The
QatalogThe
QatalogIf people know anything about Yemen apart from it being the legendary home of the Queen of Sheba, it is the Yemeni penchant for chewing the leaves of Catha edulis, known as qat or gat in Yemen. There is an extensive literature on the subject of qat, yet much of this is difficult to locate in libraries. There is also a vast amount of material in Arabic, only a fraction of which has been translated. YEMEN WEBDATE provides the Qatalog as a forum to provide information about this plant and its use, resources for further study, and interesting tidbits. AIYS does not endorese any of the specific information, references or links provided.
You are encouraged to send in information you find about qat, new references, or comments of your own. Pleae contact the webshaykh.
Sources
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The Qat Page (Yemen Gateway) http://www.al-bab.com/yemen/soc/qat.htm
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• Beekhuis, Angelique. "Chewing khat together: from indigenous practice to international issue" http://leda.lycaeum.org/Documents/Chewing_khat_together:_from_indigenous_practice_to_international_issue.16268.shtml
• Burns, John F. "Khat-Chewing Yemen Told to Break Ancient Habit" Cannibis News http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread2939.shtml
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Cultural anthropologist Angelique Beekhuis studied the social aspects of qat chewing among Somali refugees in the Netherlands. Readers who know Dutch can consult her book, Denken en dromen in een andere wereld (Nijmegen: Katholieke Universiteit, 1996). Her brief survey of qat chewing as such appears in the Indigenous Knowledge and Development Monitor (5/2:14-16, 1997). The following is a brief excerpt from the article (p.15):
"... Although daily qat chewing is not as universal among Zabidi women as it is among men, many women describe its mildly stimulating quality as indispensable to relaxation although the focus in women's gatherings is more on qat exchange than consumption.
We began rubbing the dust from the qat leaves with our fingers; Magda immediately cleaned a small bunch for me and wordlessly aimed it at my mouth. This kind of qat exchange is commonly performed between women who are affectively, socially, and, of course, spatially close. As is common for affluent hostesses, Jamaliya distributed a generous portion of qat to each of the chewing guests. We protested loudly, claiming that we would never possibly consume that much; Jamaliya merely smiled, and after entreating us to relax, moved on to exchange hand kisses with a new arrival. Later we each tried to press upon her a bunch of cleaned qat as she whizzed about on her hostly duties, but she accepted only a token of what we each offered...
The party was soon buzzing with conversation and the ground bestrewn with discared qat stems. Qat exchanges flew so fast that women barely had time to chew. Those sitting far from each other sent bunches -- either a small cleaned bundle wrapped in tissue or several long sprigs --with one of the hostesses. In one exchange, mirrored by dozens of others in this gathering, a messenger delivered the gift of qat to Miriam, naming Magda, her fiend, as the donor. Miriam looked up as if completely surprised -- although these exchanges are a quintessential part of every gathering -- crying to Magda, 'Oh, you must chew!' [Khazzini anti!]. Some time later a recipient usually attempts to return the qat to the donor. Those sitting close together may have small arguments, pressing each other to accept these small gifts of qat. Although these struggles are usually good humoured, women may be quite annoyed if they are not allowed to make a return. Jamila, one of the clique of the elite women, sent Sayyida a large bundle of qat. When Sayyida tried to make a return to her, Jamila at first refused, waving the qat away, until Sayyida exclaimed loudly (and indignantly) 'Try some of mine!' [Khazzini min haqqi]. Sayyida, herself from a great family, did not want to be lumped together with the others to whom Jamila had grandly offfered qat. Jamila had earlier given bunches to clients of their families who regularly received charity from them, like the two old servant [akhdam] women who stopped in front of Jamila, kissing her hand several times. She made only a token effort to kiss their hands in return, and wordlessly handed them each a portion of qat, which they accepted in like silence, retreating to the furthest couch, a low one by the door.
[Anne Meneley (1996) Tournaments of
Value, University of Toronto Press,pp. 29-30]
