Harari
Harari. Inside the walls of the old Muslim city of Harar in Ethiopia, its inhabitants evolved a unique pre-industrial urban culture which persisted from the 1500s to recent decades. Although political and economic changes have dispersed the Harari from their old city, the ethnic group persists in mercantile centers in the region and has representatives in other urban centers throughout much of the world.
Harar had been an independent emirate since 1551, but it underwent a series of conquests beginning with the Ottoman Egyptian occupation from 1876 to 1885. A brief restoration of the emirate was followed by the defeat of the city’s forces by Ras Makonnen in 1887 and the consequent incorporation of Harar in the expanding empire of Ethiopia. During the early period of Ethiopian rule, Harar’s taxation and political affairs were managed by the occupiers, but its internal society and economy continued to function. The erosion of Harari economy began at this time with the confiscation of lands by Ras Makonnen as rewards for his troops. A much more long-lasting blow was dealt by the opening of the Djibouti-Addis Adaba railway in 1913, which bypassed Harar. The rise of Addis Adaba and the opening of the interior of Ethiopia during the first half of the twentieth century was a period of increasing stagnation for the old city of Harar.
Harari, who had maintained trading posts on the caravan routes for centuries, began to leave the old city in significant numbers in 1948. At that time, the newly restored Ethiopian rule of the city (following the Italian Occupation, 1936-1941) was perceived as hopelessly oppressive. The richer markets of Addis Adaba and Dire Dawa provided sufficient impetus to break the rule that all Harari should raise their families in Harar. As Harari of means shifted from agriculture to merchandising during the next two decades, this movement of population out of the city slowly gained momentum. It became a virtual diaspora after the Ethiopian Revolution of 1974. The already weakened economy of the Harari still residing in the old city, their number now reduced to about 8,000, was vitiated by two major reforms of the revolutionary government. The Rural Property Act of 1975, which proclaimed a maximum individual landholding of ten hectares (about 25 acres) and which affected a much needed land re-distribution throughout Ethiopia, eradicated the extensive Harari holdings of farms which had been tilled by Oromo tenants.
Also, in 1975, the Urban Property Act restricted the ownership of the number of homes and rooms by individual landlords. This was designed to eliminate exploitative landlords, particularly in Addis Adaba. Its effect in Harar, however, was perceived as a cultural disaster. The reform mandated a redistribution of occupancy without regard to ethnic affiliation. The Harari found themselves sharing their compounds and sometimes their homes with outsiders, most of them Christian Amharas. The city had ceased to be either the locale of a comfortable way of life or the sanctuary of Harari culture.
Despite the dispersal of Harari, the ethnic group continues to thrive, albeit under altered conditions. Although they are one of Ethiopia’s smallest ethnic groups, they have contributed significantly to the country’s managerial and executive (although not its military) ranks. In the 1980s, there were several Harari M.D.’s and Ph.D.’s in Ethiopia, and elsewhere. An Ethiopian ambassador and a cabinet minister were Harari, as was the president of Addis Adaba University.
Harari. Inside the walls of the old Muslim city of Harar in Ethiopia, its inhabitants evolved a unique pre-industrial urban culture which persisted from the 1500s to recent decades. Although political and economic changes have dispersed the Harari from their old city, the ethnic group persists in mercantile centers in the region and has representatives in other urban centers throughout much of the world.
Harar had been an independent emirate since 1551, but it underwent a series of conquests beginning with the Ottoman Egyptian occupation from 1876 to 1885. A brief restoration of the emirate was followed by the defeat of the city’s forces by Ras Makonnen in 1887 and the consequent incorporation of Harar in the expanding empire of Ethiopia. During the early period of Ethiopian rule, Harar’s taxation and political affairs were managed by the occupiers, but its internal society and economy continued to function. The erosion of Harari economy began at this time with the confiscation of lands by Ras Makonnen as rewards for his troops. A much more long-lasting blow was dealt by the opening of the Djibouti-Addis Adaba railway in 1913, which bypassed Harar. The rise of Addis Adaba and the opening of the interior of Ethiopia during the first half of the twentieth century was a period of increasing stagnation for the old city of Harar.
