Smugglers and Saints of the Sahara: Regional Connectivity in the Twentieth Century (African Studies)
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.87 (871 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 1107533813 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 288 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2014-08-05 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
Smugglers and Saints of the Sahara describes life on and around the contemporary border between Algeria and Mali, exploring current developments in a broad historical and socioeconomic context. Basing her findings on long-term fieldwork with trading families, truckers, smugglers, and scholars, Judith Scheele investigates the history of contemporary patterns of mobility from the late nineteenth century to the present. Through a careful analysis of family ties and local economic records, this book shows how long-standing mobility and interdependence have shaped not only local economies, but also notions of
Ann McDougall, University of Alberta"Smugglers and Saints is a dynamic and informative book based on tireless multisite research in local and colonial archives and among long-distance entrepreneurs, dispersed families and itinerant communities. Scheele brings us into al-Khalil, the infamous Malian-Algerian-frontier trans-shipment centre where "men are men", virtue non-existent and 'family-loyalty' the definition of survival. This is a must-read for anyone interested in the region and in carrying out trans-Saharan fieldwork." - Ghislaine Lydon, University of California, Los Angeles . "The Sahara is neither a romantic land of luxury-laden camel caravans nor a vast empty darkness hiding the likes of al-Qa'ida. During sixteen months, Scheele - as itinerant as her informants -
Judith Scheele is Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at All Souls College, Oxford University. She is a social anthropologist who has conducted extensive fieldwork in North Africa and the Sahel. . She is the author of Village Matters: Knowledge, Politics and Community in Kabylia, Algeria (2009)
"Breaks down the misconceptions and generalities into realities and fine details" according to C P Slayton. Northern Mali and its neighbors have been favorites of social scientists for decades. The region has become even more popular given the inflated theses and divergent findings of scholars in every corner on the region's relationship with terrorism, or violent Islamist extremism. Granted, while Judith Scheele has set off to write a very interesting account of commerce trends and social cleavages in the region, she herself cannot refrain from her two cents on the "terrorism" debate either.Scheele explores, through extensive travel, local archives and first-hand research, the trade networks of N. For the first time, the book that I have Kindle Customer For the first time, the book that I have been searching for foe 40 years. One of the families in this book is my husbands's . For decades I have searched for more information on this subject and now I have finally found it. A very well researched and written book about the southern Sahara.