EAST 210 Nomadic Pastoralism
Nomadic Pastoralism in the Past and the Present
EAST1 210
Tuesday and Thursday 3-4:15
King 121
Dr. Joshua Wright
Office Hours Tuesday and Thursday, 12:30-2:30 or by appointment, Rice 03
[email protected]
Nomadic pastoralism is a ‘third way’ of human subsistence separate from farming or foraging. It is
a sustainable human adaptation to grassland and arid environments practiced through particular
technologies and domesticated animals. We will begin with the novel human ecology and social
organization that emerges from mobile ways of life drawing on modern, ethnohistorical and
archaeological examples. Several larger themes that position nomadic pastoralism in the present
and the past will be covered including, popular perceptions of nomads in various media, the ‘war
on terror’ in Africa, the origins of pastoral nomadism and horse riding along with dairy based foods
and animal resources. Eurasian and Northeast Asian steppe pastoralism will be the central case
study, with additional discussions of the Near East, Western Africa, The American West and the
Tibetan Plateau.
Course Expectations
Students should leave this class with,
1) an understanding of the economy and ecology of pastoral nomadism in several
regions of the world,
2) an introduction to the history, ethnohistory and modern life among several major
nomadic pastoralist peoples in the world today,
3) practice with the use of ethnographic texts and ecological concepts as tools to
articulate and present issues in anthropology, and
4) experience at approaching ethnographic film and other media as ‘text’.
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Also counts for ANTHRO — see the department about that.
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EAST 210 Nomadic Pastoralism
Main Texts
Barfield, Thomas. The Nomadic Alternative. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall,
1993.
Behnke, Roy H. The Herders of Cyrenaica. Illinois Studies in Anthropology.
Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1980. (pdf excerpt)
Beck, Lois. Nomad, a Year in the Life of a Qashqa'i Tribesman in Iran. Berkeley:
University of California Press, 1991.
Sabloff, Paula W., ed. Modern Mongolia. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania
Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, 2001.
Additional readings will be made available through Blackboard. All texts are on reserve at
Mudd Library.
Films (Viewable at class screenings on Monday evenings at 7:30 in Mudd 050, DVDs on
reserve in Mudd)
Grass: a nation’s battle for life (Cooper, Schoedsack, and Harrison 1925)
The Story of the Weeping Camel (Davaa & Falorni 2005)
Genghis Blues (Belic 2000)
Summer Pasture (True, Walker & Perlo 2012)
Sweetgrass (Barbash and Castaing-Taylor 2010)
Additional video and audio clips and segments will be made available through
Blackboard.
Field Trip
If fortune allows (i.e. I can find the right farm and you can find the time) we will make a
field trip to a local small scale goat farm to learn about pastoralism first hand. Finding the
local nomads will be up to you.
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EAST 210 Nomadic Pastoralism
Course Requirements
Major Assignments
There are two major assignments in this course:
1) Working individually through reading and discussion you will each develop a set of key
‘rules’ for how nomadic pastoralism works ecologically, economically and/or socially.
Using these rules you will work in small groups to develop a playable game of some sort
that reflects the choices and challenges of being a pastoral nomad.
Games will be played in class on March 14th and 19th. A 4-6 page description and
analyses (as well as the games themselves) are due at the beginning of spring break (23rd
March).
2) A brief in-class presentation and short write-up (5-6 pages) describing a modern or
ancient mobile or pastoralist population not-discussed in class.
Presentations will be made beginning May 2nd. Final written version of the presentation
can be turned in anytime after that up until the class’ schedule final time.
All your writing should demonstrate thoughtful scholarship and clear argumentation
incorporating the texts and concepts of the course. Proper citation of and respect for the
ideas and texts of other authors is required in all your writing. Use whatever format for in
text citations and reference style you are most comfortable with. The consequences of
plagiarism (intentional or otherwise) are grave, so please contact me if you are uncertain
about what is right.
Short Assignments
Throughout the semester there will be several films and texts that your will be expected to
write response papers to. These will be single page (c.250 word) and consist mainly of
thoughtful reviews, but may also focus on different topics (comparative, style etc.).
Through the semester there will be 6 such assignments, however only 5 will be counted in
your final grade — the lowest valued will be dropped.
In addition this is a class in which contributions to the class, discussion and
demonstrations of your understandings of the source texts will be central to your grade.
