It was a common subject
of narration and dictation at this same time of the year and it will always be
a subject of innovation… Mother, the most notable person in every one’s life. We
will talk about Mother’s Day and man’s relation to his mother… Today I
remember my mother, maternal grandmother, paternal grandmother, and many other
mothers of my friends’ and relatives’.
It was a coincidence that I
was born to a mother who, in turn, was born to a mother born and raised in
Sandione[1], a village that is now
situated in Foaa[2] province
pertaining to Kafr el-Sheikh governorate, until she got married to my
grandfather. She was 17 years old when he was a little beyond 65. My paternal grandmother,
meanwhile, was born to a man who moved from Rosetta[3] to settle down in our
village in the middle of Delta… meaning my two grandmothers both came from north
of Delta and almost from the same region.
In my opinion, such
personal details are inherent in the core of Egypt’s sociological history in the
twentieth century, the side that wasn’t paid due attention by history and
sociology researchers.
The story of my maternal
grandmother, named Asma[4] and not Asmaa[5], was a model or study
case for the domestic relations prevailing countryside families and marriage in
the middle class, if we can use the term class here in our case.
Asma, and her sister
Hanem, were born to a Turkish father who was working as an engineer in building
one of the arched bridges across Rosetta Nile branch. The Turkish engineer got
married to a girl from Sandione. After having two daughters, he died leaving
behind a considerable inheritance. The two daughters were taken care of by
their mother’s family, in particular by their grandmother or my great
grandmother, Farah. No sooner had the two girls reached puberty than their
maternal uncles hurried to get them married in order to steal their money.
My widowed maternal
grandfather had a son-in-law of Turkish origins; coming from Karkoutly family
who, too, lived at as-Safieya[6]
village looking over Rosetta Nile branch and who happened to know the late
Turkish engineer. When my grandfather; the Azhari cleric, merchant, and agricultural
land owner, was looking for a bride who could read and write in order to share
his life with and to help him read books and references after his eyesight degenerated,
his son-in-law told him about that orphaned girl who could read and write. It was
in 1915 when educated young girls were rare indeed.
My grandfather,
accompanied by his son the jurist in the legal court in Alexandria and his Turkish-descent
cotton merchant son-in-law, went from Desouq[7] to Sandione by boats… and
the three gentlemen were welcomed. My grandmother Asma told me: “I looked
through the second floor’s Mashrabiya[8]
looking over the house’s Sahn[9].
I knew it was the man coming to ask for my hand. First I thought it was the
young man wearing Kaftan[10]
and Kakola [11]and wrapping a white
turban around a red Tarboosh [12]over his head, but Later,
after they had left and after my eldest uncle approved the marriage proposal, I
knew it was the old one. I felt disgusted for a week but they kept persuading
me saying he was a well-off man and that I was going to lead a luxurious life…
and thus I was prepared to move to my husband’s house..."
"... After marriage contract,
or Katb el-Ketab[13],
was concluded, I was taken by the big boat heading from Sandione to Dessouq and
then to Kafr ez-Zaiyat[14], where we mounted Rakayeb[15],
to your village Ganag[16].
In my trousseau, I had two hundredweights of copper, an Oka[17] of gold, Singer-brand
sewing machine, a Walnut-made niche accessorized with a Belgium mirror, in
addition to a Primus-brand gas stove. When your grandfather first brought gas
[18]“kerosene” to ignite the stove, your aunt as-Saiyeda[19],
his eldest daughter from his first wife, along with her sister-in-law, ran and
hid behind the door popping their heads out to see this devil burning in flames”.
Asma continues: “I lived
with your grandfather from 1915 until he died in 1942. I gave birth to your uncles;
Lotfi, Helmi, your mother Galila, Kamal, Hamdi, Fahmi, and Fouad. After that, I
meant to have an abortion whenever I get pregnant… when night fell, I used to
ignite a gas lamp of the model bearing no. 30 and bring the books your
grandfather asked for from his huge library and start reading for him. He
taught me how to roll tobacco in Bafra[20]
paper and ordered me to light it for him… it was then when I started smoking
and learnt most of what I was reading for him including al-Mutanabbi[21] Diwan[22],
excerpts of One Thousand and One Nights[23], parts of Fiqh and
Tafsir[24]
books”!
On the other side, my
paternal grandmother, Halima Ibrahim Shadi, was born to a father
coming from Rosetta, as I said before, and who was an owner of a big smithy.
