The tradition of intensive fieldwork by a single anthropologist in one area has been challenged by new emphasis on studying historical patterns, wider regions, and global networks. Some anthropologists have started their careers from the new vantage point, amidst a chorus of claims for innovative methodologies. Others have lived through these changes of perspective and are able to reflect on them, while re-evaluating the place of fieldwork within the broader aims of general anthropology. This book explores these transformations of world view and approach as they have been experienced by...
The tradition of intensive fieldwork by a single anthropologist in one area has been challenged by new emphasis on studying historical patterns, wider...
Paul Dresch here combines ethnography with history to describe the system of sedentary tribes in South Arabia--a strategically sensitive part of the world--over the past thousand years. He examines the values and traditions the tribal people bring to the contemporary world of nation-states, and discusses the relation of the major tribes to pre-modern Islamic learning, the Zaydi Imamate, ideas of contemporary statehood, and the area as a whole. Dresch's unique and provocative insights are of increasing value given the increased Western involvement with Yemen since 1989, the union of the two...
Paul Dresch here combines ethnography with history to describe the system of sedentary tribes in South Arabia--a strategically sensitive part of the w...
Despite their small populations, the Arab states of the Gulf exercise an enormous and global influence. But all-too-often, these states are treated as if their only importance were as pawns in a global strategic board game, and are simply dealt with as mere models of the intersection of oil, wealth and power. Here, Dresch and Piscatori bring together a more nuanced picture: exploring how the citizen populations of these states define themselves in a wider context.Examining the issues such as Gulf-owned transnational media, the role of women in the Kuwaiti state and the way Saudi...
Despite their small populations, the Arab states of the Gulf exercise an enormous and global influence. But all-too-often, these states are treated...