Harari, who had maintained trading posts on the caravan routes for centuries, began to leave the old city in significant numbers in 1948. At that time, the newly restored Ethiopian rule of the city (following the Italian Occupation, 1936-1941) was perceived as hopelessly oppressive. The richer markets of Addis Adaba and Dire Dawa provided sufficient impetus to break the rule that all Harari should raise their families in Harar. As Harari of means shifted from agriculture to merchandising during the next two decades, this movement of population out of the city slowly gained momentum. It became a virtual diaspora after the Ethiopian Revolution of 1974. The already weakened economy of the Harari still residing in the old city, their number now reduced to about 8,000, was vitiated by two major reforms of the revolutionary government. The Rural Property Act of 1975, which proclaimed a maximum individual landholding of ten hectares (about 25 acres) and which affected a much needed land re-distribution throughout Ethiopia, eradicated the extensive Harari holdings of farms which had been tilled by Oromo tenants.
Also, in 1975, the Urban Property Act restricted the ownership of the number of homes and rooms by individual landlords. This was designed to eliminate exploitative landlords, particularly in Addis Adaba. Its effect in Harar, however, was perceived as a cultural disaster. The reform mandated a redistribution of occupancy without regard to ethnic affiliation. The Harari found themselves sharing their compounds and sometimes their homes with outsiders, most of them Christian Amharas. The city had ceased to be either the locale of a comfortable way of life or the sanctuary of Harari culture.
Despite the dispersal of Harari, the ethnic group continues to thrive, albeit under altered conditions. Although they are one of Ethiopia’s smallest ethnic groups, they have contributed significantly to the country’s managerial and executive (although not its military) ranks. In the 1980s, there were several Harari M.D.’s and Ph.D.’s in Ethiopia, and elsewhere. An Ethiopian ambassador and a cabinet minister were Harari, as was the president of Addis Adaba University.
Harawi
Harawi (Ilyas Harawi). Elected president of Lebanon in 1989.
Ilyas Harawi see Harawi
Harawi (Ilyas Harawi). Elected president of Lebanon in 1989.
Ilyas Harawi see Harawi
Harbi, Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Ishaq al- (Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Ishaq al-Harbi) (9th century). Author of Al-Hammam and its Manners, a book on the appropriate protocol of bathing in hammams -- bath houses.
During the age of the Roman Empire, the Romans developed a bathing process. For the Romans, the bath was in an elaborate building complex, complete with a medium heated room or Tepidarium, a hot steam room or Caldarium, and a room with a cold plunge pool or Frigidarium. In some of the larger baths there were other sections with changing rooms called Apodyterium, a reading room and sports area. But these bathing centers were for the rich and political elite only.
With the demise of the Roman Empire, the bathing centers were abandoned. While these baths fell into disrepair as the Roman Empire lay in tatters, on the other side of the Mediterranean the Arabs, who had been under Roman rule in countries like Syria, inherited the tradition of using the bath. Instead of the waters becoming stagnant as the Romans left, the Arabs and then the Muslims gave them special promotion because of Islam's emphasis on cleanliness, hygiene and good health.
The bath house, or hammam, was a social place and it ranked high on the list of life's essentials. The Prophet Muhammad proclaimed that "cleanliness is half the faith." Hammams then were elaborate affairs with elegant designs, decor and ornamentation. Under the Mameluke and Ottoman rule, they were especially sumptuous buildings in their rich design and luxurious decorations, furnished with beautiful fountains and decorative pools.
The hammam was, and still is, a unique social setting for Muslim communities, playing an important role in the social activities of the community. As an intimate space of interaction for various social groups, it brought friends, neighbors, relatives and workers together regularly to undertake the washing ritual in a partying atmosphere. Group bonds strengthened, friendships rekindled and gossip was swapped. This therapeutic ritual was carried out by both men and women at separate times, with the women usually bathing in daylight and men in the evening and night.
The intrigue and sociability at the hammam did not just stop at scrubbing and gossip, as traditionally the setting played a significant role in matchmaking. In conservative communities such as those of North Africa, women who were looking for suitable brides for their sons would go to the hammam. Here they had the perfect opportunity to have a closer look at the bride to be and select the most physically fit.
It is also customary in many parts of the Muslim world for the new bride to be taken with her friends to the hammam, where she is prepared, groomed and adorned in stylized designs with henna, the herbal paste that leaves a reddish/brown color on the hair, hands and feet. The groom is also escorted there the night before he meets his bride.
The art of bathing in hammams is guided by many rules, such as: men must always be covered in "lower" garments, and women are forbidden to enter if men are present. Quite a few books have been written about the art of bathing in hammams, including Al-Hammam and its Manners from the 9th century by Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Ishaq al-Harbi.
Hariri, Abu Muhammad al-
Hariri, Abu Muhammad al- (Abu Muhammad al-Hariri) (Abu Muhammed al-Qasim al-Hariri) Muhammad al-Qasim ibn Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Uthman al-Hariri) (al-Hariri of Basra) (1054–1122). Arabic poet and philologist. His best known work is the Sessions, which imitate very closely those of al-Hamadhani, but of which they are no more than a pale reflection. On the other hand, al-Hariri possessed an unequalled mastery of the Arabic language and a perfect command of its inexhaustible vocabulary.