Despite the smithy was big business and her father - she herself witnessed -
was comfortably well-off, peasants in the Egyptian countryside used to
underrate handcraftsmanship including blacksmiths,
carpenters, barbers, Khawaseen[25];
those who work in weaving baskets out of palm trees’ foliage, and others. My
grandmother was a strong woman and the family’s pivoting centre for she was the
funding treasury of the family. She also used to distribute household tasks on
her daughters-in-law and oversee them, allotting a week to cattle keeping,
another to cooking, a third to cleaning the house… Meantime, she was taking
care of the young children abandoned by their busy-working mothers.
Halima had a huge “magical”
Saharra[26] where she used to
have had the string holding its key entangled in her right hair braid. Whenever
she wanted to open it, she had to lean her head to lay the key down. Once she
opens it, you can see silver rings, gold sovereigns, cashmere shawls, Imperial-brand-cloth-made
mantles, Qasab[27]- embroidered caps, Alaaga[28]-fabric-made
vests. That treasure was open for only those she loved and favored. One day, I
entered the room containing Saharra with her wearing new trousers. She
opened her Saharra, filled my pockets with unknown things, and then
stitched them closed using Dubara[29] and Massalla[30], while I was nearly
screaming for messing with my new trousers. She then gave me strict orders
saying: “go out of Sidi[31] Mansour[32]’s
door – it’s an abandoned back door close to a shrine of Wali[33]
called Mansour – and head straight to the bus station, and don’t let
anybody see you”. My pockets were full until I arrived at my father’s house in
Tanta[34] and unstitched them to
find the treasure; there were plenty of gold sovereigns with both King George
and Queen Victoria’s faces coined on them.
I still remember the
distinguished fragrance of the black Malas[35] belonging to my
grandmother Halima. She used to wear it when she was travelling or getting out home. I also remember the scent of the fur-patched-collar-and-sleeves-decorated
coat belonging to my grandmother Asma. Between the black-Malas-dressed woman
and the fur-decorated-coat-dressed woman, I was raised and had my conscience
forming. Both, along with my mother, were very generous in their love to me but my mother has
another story to tell later.
***
He is poor indeed… the
one who let all about scientific discipline, analyzing phenomena and the way to
understand and deal with them, and noticed only what he thought was an insult
directed at him… poor for he has a mean soul, impotent capacity, and a pimp’s
mentality… He deserves pity more than anything else.
Translated into English by: Dalia Elnaggar
Translated into English by: Dalia Elnaggar
This article was
published in Almasry alyoum newspaper on March 16, 2016.
To see the original Arabic version, go to:
#almasry_alyoum#ahmed_elgammal#mother’s_day#mother#grandmother#Egypt#march
[3] Rosetta: (Arabic: رشيد)
is a port city
of the Nile Delta, located 65 km (40 mi) east of Alexandria,
in Egypt's Beheira governorate.(source: Wikipedia)
[6] As-Safieya: (Arabic: الصافية) is a village
affiliated to the municipality of Kafr Magar village which, in turn, is
pertaining to Desouq province in Kafr el-Shiekh governorate in Egypt. (Source:
Wikipedia)
[7] Desouq: (Arabic: دسوق) is a city in
northern Egypt. Located 80 km east of Alexandria, it belongs to Kafr el-Sheikh Governorate and had a population of 137,660 inhabitants as of
2011. (Source: Wikipedia)
[8] Mashrabiya or Shanasheel: (Arabic: مشربية or شناشيل)
is the Arabic term
given to a type of projecting oriel window enclosed
with carved wood latticework located on the second storey
of a building or higher, often lined with stained glass.
The mashrabiya (sometimes shanshool or rushan) is an element of traditional
Arabic architecture used since the Middle Ages up
to the mid-20th century. It is mostly used on the street side of the building;
however, it may also be used internally on the Sahn (courtyard)
side.
Mashrabiyas were mostly used in houses and palaces although
sometimes in public buildings such as hospitals, inns, schools and
government buildings. They are found mostly in the Mashriq –
i.e. the eastern part of the Arab world, but some types of similar windows are
also found in the Maghreb (the western part of the Arab world). They are
very prevalent in Iraq,
the Levant, Hejaz and Egypt. They are mostly
found in urban settings and rarely in rural areas. Basra is often called
"the city of Shanasheel". (Source: Wikipedia)
[9] Sahn: (Arabic: صحن)
is a courtyard in Islamic architecture. Most traditional mosques have
a large central Sahn, which is surrounded by a Riwaq or arcade on all sides. In traditional
Islamic design, residences and
neighborhoods can have private Sahns.
