Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1883-09-06
An Arab Wedding.

Descriptions of Arab customs have so
often been placed before the reading
| public that some apology is needed for
again attempting to describe the cere-
monies attending an Arab wedding.
My excuse for attempting what has been
so often done before must be that a
wedding on grand scale is an exceed
ingly rare occurrence among the Arabs
of the Soudan, and, owing to the great
variety of tribes represented at an Arab
seaport, an unusually good opportunity
was afforded of witnessing different
tribal customs. The wedding [ propose
to describe took place in the present
year of grace, 1888, at Souakin. For
the benefit of those whose geography
was learned some years ago, let me
state that Souakin is town situated
on the Red Sea, in 10 deg. north lati-
tude and 27 deg. east longitude, and is
the chief port for the produce of the
Soudan and the equatorial provinces of
Egypt. The fathers of both bride and
bridegroom were leading merchants in
the port-the father of the bridegroom
being the owner of nearly two-thirds of
the island on which Souakin is built.
The festivities in connection with the
wedding lasted for ten days, during
bridegroOm's father, music, singing
and dancing being kept up night after
night until dawn announced the APP
proach of day. Each night some diff
ferent tribe gave it's own peculiar songs
and dances, in large shamiana which
had been erected for the purpose, and
all Souakin focked to participate in or
be passive spectators of the scene.
Professional singers and dancers had
been brought over the sea from Jed
dab to assist the local talent, and the
intervals between the dances were filled
up with Arab love songs. The favOrite
musical instrument of all Arabs is the
drum, or tum-tum. ThiS~cOnsiStS of a
gOurd or large earthern bowl with a
skin stretched over it. The Souakinese
have also a sort of double flageolet,
made of reeds, which makes very
shrill, though not unpleasant sound;
and the Hadramut Arabs use a species
of bagpipes which emit sounds produc-
tive of the most exquisite torture. The
music, as rule, is of very monotonous
character, though at times something
like quick march is struck up, which
is always accompanied by the audience
with clapping of hands. Entertain
ments were given on successive nights.
by the Bishareen Arabs. who inhabit
the hill country between Souakin and
the Nile on the southwest; by the
Hadendoas, who dwell south near the
Abyssinian frontier; by the Hadra-
mants, who hail from the Persian Gulf,
and by professional dancing girls from
Jeddah, who gave several performances
of the Deluka, a dance very similar to
the Indian nautch The national dance
of the BiShareen Arabs is of military
character, as becomes the members Of
so warlike tribe. The dancers form a
| circle, standing about four PAGES apart,
so as to give space for the brandishing
Of their spears. They then move slowly
around to the beating of the tum-tums,
singing the while, and now and again
hating and raising their spears high
above their heads, as if about to hurl
them. Gradually the music quickens,
and with it the steps of the dancers; the
spears whirl round the heads of the
warriors at an astonishing rate, and it
looks as though somebody would
certainly be impaled. This continues
until the dancers are tired out, when
they retire, and their places are taken
to time again, however, and about
thirty OI IuGIu VIII keep GH0 uduCG 20
ing necessarily throughout the night.
The dance of the HadendOas is some
what similar, except that they are
armed with swords, and all carry round
shields made of hippOpotamus hide. As
they get excited in the dance, they
crouch and spring, and assume the
most grotesque attitudes, clashing their
swords and making wonderful close
shaves of cutting off each others heads.
-BelgrGUta.