People in Ajdabiya

PEOPLE IN AJDABIYA

Origin:

Libyan Arabs , who have heritage in the traditions of the nomadic Bedouins , and associate themselves with a particular Bedouin family tribe.
Language:

in Ajdabiya , as everywhere else in Libya , primary language is a colloquial form of Arabic that's unique to the area around Libya . there are two distinct dialects :
( Sharqawi = eastern . Gharbawi = western ) ... in Ajdabiya , they speak the ( Shrqawi ) dialect with some local characteristics .
Population:

177 366 ( 2004 )... and huge numbers of expatriate workers mainly from Egypt and sub-Saharan countries .
Religion:

like everywhere else in Libya , Sunni Islam is the state religion , in other parts of Libya secularizing influents maybe have some strength .. but not in Ajdabiya .. one of the strongest holds for conservatism in Libya through history ..!!
there are some tombs of religious men , considered as saints (known as the Murabots ) . and these sites are visited . ( but the dominant Salafy scholars who have the louder voice. trying bitterly to convince people that visiting these tombs has nothing to do with Islam ) .. amulets are believed to protect from the influence of the "evil eye" ..evil spirits ..etc. ( especially among older generations of women ) .
in the city there is a very small ( Sufi ) minority ..who's kinda very ( shy ) on the religious scene here in Ajdabiya , because it's not very welcomed from the dominant majority who tend to believe in the Wahhabist version of Islam.
Life-Style & Community:

it's all about family !! . family life is a very , very strong value for Ajdabiyans . there are strong links between the family and the nation .
the tribe ( qabila ) is the basis of the social order . the universal group in the tribal system is the ( bayt ) , which may include three or four generations . organization is patriarchal , the eldest or the most influential male has the supreme authority.
The extended family remains important , which is the same case even in the largest urban areas allover Libya such as Tripoli and Benghazi . Libyans are by origin , Bedouin .. some who have been urbanized over the centuries , and other only being urbanized in the 20th century ( like in Ajdabiya ) . a number of Bedouin tribes make up what we call today Libya .
Women:

women usually work in certain jobs , such as teaching , secretaries . although there are a very small number of doctors and lawyers . the main reason for this is that the female student can get as higher education as she want , such as medicine ,engineering , etc ..but she cannot go to work without the permission of her family or husband . in most cases she would end up as a housewife , who lives her daily life the way her mother did , she just get stuck in the same closed circle of the traditional social system as her mother and grandmother did . Besides the unemployment is high even among male graduates .
polygamy is permitted , men are limited up to four wives . and you can meet a lot of men who have more than one wife . although there are no statistics on this subject . many have two wives , mostly living in the same house ,which would be a two roofs block .
the irony is that there is a noticeable percentage of young people who can not afford to get marry . in order for a young man to be able to get a wife ( his only way to make love ! ) , he has to be financially able to support the family to be . and first of all to own a house . and this is THE mother of all obstacles..!!
because building or buying your own house , gonna cost you something between 15 to 25 . 000 $ a young man who has to wait for years after graduating to get a job with a salary from 150 to 200 Libyan Dinars a month ( about 100 $ ) he can never make it and get his own place , so will end up living with his parents in their place with his wife , living in one room and sharing all facilities with everybody in the house . ( yes I know grows ! but the young people got to have sex don't you think ..? ) anyway , he'll not be able to get a job anywhere before he's 30 years old , then it takes him nothing less than 3 or 4 years at least , to make some money required for the wedding . and of course as the( no more young Libyan man) will soon notice , there's no Dolce Vita after marriage here in Ajdabiya . he now sees that marriage is not only about sex !! ( sex is the main reason for people to get marry in Libya simply because it's the only doable way ) .
Economics & Living Conditions :
Unemployment:

estimated to be 30 %.
GNP per capita:

1417 Libyan Dinars income and it is a lot lower for many , 200 Dinars being less than a $ 100 .
the average salary for the vast majority is 150 Dinars .
Basic diet:

cereal ( barley , wheat ) , couscous , rice , noodles , lamb, chicken , vegetables .
Food:

a sizable amount of Libya's food is imported . residents of Libya can buy food suppliers at very low prices ( for a very limited quantity though ! ) as food is subsidized by the state .
Shelter:

some houses were built by the state , especially in the mid-70's & 80's . but since then , the population been multiplied many times and people were lift on their own .
housing is a major problem here in Ajdabiya . nomads still live in tents.read our full report about architecture and housing in Ajdabiya
Clothing:

in the mid-70's an effort was undertaken by the state to make the traditional dress obligatory , but this was not fully embraced in the younger generations , who like to wear jeans and modern clothing . although the older generations ( men in their 40's and up ) wear the traditional " national Libyan style " of dress .
the traditional Libyan attire for men is a white jellaba suit ( jaared ) , with cotton loose fitting trousers(serwal) , a long white shirt ( sureya ) ,a short black waistcoat (farmala ) ,and a white Muslim cap ( taqeya) .
as for women , they generally dress in a very modest way . older ladies wear a female ( jellaba ) known as (farrashiya ) it's in white , burgundy or brown . whereas younger women wear a headscarf in public , in Turkish style . and a ( jallabiya ) a long , wide , overall coat . which comes in many colors , mainly black . resembling the veil ( hijab ) in other parts of the Muslim world which is very common among young Ajdabiyan women in recent years.
Cultural Change:

