Nadav Samin

Of Sand or Soil: Genealogy and Tribal Belonging in Saudi Arabia - Princeton Studies in Muslim Politics Nadav Samin

Marc Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index. Jacket Description/Back:"Nadav Samin offers the most in-depth and serious work on the politics of history and identity in Saudi Arabia, perhaps the most opaque country in the Arab world. Samin's framing of the issues is deeply learned and relies on personal and public archival documents as well as on fieldwork interviews with a wide range of Saudi individuals. The net effect is truly revelatory and sets a high bar for the study of the Middle East. This book is a must-read for all who are interested in the intertwining of history with ethnography, the dominant role the modern state plays in defining the politics of belonging and exclusion, and the various forms of cultural resistance to a government's agenda."--Bernard Haykel, Princeton University"This significant book explains why tribal genealogies are important in contemporary Saudi Arabia. Samin draws on a wide range of theoretical approaches and argues that tribal genealogies remain resilient as a result of social and political changes related to such factors as the Saudi state, urbanization, and migration."--Madawi Al-Rasheed, London School of Economics and Political Science"While there have long been studies published on the social and political significance of Middle Eastern genealogies, nothing has yet been written about people's preoccupations with them within the context of state consolidation in Saudi Arabia. Based on meticulous research, this book is innovative and original."--Gabriele vom Bruck, SOAS, University of LondonTable of Contents:"List of Illustrations" ix"Acknowledgments" xi"Note on Transliteration" xiiiIntroduction 1Chapter One ?amad al-J?sir: A Life in Context 19Chapter Two The Dark Matter of Tribal Belonging 53Chapter Three The Oracle of al-Wur?d: ?amad al-J?sir's Genealogical Correspondence 79Chapter Four Marriage and Lineal Authentication 115Chapter Five Parallel Migrations, Divergent Destinations 136Chapter Six Toward a Genealogical Rule of Governance 165Conclusion 201"Notes" 205"Bibliography" 255"Index" 271Publisher Marketing: Why do tribal genealogies matter in modern-day Saudi Arabia? What compels the strivers and climbers of the new Saudi Arabia to want to prove their authentic descent from one or another prestigious Arabian tribe? "Of Sand or Soil" looks at how genealogy and tribal belonging have informed the lives of past and present inhabitants of Saudi Arabia and how the Saudi government's tacit glorification of tribal origins has shaped the powerful development of the kingdom's genealogical culture. Nadav Samin presents the first extended biographical exploration of the major twentieth-century Saudi scholar ?amad al-J?sir, whose genealogical studies frame the story about belonging and identity in the modern kingdom. Samin examines the interplay between al-J?sir's genealogical project and his many hundreds of petitioners, mostly Saudis of nontribal or lower status origin who sought validation of their tribal roots in his genealogical texts. Investigating the Saudi relationship to this opaque, orally inscribed historical tradition, Samin considers the consequences of modern Saudi genealogical politics and how the most intimate anxieties of nontribal Saudis today are amplified by the governing strategies and kinship ideology of the Saudi state. Challenging the impression that Saudi culture is determined by puritanical religiosity or rentier economic principles, "Of Sand or Soil" shows how the exploration and establishment of tribal genealogies have become influential phenomena in contemporary Saudi society. Beyond Saudi Arabia, this book casts important new light on the interplay between kinship ideas, oral narrative, and state formation in rapidly changing societies.

Contributor Bio:  Samin, Nadav Nadav Samin is visiting assistant professor of anthropology at Dartmouth College.