Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
furār, furfur
), is left to its mother, but when
it is over three months, the teats are pro-
gressively taken from it, ending by their
being forbidden it, the maternal mam-
maries being enclosed in a bag (
ª
amla,
ª
ımāl
), which may be made of a hedgehog
skin; a gag (
faāma
) is also used, applied to
the muzzle of the young in the company
of its mother. In the hours of milking the
young are kept apart. After weaning,
the kid becomes a
¡
afr
(pl.
¡
ifār
) and the
lamb
¶
arūf
(pl.
¶
irfān
) and, before it is
one year old, the sex is distinguished, with
¡
ady
and
uu
for the he-kid,
anā
for the
she-kid,
amal
and
immar
(dial.
allū
ª
) for
the he-lamb and
ri
¶
l
and
immara
for the
she-lamb. When one year has passed,
with the goats, the male is the
atūd
or the
arī
, then, around two years, the
¡
a
£
a
or
tays
, whereas the female becomes
anz
or
afiyya
; progressively each of them are
called
º
anī, rabāī, sadīs
and after seven
years,
sāli
∞
. The he-goat sire is, in the
dialects, the
atrūs
. As for the sheep, by
a similar terminological graduation, one
arrives at the
kab
ª
for the ram and the
na
¡
a
for the reproductive ewe; castration
of the males is not always practised, for
it is proscribed by urānic law and the
he-lambs and kids remaining are taken,
in the care of the
¡
allāb
, to the abattoirs
(
ma
¡
zar
pl.
ma
¡
āzir
) of the urban centres
or delivered directly to the butcher (
aāb
)
of the nearest village. Those which sup-
ply the feasts and ceremonies of the tribal
group are only an infinitesimal part.
According to the social organisations
peculiar to each Muslim people, the
groupings of sheep and goats can be very
variable as to the number of heads of live-
stock; also, the term “troupeau” (French)
and “flock” (English), without numerical
precision, do not have a direct correspon-
dent in Arabic. The small family flock of
ten to forty animals (
aī
, dial.
rasla, aa,
nūba
) is called
fizr
, if there are only sheep,
and
ubba
, if there are only goats. With
the hundred, one speaks of
īnā
of sheep
and
∞
īnā
or
aw
of goats. With two hun-
dred, it is the
¶
ir
and above that the
waīr
without distinction of species. The
joining together, for common needs, of
several
waīr
with their dogs and carrier
donkeys forms a
fir
or a
mu
∞
nam
, which
may number several thousand head; such
a moving mass can be described further
as a
∞
anam mu
∞
annama
(comp. “a sea of
sheep and goats”) and with this idea of
multitude it will be said,
aana 'l-awm
wa-amaza
“the group is very rich in sheep
and goats”.
Equally highly variable is the condi-
tion of the pastor (
rāī
, dial.
sāri
, Berber
ameksa, amaan
), shepherd or goatherd,
or most often, both at once, according
to the framework of the society in which
he is integrated. Among the sedentaries,
a youth suffices to guard the few beasts
of the family circle, but, in some villages,
the livestock of each is gathered into a sin-
gle flock which may be quite large, each
animal bearing the mark of its owner,
and they also have recourse to a profes-
sional shepherd. He is engaged under a
renewable seasonal contract covering two
seasons (
kamāla
, either summer-autumn,
or winter-spring) and he is paid mainly
in kind. On the day of his engagement
he receives a small sum as a deposit, the
outer garment (
abā, burnus
, Morocco
selhām
) indispensable against inclement
weather, a large woollen haversack (
kurz,
amāra
) to carry his personal possessions
and, also, for those of the newborn who
may arrive during the journey for pasture,
and a crook (
ukkāz, anfa
) which can be
a strong club as a defensive weapon. He
is assured of daily food and at the expiry
of his contract, he has the right to twenty
lambs and kids (
riāya
). In the case of his
contract not being renewed, he gives back
the deposit, the cloak and the haversack.
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