Rapid .
Self Image:

Prestigious \ Proud .
Health Care:

life expectancy 63 years (1990 - 95 ) . healthcare is available for 100% of the population . and a free medical assistance , although in recent years it has been very poor and most people go to neighboring countries ( Tunisia & Egypt ) for a better medical assistance . there are three big hospitals ( Muqaryaf , Helal , Mujamma ) and more than 5 specialized private health care units . there is one physician for approximately every 1,450 inhabitants . a high percentage ( 9 of 10 ) of the doctors are expatriates but more Libyans in training to replace these in the future . and like everybody else , their earnings in wages and salaries are in arrear , often for many months.
Private Sector:

during the early 80's private sector came under the control of the public economic sector of the Libyan state . all factories , stores , businesses were taken over by the state . all homes and apartments that were not lived in by the owner were nationalized . also , all savings accounts with over us $ 3,500 were nationalized through some domestic reforms . in 1988 businesses were again permitted to operate.
Social Habits:

the men will meet one another in their homes , separated from women in the men's room known as ( Marboa'a ) . gossiping and playing cards .
young men do that too , but in the last couple of years a number of Internet cafés have been open in the down town , giving the young people a place to meet and have some fun .
girls too go to these Internet cafe's mainly for Internet chatting , but from the late afternoon you 'll not see any girl because they can come to the Internet café only when they are back from school or something ,you know .. without their parents knowing it . Women and girls will visit one another's home to drink tea , chatting , gossiping .
Because the family is very important , relatives will get together for the common Muslim celebrations , weddings ..funerals . Men and women gather in separate areas in these events .
Internet ,TV , Theatre , Cinemas:

access to the internet costs you 1 Dinar for one hour in one of the internet cafés in the down town city . and very ,very few number of people have internet access in their homes , because in homes you can get internet only by phone & modem .. and phones are so , so rear here and if you got lucky enough to find someone to buy you a telephone line , you'll have to pay so much money for that ! . a couple of the internet cafés have cable internet access with a medium speed .
as for TV, like everywhere else in Libya , there's only one TV channel the one run by the state . and a local TV station who select and re-broadcast some soccer matches , Arab pop music , Arab soap-operas , cartoons , and some selected Arab TV shows . this station is under strict monitoring by the state . and they sometimes air some local commercials for local stores and businesses .
there's one theatre in Ajdabiya , very humble . it's the headquarter ofThe Theatre Friends Band for acting. a group of really very talented people who write , play and direct their own plays ( mainly social comedies ) ..they are really a group of fighters ..!! fighting the lack of financial resources and the fundamental conceptions about art in general in one of the most conservative places on the face of earth , Ajdabiya !!.
there's one movie theatre in Ajdabiya ( El jalaa ) . they show American , European , Indian , and Egyptian movies . as for the ( Western ) movies ..often they show old family or action movies , of course nudity scenes being cut out of them before being shown . nowadays nobody goes to the movie theatre .
movie goers here are mainly teenagers . because of the stigma if you are an adult , you really don't wanna be seen in a place like the movie theatre once here in Ajdabiya !!. but thanks to the information revolution ,.. censorship is being more and more meaningless ( which is not always a good thing ) with the cable TV .. giving access to all kind of TV channels and most watched cannels here are.. ( yes you guessed it ) pornographic channels , then sports channels especially those who air Italian soccer championship .
as for Radio there's only one radio station who broadcast for allover Libya from Tripoli , the capital . there's also one local weekly news paper " Akhbar Ajdabiya Ajdabiya News " …( in the last 3 years the state allowed local newspapers , but they are run by the state).
Education : schooling is compulsory through elementary school (7 years ) . education is free and available to all . there is a large number of schools ( primary , elementary , secondary ) tens of them .. and lately private schooling have been allowed to operate . tens of private institutions in various kinds of specializations accept hundreds of students every year .
also four years ago , Ajdabiya got its own university , The University of Ajdabiya ( Duh ..!! ) . located in the city center , in a former headquarter of a female teachers institution ( Al karama ) . the staff mainly hired from the biggest and most prestigious Libyan university , Gariounis (The Libyan University ) .. in neighboring city Benghazi . .. And .. that's it for now .. ( you still there right ..? ) .. if you have any inquiries please come in and send me email , I promise to try my best to answer it .
Enjoy!