Tell Toqaan, A Syrian Village (Volume 14) (Anthropological Papers Series)

Anthropologist Louise E. Sweet conducted her fieldwork in 1954 in Tell Toquaan, a Muslim Arab village in northwest Syria. In this volume, she presents her research: a thorough description of life in the village. She discusses in detail the geography and climate, history and language, settlement patterns, animal husbandry, agriculture, buildings and compounds, household technology and economics, commerce, division of labor, social structure, and ideology and ritual. Contents I. Introduction II. Tell Toqaan area Geography and topography Topography and drainage Soil types and distribution Climate and seasons Vegetation Fauna Settlements and communications Ethnogeography III. People of Tell Toqaan Population and vital statistics Physical appearance Pathological condition Census categories Urban or rural origin Tribal representation IV. Language in Tell Toqaan Local knowledge of language Features of Arabic spoken in Tell Toqaan V. History of Tell Toqaan The villagers' historical concepts Shayx MaHmuud and his history History of Tell Toqaan General historical setting VI. Land system of Tell Toqaan Settlement and lands Settlement pattern Legal category of lands Landholders in Tell Toqaan Division of land and the field system Subtenures and contracts VII. Agriculture and gardening Agriculture Gardening VIII. Animal husbandry Traditional classes of animals Property in animals Property marks Taxes Breeding Care of animals Herding and grazing Milk and its processing Other animal products Poultry Bees IX. Buildings and compounds The compound Construction types Construction procedures Organization of labor in house building Interiors of dwellings Other structures of the family compound Other buildings in Tell Toqaan Ownership of buildings X. Household technology and economics Food Cooking Eating Bread Household work and crafts A day in a peasant household XI. Distribution and commerce Noncommercial distribution and exchange Commercial distribution XII. Division of labor Landlord-hired hand system Tribal Shayx unit Peasant system Division of labor by sex Division of labor by age Division of labor by ethnic group Division of labor for village as a unit Specialists and specialization XIII. Social structure Kinship The family Lineages Marriage Kinship terms and usage Village organization Relations with the state Social life and occasions Clothing and its social significance XIV. Ideology and ritual Life-cycle ceremonies Medicine and magic Islam XV. Conclusion Tell Toqaan: the local factors Culture patterns in Tell Toqaan Tell Toqaan and the urban system Nature and direction of cultural change Appendix A. Phonemic symbols used in transcription of Arabic words B. List of families and individuals in Tell Toqaan C. Land divisions in Tell Toqaan Bibliography