton history of 19tn centuryHadramawt, Hartwig sums it up in a nutshell:
The political transformation of Hadhramautcan be divided into three different phases. In the first phase,between 1803 and 1843, several severe conflicts destabilized theregion. The subsequent intervention of Hadhrami mercenaries fromHyderabad marked the second phase, when between 1843 and 1849 the AlQu'ayti and Al 'Abdullah al-Kathiri bought and conquered severalvillages in the interior. During the third phase, from 1850 to 1881,both families tried to gain possession of all important strategic andeconomic positions in the region. A long and exhausting context forpower ensued, during which the whole country was divided up betweenthese two families. British intervention in 1881 and support for theAl Qu'aytõ brought this period of bloody warfare and destruction toan end.
Linda Boxberger picks up where Hartwigleaves off and examine the period from 1888-1967. The year 1888 isthe start of the protectorate agreement between the British and'Abdallah ibn 'Umar al-Qu'aytõ. She examines local politics with thetribes, Ottoman intrigue, disputes over succession in thesulanates,World War II and its aftermath and the alst years ofBritish influence before the 1967 revolution. There were some toughtimes in here for Hadhramis in the homeland. A famine due to droughtand loss of remittances in world War II led to the death of some10,000 people in Hadramawt, with poverty so bad that some people wereburied in grain sacks for lack of available cloth (p. 61). One canalso read about the last al-Qu'ayti sultan, Ghalib, who only recentlyreturned to Hadramawt on a visit.
Among the other articles discussingHadramawt per se, the selections by Engseng Ho and Alexander Knysh(which is the same article as that published in New ArabianStudies, volume 4) are especially interesting. Engseng Ho, ananthropologist, discusses the role of the muwallad in theregion. The term muwallad, used primarily in reference to those of"mixed blood," is brilliantly analyzed through ethnographic andtextual information. Here the focus is on Hadramis who return toHadramawt although their birth was some place else; most, it wouldseem, are not well satisfied back home in the motherland. Afterlooking at several textual accounts, the author concludes:
The muwalladõn whose stories are briefly told here are neither exceptionally good people nor exceptionally bad ones, in the local scheme of things. Although Yüusuf used to live it up in Kenya and chews qat now, he came because he concurred with his father's judgement, and now bears the burden of supporting two of his father's seven wives and ex-wives, and their families.Yet there are many who would maintain that Yusuf simply wants to go back to Kenya to resume his haram activities, just as you can see him chewing qat in the coffee shops. For those so concerned, the movements of these muwalladin, on the large and small scale, are all of a piece. There is not much room for dialogue. This can be seen in the argument between two brothers-in-law over whether to stay in Mecca or return to Tarim. The moral discourse concedes no ground. It cannot be modified by seeing the other's point of view. Thus if a solution is found, it is done by creating an interstitial space, through the use of partitions which break up the ubiquitous, homogenised, moralised space.
One article that fails to achieve itspurpose is the discussion of social stratification by SylvaineCamelin. While her own ethnographic data on al-Shi'r are interestingand betoken more work to appear in the future, the review is toolimited to constitute a survey of the literature. While it is mostcertainly true that "it would be erroneous to believe that thereexists one system of stratification applicable to the whole of theHadhramaut" (p. 156), more needs to be examined than the out-of-datestudies of Bujra on Hureidah and Hartley on the Nahd. For those whoare not aware of Hartley's unpublished dissertation work on the Nahdtribe,the summary might prove of value. To be fair, the editors notethat they asked Camelin to write the piece on short notice, soperhaps they should be chided rather than the author.