Al-Hariri was a native of Basra in Iraq where he held a small administrative post. Al-Hariri produced a volume of 50 maqamat, which, although often longer and more elaborate than those of al-Hamadhani, follow almost exactly the same pattern. Their hero was another vagabond, Abu Zaid of Saruj.
The maqamat are written in rhymed prose, with interpolated passages of verse, and they are designed principally to exhibit the author’s skill in the manipulation of the Arabic language, the depth of his erudition in all branches of learning, and his adeptness at refined obscurity of allusion. In all of these al-Hariri’s writing is considered to be superior to that of al-Hamadhani. Al-Hamadhani perhaps tells a better story than al-Hariri, but, in this too, the latter is by no means deficient. Indeed, al-Hariri’s Maqamat could hardly have remained so populist had they not possessed the power of entertaining as well as that of exercising the learned. Some commentators have noted that for the better part of seven centuries, the Maqamat of al-Hariri “has been esteemed as, next to the Qur’an, the chief treasure of the Arabic tongue.”
The Maqamat of both al-Hariri and al-Hamadhani are particularly interesting to us as representing a picture of life in a Muslim community in the tenth and twelfth centuries.
Abu Muhammad al-Hariri see Hariri, Abu Muhammad al-
Abu Muhammed al-Qasim al-Hariri see Hariri, Abu Muhammad al-
Muhammad al-Qasim ibn Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Uthman al-Hariri see Hariri, Abu Muhammad al-
Hariri of Basra, al- see Hariri, Abu Muhammad al-
Hariri, Rafiq
Hariri, Rafiq (Rafik Hariri) (Rafic Baha El Deen Al-Hariri) (November 1, 1944 – February 14, 2005). Prime Minister of Lebanon from 1992 to 1998 and again from 2000 until his resignation on October 20, 2004. (1944-2005).
Hariri was born into a Sunni Muslim family in Sayda. In 1965, Hariri enrolled as a student of business administration at Beirut Arab University. He left the university in 1966, reportedly because he lacked sufficient funds to pay tuition. Hariri emigrated to Saudi Arabia and began working for a construction company.
In 1969, Hariri established his own construction company, CICONEST, which benefited greatly from the oil boom of Saudi Arabia in the 1970s. In 1975, the Lebanese Civil War began. Hariri stayed in Saudi Arabia, but was involved in both help projects in Lebanon, as well as in funding opposing militia groups.
In 1978, Hariri was granted Saudi citizenship as a reward from the royal family for his high quality of entrepreneurial services. Hariri subsequently purchased the French construction company Oger, and became the largest in the construction sector in the Middle East.
Hariri’s rise to power in Lebanon has a doubtful background. He bought support from Syria in the 1980s, and following the end of the Civil War he also bought support from leading politicians in Lebanon. Soon he had control over most of the reconstruction work, as well as control over Lebanese media: the radio and television stations, newspapers and magazines. The Lebanese media typically portrayed Hariri as the economic savior of Lebanon.
In the 1980s, Hariri was ranked one of the 100 richest men in the world. By that time, much of his activities were also based in Lebanon. Aiming at good political relations with Syria, Hariri constructed a new presidential palace in Damascus. This was, however, not to the liking of Hafiz al-Assad, who soon turned it into a conference center.
In August of 1987, Hariri tried to buy president Amin Gemayel out of office before the end of this term, and tried also to buy Syrian support for making Johnny Abdo president. Abdo had promised to make Hariri prime minister in such a case. However, Gemayel rejected this commitment.
In 1989, according to some sources, Hariri bought support from Lebanese delegates for allowing Syrian control over Lebanon during the reconciliation conference held in At Ta’if, Saudi Arabia.
In 1990, Hariri returned to Lebanon, where he started a campaign for involvement in the reconstruction process after the end of the civil war. Hariri donated a mansion to president Elias Hrawi and gave great sums of money to other leading politicians.
In 1992, President Hrawi appointed Hariri prime minister, hoping that the latter’s influential position in business would help bring the reconstruction process forward. This appointment occurred after Hariri had expressed his pro-Syrian attitude. The reactions in Lebanese society to Hariri’s appointment were very positive. Among Hariri’s first changes was the cutting of income and corporate taxes to ten percent. Hariri also borrowed billions of dollars to rebuild the infrastructure of Lebanon, in particular the infrastructure of Beirut. Hariri appointed many of his closest staff members from his own companies as ministers of the government, letting them fill important positions like finance minister (Fouad Siniora) and justice minister (Bahij Tabbara).
