Haratin

Haratin / Haratine

Haratin girl from Morocco.
Total population
> 1.5 million
Regions with significant populations
 Mauritania (40%)
 Morocco Western Sahara
 Algeria Tunisia Libya
Languages
Hassaniya Arabic
Religion
Sunni Islam

Haratin, also referred to as Harratins, Haratine or Hartani are oasis-dwellers in the Sahara, especially in northwestern Africa.[1][2] They are particularly found in Mauritania, Morocco and Western Sahara. They are of black heritage, make up an ethnically distinct group of largely settled, non-nomadic workers,[1] and with 40% of Mauritania total population, they are its largest ethnic group.[3] They have been called a socially distinct class of workers,[1][4] or a caste that emerged from a legacy of slavery in Africa under the Berbers and Moors.[2][5][6]

They have been socially isolated, low status, endogamous people who were former slaves or descendants of slaves.[2][7] Most originated from Sahel and sub-Saharan region of West Africa. They adopted Islam under the Moors,[2] and were forcibly recruited into the Moroccan army by Ismail Ibn Sharif to consolidate power.[7] Their primary occupation has been as agriculture serfs, herdsmen and subservient workers, and they speak Hassaniya Arabic.[1][2]

Etymology

The word Haratin has been traced to two roots. The first root is from haratine, the Arabic word for "plowmen".[2] The second etymology is based from the Berber word ahardan referring to skin color, more specifically "dark color".[8]

History

The origins of the Haratin people are in various black African ethnic groups in the sub-Saharan and Sahel regions of West Africa, such as Bambara, Soninke and others. They were raided or captured during war and brought into the Saharan lands as slaves.[2][4] Their ancestors and they have worked in arable lands particularly around the oases across the Sahara. They adopted the language and culture of the people who owned them, and they now speak Berber or Arabic. In countries such as Morocco, they are sometimes classified either as Berber or Arab, depending on their language and society they are found in.[4] In Mauritania, however, where there are nearly 1.5 million Haratins, they have developed a separate sense of ethnic identity.[4]

They have historically inherited their slave status and family occupation, have been endogamous and socially segregated.[2][7] Some communities differentiated two types of slaves, one called `Abid or "slave" and Haratin or "freed slave". However, states John Shoup – a professor of Anthropology, both 'Abid and Haratin were not free to own land or had equivalent property rights.[4] Regardless of whether they were technically free or not, they were treated as socially inferior in the communities they lived in. Being denied the right and the ability to own any land, they historically survived by accepting a patron-client serf relationship either as domestic servant or as share-cropping labor (khammasin).[9][10]

They became the target for conscription by the Moroccan ruler Ismail Ibn Sharif as he sought to build a military who had no social or cultural attachment to any other Arab or Berber group in Maghreb, and he conscripted all Haratin and 'Abid he found in any Moroccan town. This Haratin army was then forced into a series of wars in order to consolidate the power of Ismail.[7][9][11]

Haratin in Mauritania

In Mauritania, the Haratin form one of the largest ethnic groups and account for as much as 40% of the Mauritanians. They are sometimes referred to as "Black Moors",[12] in contrast to Beidane, or "White Moors". The Haratin are Arabic-speakers. They are either former slaves or the descendants of slaves from sub-Saharan West Africa, some acquired by Berbers after the 3rd century, and others after the arrival of the Arabs.[13] Most of them have origins in the ethnic groups such as the Bambara, Fulani, Soninké and Wolof people. They have adopted the language and culture of the Berber or Arab community they have lived with.[4]

The Haratin of Mauritania, states Joseph Hellweg – a professor of Anthropology specializing on West African studies, were part of a social caste-like hierarchy that likely developed from a Bedouin legacy between 1300 to 1500 CE. The "Hassan" monopolized the occupations related to war and politics, the "Zwaya" (Zawaya) the religious roles, the "Bidan" (White Moors) owned property and held slaves (Haratins, Black Moors), and the slaves constituted the lowest of the social strata.[14] Each of these were castes, endogamous, with hereditary occupations and where the upper strata collected tribute (horma) from the lower strata of Mauritanian society, considered them socially inferior, and denied them the right to own land or weapons thereby creating a socio-economically closed system.[15][16][17]

