ECOLOGICAL ADJUSTMENT
Unlike in parts of tribal Africa and Asia, Kuwaiti tribal adjustment to ever changing and globalizing environments has almost always taken place almost entirely in an urban environment-although many tribes do hold meetings (or diwaniyas) under tents on occasion.
However, more similar to gypsies in religious tradition, Kuwaiti tribes as a whole are historically less religious???or at least less openly devoutly religious-than are some other parts of the Arab world. This is reflective of their nomadic ancestry where concept of God and one's relationship to God were more personal-i.e. taking place in the desert under open skies rather than under a mosque or in a large open city square with large numbers of others all around them.
Therefore, many tribal customs and traditions are wrapped up in their individual and group religious identities.
On the other hand, the peoples of the desert were also originally more generous and until recent years this had been reflected in the character of many tribes that one visited in Kuwait. (Ask the average ex-pat in Kuwait in 2008 whether this generosity is evident, and most would say they were unaware of a tradition of great generosity reminiscent of nomad communities.)
According to Dr. Al-Haddad, it is apparently also not so clear these days as to how to be quickly able to distinguish one tribe from another. As noted above, very few tribesmen demonstrate clothing differences which had been used in days of old to be the norm in the desert areas when wandering centuries ago.
That is why, for example, when a man from Tribe "A" enters a government building and seeks preferential treatment from a fellow tribesman, he may be not able to identify the tribesmen who will bend-over-backwards to help him.
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