The matter of the economy was one where Hariri had little reason to blame anyone but himself, as Syria gave him wide autonomy in this field when he first became prime minister in 1992. He focused on rebuilding Beirut instead of the other cities of Lebanon. He was focused on the financial sector instead of the industries and the agriculture. According to his own ideology, if the financial sector ran well the rest of the economy would follow. This did not happen, and through the 1990s Lebanon went into a financial crisis.
Hariri was both the architect behind the reconstruction work of Beirut, as well as the one profiting most from it. The work was performed by The Company for the Development and Reconstruction of Beirut’s Central District, in which Hariri was the main shareholder. The company expropriated lands in exchange for shares, and the Lebanese state paid for the construction work with foreign loans.
In 1994, Hariri was accused of corruption and offered his resignation to the president. Hrawi refused. Later in the year, Hariri banned public demonstrations.
In 1995, with the possible start of a general strike, Hariri dispatched the army into the streets to quell the opposition and, in 1996, the Lebanese security forces cracked down on two initiatives for general strikes.
In 1998, the failure of Hariri’s corrupt economic politics became increasingly evident. The growth rate had dropped from an annual eight to two percent, and the foreign debt had risen above what Lebanon could handle. The heir apparent of the Syrian presidency, Bashar al-Assad started a campaign to remove potential opposition to his future presidency. With this, many of Hariri’s Syrian allies were stripped of their positions in the society. Bashar soon had Hariri removed from his position and Hariri was replaced by Salim al-Hoss.
In 2000, after the politics of Hoss did not result in increased economic growth in Lebanon, Damascus began transferring its support back to Hariri. At the parliamentary elections, Hariri received the necessary support to become prime minister for the second time. Hariri embarked on a policy that involved reform in Lebanon’s bureaucracy and some more independence from the directions of Damascus.
In his second term in office, Hariri showed more independence towards Syria, which angered the rulers in Damascus. He also established better contacts with the United States. It is speculated that Syria wanted to remove him from office, but hesitated as they saw him as important for Lebanon’s economy, and Lebanon’s economy was important for Syria.
Hariri was assassinated on February 14, 2005, in a car bombing, which United Nations investigators later tied to Syrian government officials. The assassination led to peaceful demonstrations. The demonstrations culminated in a March 14, 2005 rally in Beirut, Lebanon's capital, in which 1.5 million people -- almost forty percent (40%) of the entire Lebanese population -- participated. The demonstrators carried placards calling for the immediate withdrawal of Syrian troops and the Syrian intelligence services. The demonstrators also demanded to know the truth about Hariri's assassination and the assassinations of other political and religious leaders allegedly ordered by Syrian officials.
The demonstrators achieved their goal on April 26, when Syria withdrew its troops and intelligence services. Political commentators dubbed the popular movement that forced the withdrawal "the Cedar Revolution," in reference to Lebanon's national symbol, the cedars of Lebanon referred to in the Bible.
Rafik Hariri see Hariri, Rafiq
Rafic Baha El Deen Al-Hariri see Hariri, Rafiq
Hariri, Rafiq (Rafik Hariri) (Rafic Baha El Deen Al-Hariri) (November 1, 1944 – February 14, 2005). Prime Minister of Lebanon from 1992 to 1998 and again from 2000 until his resignation on October 20, 2004. (1944-2005).
Hariri was born into a Sunni Muslim family in Sayda. In 1965, Hariri enrolled as a student of business administration at Beirut Arab University. He left the university in 1966, reportedly because he lacked sufficient funds to pay tuition. Hariri emigrated to Saudi Arabia and began working for a construction company.
In 1969, Hariri established his own construction company, CICONEST, which benefited greatly from the oil boom of Saudi Arabia in the 1970s. In 1975, the Lebanese Civil War began. Hariri stayed in Saudi Arabia, but was involved in both help projects in Lebanon, as well as in funding opposing militia groups.
In 1978, Hariri was granted Saudi citizenship as a reward from the royal family for his high quality of entrepreneurial services. Hariri subsequently purchased the French construction company Oger, and became the largest in the construction sector in the Middle East.
Hariri’s rise to power in Lebanon has a doubtful background. He bought support from Syria in the 1980s, and following the end of the Civil War he also bought support from leading politicians in Lebanon. Soon he had control over most of the reconstruction work, as well as control over Lebanese media: the radio and television stations, newspapers and magazines. The Lebanese media typically portrayed Hariri as the economic savior of Lebanon.