In 1960, Mauritania officially abolished slavery, and made another update to its slavery law in 1981.[13] However, even after the formalities, abolishment and new laws, discrimination against Haratin is still widespread, and many continue to be, for all practical purposes, enslaved, while large numbers live in other forms of informal dependence on their former masters.[13]

In Mauritania, the use of Haratin girls as servants has attracted activists.

Amnesty International reported that in 1994 90,000 Haratine still lived as "property" of their master, with the report indicating that "slavery in Mauritania is most dominant within the traditional upper class of the Moors."[18] According to Mauritanian officials, any master-serf relationship is mutually consensual. This position has been questioned by the United Nations and human rights advocacy groups.[13]

The Amnesty International report states that "[s]ocial attitudes have changed among most urban Moors, but in rural areas, the ancient divide is still very alive." There have been many attempts to assess the real extension of slavery in modern Mauritania, but these have mostly been frustrated by the Nouakchott government's official stance that the practice has been eliminated. Amnesty further estimated that some 300,000 freed slaves continued to be in service of their former masters.[18]

Haratin in Morocco

Haratin have been the slave strata of the Moroccan society through its recorded history.[7] They were owned in every town and farming centers before the time of Moroccan ruler Ismail Ibn Sharif. They provided domestic labor, farm labor, physical labor inside towns and markets, as well as were conscripted to fight wars.[9][11]

According to Remco Ensel – a professor of Anthropology specializing in Maghreb studies, the word "Haratin" in Moroccan is a pejorative that connotes "subordination, disrepute" and in contemporary literature, it is often replaced with "Drawi", "Drawa", "Sahrawi", "Sahrawa" or other regional terms.[19][20] The Moroccan Haritin, states Chouki El Hamel – a professor of History specializing in African Studies, are the diaspora of black West Africans who were forcefully transported across the Sahara and sold in Moroccan slave markets over centuries. They absorbed the "Arabo-centric values in the dominant interpretation of Islam", states El Hamel, over the generations and they see themselves as Muslim Moroccans, rather than by their ethnic or native group.[20]

The Haratin strata, as slave workers, were a major institution of Moroccan society through the 19th century.[21] Yet, there has been a general lack of historical records about their origins and ethnography, leading to several constructed proposals, and their mention is older Moroccan literature is generally limited to their status as slaves and more focussed on the rights on their owners.[20][22] It is their contemporary economic and social marginalization that is awakened renewed interest in their history and their oral histories.[20]

The Haratins remain indispensable workers in modern oases societies, states Ensel, and continue to be mistreated in contrast to the upper strata called the "Shurfa".[19] According to Remco Ensel, Haratin along with Swasin in Morocco and other northern fringe societies of the Sahara, were a part of a social hierarchy that included the upper strata of nobles, religious specialists and literati, followed by freemen, nomadic pastoral strata and slaves. The Haratin were hierarchically higher than the `Abid (descendant of slaves) at the very bottom, but lower than Ahrar. This hierarchy, states Ensel, has been variously described as ethnic groups, estates, quasi-castes, castes or classes.[23][24]

The Haratins historically lived segregated from the main society, in a rural isolation.[24] Their subjugation was sometimes ideologically justified by nobles and some religious scholars, even though others disagreed.[25] The social stratification of Haratin and their inter-relationships with others members of the society varied by valley and oasis, but whether the Haratins were technically 'unfreed, semi-freed or freed' slaves, they were considered as "inferior" by other strata of the society.[26] The Haratin remain the marginalized population of Morocco, just like other similar groups around the world.[27]