Grading Distribution
Class Participation 30%
Individual game rules and analysis 10%
Group designed game 20%
Final presentation and write up 20%
Small assignments (5) 20%
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EAST 210 Nomadic Pastoralism
Late Work, Attendance and Extensions
The grade of late work will be penalized by ⅓ of a grade level per day for major
assignments and a general deduction of ¼ the value of the small assignments. I reserve the
right to apply more or less drastic sanctions than this. Contact me as soon as you know
your work will be late, the sooner the better, and we’ll work from there.
Attendance is important and is considered part of your class participation grade. If you
must be absent for any reason please let me know a far in advance as possible so
arrangements can be made for you to make up missed class work. I will not evaluate or
challenge your reasoning for missing class.
The Honor Code
At the end of each graded assignment, you are required to write and sign the Oberlin
honor pledge: “I have adhered to the Honor Code in this assignment”. For more
information about the Honor System please see:
www.oberlin.edu/students.links-life/rules-regs.html.
Student Accessibility
Any student with any issues in accessing course material or spaces should contact me at
the start of the semester so that I can arrange any necessary accommodations. Please bring
documentation from the Office of Disability Services that will help explain your needs.
Contact: Jane Boomer [email protected] Student Academic Services, Peters Hall
G27, x55588 www.oberlin.edu/disability
INTRODUCTIONS
① Feb. 5 Welcome and Introduction
② Feb. 7 The Basics of Pastoral Nomadism
For this class read: Cyrenaica, excepts on blackboard (pdf) ch 1,2,4 5 (pp.9-74)
Be prepared to describe and discuss the mechanics of pastoral nomadism.
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EAST 210 Nomadic Pastoralism
③ Feb 12. Frameworks and Themes
Read: Nomadic Alternative, Introduction (pp.1-18)
Ibn Khaldun. The Muqaddimah. Translated by Franz Rosenthal. Edited by N.J. Dawood.
Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1967.
intro: vii-xii, 91-97, 107, 118-122 (18 pp)
④ Feb 14. Milk, Dairy & Secondary Products
Read: McGee, Harold. On Food and Cooking, the Science and Lore of the Kitchen.
2nd ed. New York: Scribner, 2004. Excepts from chapter 1 (pp. 7-13, 18-39,
44-64) (pdf)
For class prepare a list of 5 dairy products mentioned in the reading — at least 2 must be
something you’ve never heard of before.
NORTH AFRICA & NEAR EAST
Watch: Grass (to be shown February 18)
Before watching the film study: College Film and Media Studies (several pages in the
‘reference pages’ section describing and demonstrating various film terms and techniques)
Optional Reading:
Kilborn, R., and J. Izod. An Introduction to Television Documentary: Confronting Reality.
Manchester: University of Manchester Press, 1997.
Introduction in Heider, Karl G. Ethnographic Film. Revised ed. Austin: University of Texas
Press, 2006. 1976.
Read: The main text for this section is Nomad its a long book, so pace yourself. You will be
responsible for two of the four seasons described in the book.
⑤ Feb. 19 Grass & Ethnographic Films
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Short Assignment(1): Film review of Grass and its depiction of key pastoralist issues.
Read: Nomadic Alternative, chapter 4 (pp.93-130)
Shor, Jean, and Franc Shor. "We Dwelt in Kashgai Tents." National Geographic, 1952,
805-31.
Nomad, introduction (pp. 1-27)
Be prepared to present and discuss the film and your short review as well as discuss the
three different ethnographer’s approaches to Qashqa’i.
⑥ Feb. 21 Near Eastern Pastoralism in Prehistory and History
Read: Nomad, read one season.
Rosen, Steven A. "Notes on the Origins of Pastoral Nomadism: A Case Study from the
Negev and Sinai." Current Anthropology 29, no. 3 (1988): 498-506.
⑦ Feb. 26 Constraints on Pastoral Nomadic Subsistence
Finish Reading: Nomad, read another season.
Be prepared to work in groups to describe the different seasons of the Qashqa’i and
discuss what the key rules of nomadic pastoralism are (your first major assignment). Use
Nomad and Cyrenaica and everything else as your sources.
MONGOLIA
⑧ Feb. 28 Origins of Eurasian Pastoralism and Horse Domestication.