In the 1980s, Hariri was ranked one of the 100 richest men in the world. By that time, much of his activities were also based in Lebanon. Aiming at good political relations with Syria, Hariri constructed a new presidential palace in Damascus. This was, however, not to the liking of Hafiz al-Assad, who soon turned it into a conference center.
In August of 1987, Hariri tried to buy president Amin Gemayel out of office before the end of this term, and tried also to buy Syrian support for making Johnny Abdo president. Abdo had promised to make Hariri prime minister in such a case. However, Gemayel rejected this commitment.
In 1989, according to some sources, Hariri bought support from Lebanese delegates for allowing Syrian control over Lebanon during the reconciliation conference held in At Ta’if, Saudi Arabia.
In 1990, Hariri returned to Lebanon, where he started a campaign for involvement in the reconstruction process after the end of the civil war. Hariri donated a mansion to president Elias Hrawi and gave great sums of money to other leading politicians.
In 1992, President Hrawi appointed Hariri prime minister, hoping that the latter’s influential position in business would help bring the reconstruction process forward. This appointment occurred after Hariri had expressed his pro-Syrian attitude. The reactions in Lebanese society to Hariri’s appointment were very positive. Among Hariri’s first changes was the cutting of income and corporate taxes to ten percent. Hariri also borrowed billions of dollars to rebuild the infrastructure of Lebanon, in particular the infrastructure of Beirut. Hariri appointed many of his closest staff members from his own companies as ministers of the government, letting them fill important positions like finance minister (Fouad Siniora) and justice minister (Bahij Tabbara).
The matter of the economy was one where Hariri had little reason to blame anyone but himself, as Syria gave him wide autonomy in this field when he first became prime minister in 1992. He focused on rebuilding Beirut instead of the other cities of Lebanon. He was focused on the financial sector instead of the industries and the agriculture. According to his own ideology, if the financial sector ran well the rest of the economy would follow. This did not happen, and through the 1990s Lebanon went into a financial crisis.
Hariri was both the architect behind the reconstruction work of Beirut, as well as the one profiting most from it. The work was performed by The Company for the Development and Reconstruction of Beirut’s Central District, in which Hariri was the main shareholder. The company expropriated lands in exchange for shares, and the Lebanese state paid for the construction work with foreign loans.
In 1994, Hariri was accused of corruption and offered his resignation to the president. Hrawi refused. Later in the year, Hariri banned public demonstrations.
In 1995, with the possible start of a general strike, Hariri dispatched the army into the streets to quell the opposition and, in 1996, the Lebanese security forces cracked down on two initiatives for general strikes.
In 1998, the failure of Hariri’s corrupt economic politics became increasingly evident. The growth rate had dropped from an annual eight to two percent, and the foreign debt had risen above what Lebanon could handle. The heir apparent of the Syrian presidency, Bashar al-Assad started a campaign to remove potential opposition to his future presidency. With this, many of Hariri’s Syrian allies were stripped of their positions in the society. Bashar soon had Hariri removed from his position and Hariri was replaced by Salim al-Hoss.
In 2000, after the politics of Hoss did not result in increased economic growth in Lebanon, Damascus began transferring its support back to Hariri. At the parliamentary elections, Hariri received the necessary support to become prime minister for the second time. Hariri embarked on a policy that involved reform in Lebanon’s bureaucracy and some more independence from the directions of Damascus.
In his second term in office, Hariri showed more independence towards Syria, which angered the rulers in Damascus. He also established better contacts with the United States. It is speculated that Syria wanted to remove him from office, but hesitated as they saw him as important for Lebanon’s economy, and Lebanon’s economy was important for Syria.
Hariri was assassinated on February 14, 2005, in a car bombing, which United Nations investigators later tied to Syrian government officials. The assassination led to peaceful demonstrations. The demonstrations culminated in a March 14, 2005 rally in Beirut, Lebanon's capital, in which 1.5 million people -- almost forty percent (40%) of the entire Lebanese population -- participated. The demonstrators carried placards calling for the immediate withdrawal of Syrian troops and the Syrian intelligence services. The demonstrators also demanded to know the truth about Hariri's assassination and the assassinations of other political and religious leaders allegedly ordered by Syrian officials.
The demonstrators achieved their goal on April 26, when Syria withdrew its troops and intelligence services. Political commentators dubbed the popular movement that forced the withdrawal "the Cedar Revolution," in reference to Lebanon's national symbol, the cedars of Lebanon referred to in the Bible.
Rafik Hariri see Hariri, Rafiq
Rafic Baha El Deen Al-Hariri see Hariri, Rafiq
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