Haratine in Western Sahara

According to Human Rights Watch, Morocco alleges that slavery is widespread in the Tindouf refugee camps run by the Polisario Front in south-western Algeria; POLISARIO denies this and claims to have eradicated slavery through awareness campaigns. A 2009 investigative report by Human Rights Watch interviewed some dark-skinned Sahrawis, who are a small minority in the camps; they stated that some "blacks" are "owned" by "whites" but this ownership manifested only in "granting" marriage rights to girls. In other words, a dark-skinned girl must have an approval from her "white master". Without this the marriage can not be performed by a Qadi (Islamic Judge).[28]

The report notes that POLISARIO claims to oppose any such discrimination, but raises questions about possible official collusion in, or indifference to, the practice. In addition, a case of an official document that grants freedom to a group of enslaved families has been found by HRW. The document in question dates as recently as 2007. The document was signed by a local judge or an official civil servant. Slavery is still engraved in memories due to historical and traditional reasons, and such cases are not as shocking as one might think to the society of the Sahrawi refugee camps.[28] The Human Rights Watch concludes its chapter on slavery as follows, "In sum, credible sources testified to Human Rights Watch about vestiges of slavery that continue to affect the lives of a portion of the black minority in the Tindouf camps. The practices involve historical ties between families that involve certain rights and obligations that are not always clear. Being a slave does not necessarily preclude enjoying freedom of movement."