Read: Nomadic Alternative, chapter 5, (pp.131-178)
Hanks, Bryan. "Archaeology of the Eurasian Steppes and Mongolia." Annual Review of
Anthropology 39 (2010): 469-86. (pdf)
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Chapter 110, ‘The Xiongnu’ from Watson, Burton. Records of the Grand Historian of
China, Translated from the Shih Chi of Ssu-Ma Ch'ien. Vol. Volume 2: Columbia
University Press, 1961. (pdf) (2 pp)
Optional reading:
Olsen, Sandra L. "Early Horse Domestication: Weighing the Evidence." In Horses and
Humans: The Evolution of Human-Equine Relationships, edited by S.L. Olsen, S.
Grant, A.M. Choyke and L. Bartosiewicz. BAR International Series, 81-113. Oxford,
2006.
Watch: Story of the Weeping Camel (to be shown March 4th)
⑨ Mar. 5 Eurasian Nomads
Read: Chapters1 & 3 in Sabloff, Modern Mongolia
Ingold, Tim. "Khazanov on Nomads." Current anthropology 26, no. 3 (1985): 384-87.
Mearns, Robin. "Territoriality and Land Tenure among Mongolian Pastoralists: Variation,
Continuity and Change." Nomadic peoples, no. 33 (1993): 73-103.
Listen: Tuvan Seasonal Migration (BBC, Siberian Stories, 15 min.)
Watch: Short films on Steppe Horsemen, Eagle Hunters and Gobi Camel Herders (BBC
2011, Human Planet) Available on Blackboard.
Short Assignment(2): Film response on Weeping Camel & other short films. Depictions of
Eurasian pastoralism in relation to readings.
Be prepared to discuss the films and the key structures and issues for Eurasian Pastoralists.
More on the key conditions for Mongol pastoralists.
⑩ Mar. 7 Inner Asian Empires
Read: Edwards, Mike, and James L. Stanfield. "Genghis Khan, Lord of the Mongols."
National Geographic, 1996, 7-37. (pdf)
Honeychurch, William. "Pastoral Nomadic Voices: A Mongolian Archaeology for the
Future." World Archaeology 42, no. 3 (2010): 405-17.
Excepts from Tekin, Talat. A Grammer of Orkhon Turkic. Bloomington: Research Center
for the Language Sciences, 1969. (pdf)
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Watch: Genghis Blues (to be shown March 11th)
⑪ Mar. 12 Mongol Music
Guest speaker Dr. Jennifer Fraser (Oberlin College, Dept of Musicology)
Read: ‘Music, Sound and Animals’ and ‘Sound Mimesis and Spiritual Landscape’ in Levin,
Ted. Where Rivers and Mountains Sing: Sound, Music, and Nomadism in Tuva and
Beyond. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2006. (excepts on blackboard)
Listen: Tuvan music and sound samples (available on Blackboard)
GAMES
⑫ Mar. 14 Play, evaluate and discuss your games
During Play: Evaluation sheets for each game you play.
Film Showing: Summer Pasture (to be shown March 18th).
⑬ Mar. 19 Play, evaluate and discuss your games
During Play: Evaluation sheets for each game you play.
Major Assignment: Brief analysis of your own game, its aims and structure, the rules that
underly it, success etc. and the game itself to be turned in by spring break (you can get the
games back if you want)
TIBET
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EAST 210 Nomadic Pastoralism
⑭ Mar. 21 Summer Pastures
Read: Nomadic Alternative, chapter 6 (pp.180-200)
Goldstein, Melvyn, and Cynthia Beall. "The Remote World of Tibet's Nomads." National
Geographic, 1989, 752-80.
Extra Listening: Smithsonian Global Sound for Libraries: Album: Songs and Music of Tibet
Short Assignment (3): Film review of Summer Pastures. Consider the technical
construction of this film, how was that used to place you there.
Discuss Summer Pastures, how different is Yak pastoralism from others, and the contrast in
presentation between the two readings and the film.
Final Project: Introduction to the ethnography of other nomads.
Spring Break March 23- March 31
⑮ April 2 Yaks and Other Pastoralists
Read: Clifford, James. "Traveling Cultures." Cultural Studies (1992): 96-116. (pdf)
Optional Reading:
Ekvall, Robert B. Fields on the Hoof, Nexus of Tibetan Nomadic Pastoralism. Case Studies
in Cultural Anthropology. New York: Holt, Rinehard, and Winston, 1968. (on
reserve in Mudd Library)
Discussion bringing together Eurasian pastoralists, commonalities and contrasts.