One of the strengths of the volume is thatit actively addresses what is yet to be studied. Freitag'sconclusion (pp. 327-329) should be read by any scholar thinking ofdoing research on Hadramis. Among those areas thus far neglected isthe 18th century, diaspora communities in Egypt, the Hijaz, Ethiopia,Eritrea, Somalis, the Comoros, Madagascar, Mozambique, north-westernIndia, mainland Southeast Asia, China, and the Philippines (p. 327). Freitag notes that the archival records of the various East Indiacompanies "should be trawled systematically for refernces tohadhramis in the eighteenth century" (p. 328); in this respect thetrawler should examine C. G. Brouwer's masterful project (alsoreviewed in this volume of Yemen Update) doing just this forearly 17th century Mocha. Similarly, the Ottoman archives have yetto be explored on the topic. And the closing word I leave to theclosing remarks of Freitag's conclusion:
Transcending these segmented approaches, a most interesting field for future research would be the attempt to recover the stories of prominent Hadhrami families, this showing religious as well as economic links, uncovering issues of identity and assimilation, the changing natiure of the diaspora and much more. While research has, until very recently, been conducted with little cooperation between various regional and academic specialisations, such a task requires the transcendance of compartmentalism. Most of all, however, it requires the close collaboration of all those interested in this topic, Hadhramis and non-Hadhramis alike, based on a common view that diaspora research does not mean altering national boundaries or disturbing particular minorities, but aims at a better understanding of a particular type of international society.
One final comment on a personal note. Inthe first sentence of his introductory article, Clarence-Smith quotesSir Richard Burton that "it is generally said that the sun does notrise upon a land that does not contain a man from Hadramaut" (p. 1). A fitting anecdote from a now much-maligned scholar of the past. Anybook that starts with a quote from Burton deserves a reading. Thisone is its own reward.
List of Maps
Preface and Acknowledgements
Hadhramaut and the Hadhrami Diaspora in theModern Colonial Era: an Introductory Survey, William G.Clarence-Smith ... 1
Hadhramaut and the Hadhrami Diaspora: Problems in Theoretical History, Syed Fared Alatas ... 19
Expansion, State Foundation and Reform: theContest for Power in Hadhramaut in the Nineteenth Century, FriedhelmHartwig ... 35
Hadhrami Politics 1888-1967: Conflicts ofIdentity and Interest, Linda Boxberger ... 51
The Hadhrami Role in the Politics andSociety of Colonial India, 1750s to 1950s, Omar Khalidi ...67
Hadhramis in the Politics and Administrationof the Malay States in the late Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries,Mohammad R. Othman ... 82
Dutch Colonial Policy Pertaining to HadhramiImmigrants, Huub de Jonge ... 94
Hadhramis in International Politics c.1750-1967, Ulrike Freitag ... 112
Hadhramis abroad in Hadhramaut: theMuwalladõn, Engseng Ho ... 131
Reflections on the System of SocialStratification in Hadhramaut, Sylvaine Camelin ... 147
Changing Patterns of Hadhrami Migration andSocial Integration in East Africa, Francoise le Guennec-Coppens ...157
The Hadhrami Diaspora in South-WesternIndia: the Role of the Sayyids of the Malabar Coast, Stephen Dale... 175
Natural Leaders of Native Muslims: ArabEthnicity and Politics in Java under Dutch Rule, Sumit K. Mandal ...185
The Cult of Saints and Religious Reformismin Hadhramaut, Alexander Knysh ... 199
Religious Links between Hadhramaut and theMalay-Indonesian World, c. 1850 to c. 1950, Peter G. Riddell ...217
Islamic Modernism in Colonial Java: theal-Irshad Movement, Natalie Mobini-Kesheh ... 231
A Hadhrami Religious Scholar in Indonesia: Sayyid 'Uthman, Azyumardi Azra ... 249
The Impact of Remittances on the Economy ofHadhramaut, 1914-1967, Christian Lekon ... 264
The Economic Role of the Hadhrami Diasporain the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, 1820s to 1930s, Janet Ewald andWilliam G. Clarence-Smith ... 281
Hadhrami Entrepreneurs in the Malay World,c. 1750 to c. 1940, William G. Clraence-Smith ... 297
Conclusion: the Diaspora since the Age ofIndependence, Ulrike Freitag ... 315
Notes on the Contributors ... 331
Note on Transliteration ... 335
Glossary ... 337
Archival Sources and Bibliography ...343
Index ... 367