The Egyptian Peasant by Father Henry Habib Ayrout

[Ashtree0]

This is a fascinating insight into the life of the Fellahin written by the Jesuit priest and sociologist Father Henry Habib Ayrout. Father Ayrout established the Catholic Association for Schools in Egypt in 1940 and was instrumental in the development of schools in poor, rural communities in Egypt.

Father Ayrout shares his extensive knowledge of the fellahin giving context by explaining how land reformation impacted on the 'peasants' lives, their relationship to the land, their physical and psychological make up and customs.

Anyone interested in gaining a better understand or insight into the lives people from the rural villages of Egypt will find this book of great interest. Although the original publication of this book was written in French in 1938 (and has undergone several revisions) much of what he writes is still relevant today.

[LivinginLuxor]

I read it several years ago, and the parallels between then and now show how slow change occurs here. Another good book on the subject is The Fellahin of Upper Egypt, by Winifred Blackman, written about the same time. Not to mention our very own Glyph, who edited Omm Seti's papers for her book Omm Seti's Living Egypt - showing parallels between modern fellahin life with pharaonic customs.

[Ashtree0]

Hi Stan

The Winifred Blackman book is on my list to buy but as an out of print book is very expensive from £27 - £47. I have been searching for it via Oxfam bookshops etc but maybe I'll just take the leap and pay for whatever I can get it for.

In the meantime I have recently bought Upper Egypt - Life along the Nile by Hopkins and Saad (refers to the work of Blackman) though it is quite basic and not quite what I'm looking for (more of a high school introduction to anthropology). I've also just purchased Women of Jeme by Wilfong which describes the lives of women living in the Coptic town of Jeme during the first few centuries of Islamic rule. You may know about this Stan - I uderstand Jeme was located in the Medinet Habu area?

[LivinginLuxor]

It was - the name seems to have been derived from the ancient name of Djamet. Many of Jeme's houses can be seen in the mudbrick walls surrounding the temple. The strange thing about it is that it was abandoned in the 10th century, whereas the church within the temple was not demolished until the late 19th!

[Ashtree0]

Thank you very much for that Stan. I will report back on the book once I've read it.