#buruga

Mal'ha

Shuba

There is a growing obsession with Arab culture amongst some Maldivians. Nothing is more pretentious to me than the sight of a Maldivian man wearing an Arab headscarf on his head and the Arab white long shirt. Other evidence of Maldivian obsession with Arab culture is seen in the way some people have begun to call themselves or name their kids using Arab terms such as ‘bin’ or ‘binte’. Some even resort to listening only to Arabic music (even though they can’t understand a single word!).

One may see this as a sign of religiosity, whereby a person is increasingly abiding to the customs of the land of the Prophet Mohamed and there is nothing wrong with following culture people find appealing. However, my problem is when these very people accuse other people of following Western culture and aggressively promote Arab customs in the name of Islam. Listening to music, wearing colourful clothes and dancing is considered a ‘sin’ according to them. I also finding it disturbing that such people fail to appreciate their own culture and refuse to accept their surroundings.

We Maldivians were not born in the Middle East; we don’t speak Arabic and we don’t dress as Arabs. Most of us have never seen a desert or beyond our islands in our lifetime. And what is wrong with Dhivehi names? Our ancestors wore colourful dresses and spoke Dhivehi, Addu or whichever language that was born out of their islands. Our ancestors danced to the traditional drums. Women wore the buruga (not ‘Hijab’!) but they wore it with pride, by their own choice, and wore colourful burugas.

This current Arabisation of our culture began with the return of many Maldivians following their studies in the Middle East, particularly in Saudi Arabia. It is understandable that people can be influenced and enlightened by their experiences abroad, but that should not be the cause for an aggressive preaching of a foreign culture.  I just feel as if our culture is being threatened by this Arabisation of Maldivians. I have nothing against Arab culture and my concern is with the preservation of the history, indigenous languages and practices of my own culture.