Responding to questions about slavery, the POLISARIO has acknowledged the survival "to a limited extent, of certain practices related to antiquated thinking" and said it was "determined to combat and eradicate them whenever they emerge and no matter what shape they take." We welcome this statement and urge the POLISARIO to be vigilant in pursuing this objective."[28]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Haratin, Encyclopedia Britannica (2014)
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Anthony Appiah; Henry Louis Gates (2010). Encyclopedia of Africa. Oxford University Press. p. 549. ISBN 978-0-19-533770-9., Quote: "Haratine. Social caste in several northwestern African countries consisting of blacks, many of whom are former slaves (...)"
  3. ↑ Mauritania, CIA Factbook
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 John A. Shoup III (2011). Ethnic Groups of Africa and the Middle East: An Encyclopedia: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. pp. 114–115. ISBN 978-1-59884-363-7.
  5. ↑ JOHN SHOUP (2007), THE GRIOT TRADITION IN ḤASSĀNIYYA MUSIC: THE "ĪGGĀWEN", Quaderni di Studi Arabi Nuova Serie, Vol. 2 (2007), pp. 95-102, Quote: "There are a number of other castes in Baydan society including the Haratin who farm for the (...)"
  6. ↑ Chouki El Hamel (2014). Black Morocco: A History of Slavery, Race, and Islam. Cambridge University Press. pp. 92–93. ISBN 978-1-139-62004-8.;
    Kevin Boyle; Juliet Sheen (2013). Freedom of Religion and Belief: A World Report. Routledge. p. 42. ISBN 978-1-134-72229-7.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Meyers, Allan R. (1977). "Class, Ethnicity, and Slavery: The Origins of the Moroccan 'Abid". The International Journal of African Historical Studies. Boston University African Studies Center. 10 (3): 427–442. doi:10.2307/216736.
  8. ↑ Hamel, Chouki El (2002). "Race, slavery and Islam in Maghribi Mediterranean thought: the question of the Haratin in Morocco". The Journal of North African Studies. Routledge. 7 (3): 29–52. doi:10.1080/13629380208718472.
  9. 1 2 3 Martin A. Klein; Suzanne Miers (2013). Slavery and Colonial Rule in Africa. Routledge. pp. 58–59, 79–86. ISBN 978-0714648842.
  10. ↑ Chouki El Hamel (2014). Black Morocco: A History of Slavery, Race, and Islam. Cambridge University Press. p. 92. ISBN 978-1-139-62004-8.
  11. 1 2 John Ralph Willis (2005). Slaves and Slavery in Africa: Volume Two: The Servile Estate. Routledge. pp. 2–9. ISBN 978-1-135-78016-6.
  12. ↑ "Slavery's last stand - CNN.com". CNN.
  13. 1 2 3 4 Appiah, Kwame Anthony; Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (2010). Encyclopedia of Africa: Two-Volume Set. Oxford University Press. p. 549. ISBN 9780195337709.
  14. ↑ Joseph R Hellweg (2011). Mark Juergensmeyer and Wade Clark Roof, ed. Encyclopedia of Global Religion. SAGE Publications. p. 761. ISBN 978-1-4522-6656-5.
  15. ↑ Anthony G. Pazzanita (1999), Middle East Journal, Political Transition in Mauritania: Problems and Prospects, Volume 53, Number 1 (Winter, 1999), pages 44-58
  16. ↑ Katherine Ann Wiley (2016), Making People Bigger: Wedding Exchange and the Creation of Social Value in Rural Mauritania, Africa Today, John Hopkins University Press, Volume 62, Number 3, pages 48-69
  17. ↑ Melinda Smale (1980), Women in Mauritania, USAID: Mauritania, Office of Women in Development, Agency for International Development, OICD Washington DC, page viii-ix, xviii-xix, 12-17, 35-36, 43; Quote: "Caste is the most specific of these crucial concepts. When applied to West African societies, it is used in the very general meaning of the division of societies into hierarchically rank-endogamous-occupational groups; the relation between these groups having ritual as well as economic significance. (...) To understand Mauritanian society, one must understand its ethnic groups, its tribes, socio-economic classes and its castes. The Hassaniya speakers who predominate over the majority of the country except along the river are divisible into two crucial subgroups - the Bidan or white Moors and the Haratin or black Moors. The Bidan are traditionally further divided into Z'waya (religious or "marabout" groups), Hassan (warrior groups), Zenaga (free tributary groups), Mu'allamin (craftsmen) and Ighyuwn (entertainers) (...)
  18. 1 2 Afrol News
  19. 1 2 Remco Ensel (1999). Saints and Servants in Southern Morocco. BRILL. pp. 2–4. ISBN 90-04-11429-7.
  20. 1 2 3 4 Chouki El Hamel (2014). Black Morocco: A History of Slavery, Race, and Islam. Cambridge University Press. pp. 4–6. ISBN 978-1-139-62004-8.
  21. ↑ Mohammed Ennaji (1999). Serving the Master: Slavery and Society in 19th Century Morocco. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 1–7. ISBN 978-0-312-21152-3.
  22. ↑ Mohamed Hassan (2012). Between Caravan and Sultan: The Bayruk of Southern Morocco: A Study in History and Identity. BRILL Academic. pp. 189–195. ISBN 978-90-04-18382-7.
  23. ↑ Chouki El Hamel (2014). Black Morocco: A History of Slavery, Race, and Islam. Cambridge University Press. p. 3. ISBN 978-1-139-62004-8.
  24. 1 2 Chouki El Hamel (2014). Black Morocco: A History of Slavery, Race, and Islam. Cambridge University Press. pp. 92, 112–113. ISBN 978-1-139-62004-8.
  25. ↑ Chouki El Hamel (2014). Black Morocco: A History of Slavery, Race, and Islam. Cambridge University Press. p. 112-113, 172-173. ISBN 978-1-139-62004-8., Quote: "This new meaning was an ideological construct to justify the subjugation of the free/freed blacks [Haratin] and was buttressed by documents that sought to advance the Makhzan's agenda by demonstrating that the Haratin were of slave origin, therefore creating a racialized caste".
  26. ↑ Chouki El Hamel (2014). Black Morocco: A History of Slavery, Race, and Islam. Cambridge University Press. p. 3, 45-46, 57-59, 244-246. ISBN 978-1-139-62004-8.
  27. ↑ Remco Ensel (1999). Saints and Servants in Southern Morocco. BRILL. pp. 6–7. ISBN 90-04-11429-7.
  28. 1 2 3 "Human Rights in Western Sahara and the Tindouf Refugee Camps". Retrieved 17 August 2011.

Bibliography

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