Society of American Archaeology Meetings
No Class April 4 and April 9
Catch up on movies, start doing work on your final project.
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EAST 210 Nomadic Pastoralism
SAHARA
⑯ April 11 Saharan Nomadic Life
Read: Nicolaisen, Johannes. Ecology and Culture of the Pastoral Tuareg. Nationalmuseets
Skrifter Etnografisk Raekke. Vol. IX, Copenhagen: The National Museum of Copenhagen,
1963. (excerpts) (pdf)
Dunne, Julie, Richard P. Evershed, Mélanie Salque, Lucy Cramp, Silvia Bruni, Kathleen
Ryan, Stefano Biagetti, and Savino di Lernia. "First Dairying in Green Saharan Africa
in the Fifth Millennium BC." Nature 486 (2012): 390-94.
Englebert, Victor. "Drought Threatens the Tuareg World." National Geographic, 1974,
544-70.
Extra Listening: Smithsonian Global Sound for Libraries: Album: Tuareg Music of the
Southern Sahara
Be prepared to have a comparative discussion on Saharan pastoralism and nomadism.
How are its origins and practices similar or different from the other regions we have
studied?
Final Project: Turn in a brief proposal describing your proposed final project topic.
⑰ April 16 Borderlands & Politics
Read:
Kohl, Ines. "Modern Nomads, Vagabonds, or Cosmopolitans? Reflections on
Contemporary Tuareg Society." Journal of Anthropological Research 66, no. 4
(2010): 449-62.
Lattimore, Owen. "On the Wickedness of Being Nomads." T'ien Hsia Monthly, 1935,
47-62.
Welsh, May Ying. "Making Sense of Mali's Armed Groups." Al Jazeera, http://
www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2013/01/20131139522812326.html.
Further readings TBD
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EAST 210 Nomadic Pastoralism
Short Assignment(4): Music, films, rebellion. Pastoral nomads in the modern world.
Discussion: Borderlands and images of nomads
EAST AFRICA
⑱ April 18 East African Cattle Pastoralists
Read: Nomadic Alternative, chapter 2 (pp.19-55)
Schlee, Günther. "Ritual Topography and Ecological Use, the Gabbra of the Kenyan/
Ethiopian Borderlands." In Bush Base: Forest Farm, Culture, Envirionment and
Development, edited by E. Croll and D. Parkin. 111-28: Routledge, 1992
Watch: TBD
⑲ April 23 Revisiting Pastoralist Origin Questions
Read: Gifford-Gonzalez, Diane. "Pastoralism and Its Consequences." In African
Archaeology: A Critical Introduction, edited by A.B. Stahl. 187-224. London:
Blackwell, 2005.
Optional Reading:
McCorriston, Joy, and Louise Martin. "Southern Arabia’s Early Pastoral Population History:
Some Recent Evidence." In The Evolution of Human Populations in Arabia, edited
by M.D. Petraglia and J.I. Rose. 237-50: Springer, 2009.
Short Assignment(5): Pastoralist traditions, compare, contrast, discuss.
NORTH AMERICA
⑳April 25 Nomadic Pastoralists of North America
Read:
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Kelley, Klara B. "Pastoralism, Material Culture and the Market in the Southwestern United
States." In Pastoralists at the Periphery: Herders in a Capitalist World, edited by
C.Chang and H.A. Koster. 62-78. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1994.
Additional reading: TBD
Optional Reading:
Hämäläinen, Pekka. "The Rise and Fall of Plains Indian Horse Cultures." The Journal of
American History 90 (2003): 833-62.
Listen: ‘Hidden Basque Kitchens’ (NPR 2011, 8 min) before the film
Watch: Sweetgrass (shown April 29th)
April 30
Sweetgrass
Read: No reading, work on your final projects.
Short Assignment(6): Film review of Sweetgrass in the context of other films this semester.
Be prepared to discuss large thematic issues. What questions do you still have?
PRESENTATIONS
May 2 Final Presentations and discussions
May 7 Final presentations and discussions
May 9 Final presentations and wrap up for the course.
Final Project write ups due at what would be the time of the class final.
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