In Islamic and Arab
architecture, the Sahn courtyard is a common
element in religious buildings and residences throughout the Arab world and
beyond, used in urban and rural settings. The cloister is
its equivalent in European medieval architecture and its
religious buildings. (Source: Wikipedia)
[10] Kaftan or caftan: (Arabic: قفطان) is a variant of the robe or tunic, versions of which have been worn by several cultures
around the world for thousands of years. The kaftan is often worn as a coat or overdress, usually reaching to the ankles, with
long sleeves. It can be made of wool, cashmere, silk, or cotton, and may be worn with a sash. The caftan is of ancient Mesopotamian origin, and
was worn by many middle-eastern ethnic groups. (Source: Wikipedia)
[12] Tarboosh: (Arabic: طربوش), as
well as its equivalent, fez, is a felt headdress of two types: either in the shape
of a truncated
cone made of red felt, or a
short cylinder made of kilim fabric, both usually
with a tassel attached to the top. Tarboosh and the modern fez,
which is similar, owe much of their development and popularity to the Ottoman
era. (Source: Wikipedia)
[13] Katb el-ketab: (Arabic: كتب الكتاب) literally means
to write the book but actually means to sign and conclude the marriage
contract.
[14] Kafr ez-Zaiyat: (Arabic: كفر الزيات) an Egyptian
city administratively pertaining to Gharbia governorate and capital to the
province of Kafr ez-Zaiyat.
[15] Rakayeb: (Arabic: ركايب, plural of Rekab ركاب or Rokoba ركوبة) which means animals used for riding such as horses, donkeys,
camels, etc.
[16] Ganag: (Arabic: جناج) a village
situated in Basiyoon province affiliated with Gharbia governorate in Egypt.
(Source: Wikipedia)
[17] Oka: (Arabic: أقة) an Egyptian and former Turkish unit of weight,
variable but now usually equal to approximately 1.3 kg (2 3/4 lb).
[21] Al-Mutanabbi: (Arabic: المتنبّي )
(915 – 23 September 965) was an Arab poet. He is
considered as one of the greatest poets in the Arabic
language. Much of his poetry revolves around praising the kings he
visited during his lifetime. Some consider his 326 poems to be a great
representation of his life story. He started writing poetry when he was nine
years old. He is well known for his sharp intelligence and wittiness.
Al-Mutanabbi had a great pride in himself through his poetry. Among the topics
he discussed were courage, the philosophy of life, and the description of
battles. Many of his poems were and still are widely spread in today's Arab
world and are considered to be proverbial. His great talent brought him very
close to many leaders of his time. He praised those leaders and kings in return
for money and gifts. His powerful poetic style earned great popularity in his
time. (Source: Wikipedia)
[23] One
Thousand and One Nights: (Arabic: كِتَاب أَلْف لَيْلَة وَلَيْلَة) is a collection of Middle
Eastern and South Asian stories and folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age.
It is often known in English as the Arabian Nights, from the first
English language edition (1706), which rendered the title as The Arabian Nights' Entertainment.
[24] Tafsir: (Arabic: تفسير, meaning interpretation) is
the Arabic word for exegesis, usually of the Qur'an. An author of tafsir is a mufassir (Arabic: مُفسر). A Quranic tafsir will
often explain content and provide places and times, not contained in Quranic
verses, as well as give the different views and opinions of scholars on the
verse.
[25] Khawaseen: (Arabic: خواصين, plural of
Khawass خواص)
comes from Khouss (Arabic: خوص, palm trees’ foliage) meaning the man who weaves palm trees’
foliage into beautiful baskets and many other useful and beautiful things.
[28] Alaaga: (Arabic: ألاجه) a kind of cloth
with some shimmering golden strings woven into it. The same word is used in
Egyptian slang as meaning luxurious.
[31] Sidi: (Arabic: سيدي) transliterated
for word meaning Master in Arabic. It’s said before calling names of figures
people revere, especially those having religious or spiritual significance.
[33] Wali: (Arabic: ولي) is an Arabic word meaning "custodian",
"protector", "helper", etc. However, the most common meaning of the word is that of a Muslim saint or holy person. In Palestine the word wali means
both holy man and the tomb or
mausoleum of a holy man. It should not be confused with the different word wali (Arabic: والي)
which is an administrative title that means magistrate or governor and is still
used today in some Muslim countries. (Source: Wikipedia)
[34] Tanta: (Arabic: طنطا) is a
city in Egypt. It is the country's fifth largest populated area,
with an estimated 429,000 inhabitants (2008). Tanta is located 94 km (58 mi)
north of Cairo and 130 km (81 mi) southeast of Alexandria. The capital of the Gharbia Governorate, it is a centre for the cotton-ginning industry and the main railroad hub of the Nile Delta. (Source: Wikipedia)
[35] Malas: (Arabic: ملس) a loose outfit covering
the whole body made of black silk and worn by women in Egypt in the past.
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