THE MAKING OF UNLEAVENED BREAD IN THE TIGRE COUNTRY

Every man when he goes on a journey or when he wishes to go to a place of ploughing where there is no village, or the people who stay out with the pasturing cattle that are without milk, when they set out together from their village, take flour of wheat or of barley or of dura as their provisions; and also a water-skin that they may drink from it. Then when they come to the place where there is no village, they place branches together in a circle [like the spokes of a wheel] and kindle a fire, and pile much wood upon it, in order that it may char. And they put a stone about as large as one's fist into the fire. But if there are many people they take more stones: every stone is for one [loaf of] bread. One [loaf of] bread is enough for one man as his midday-meal, or his evening-meal. And the baker goes to a rock with a smooth hollow surface taking water and flour with him. But the place is near the fire. He washes the hollow place on the rock well with water, and he washes also his hands. And of the flour he kneads as much as he thinks [of using], with water; and if there is no salt mixed with the flour, he pulverizes salt and strews it on it: but somebody else drips the water for him. But, if there is no good rock for the kneading, he kneads it on a clean leather-apron, or on a clean sheep-skin or again on a new canvass-bag. Often, however, the people who stay on the sleeping' place of the field or with the cattle that are without milk cut a kneading plate of wood, and this is called gabbara; or they even knead in a wooden bowl. And after he has kneaded, a friend of his measures [the dough] for the loaves, or the kneader himself measures it. The measuring is done in this way: he divides the kneaded dough into round lumps; then he places the lower ends of his two palms together and takes the lump of dough between his two palms, and over the dough he makes his two middle- fingers touch each other, without pressing the dough.

Doing the same to all loaves he measures them. And the man who bakes the bread takes each loaf that has been measured off and makes a hole in the middle of it, fetches a stone of those put in the fire and places it in the hole; then he closes up the opening of the hole. And he takes some charcoal out of the fire next to the flame and puts the loaf that is in his hand into it. Then he turns it around on all sides. Doing the same to every loaf he bakes them (Fig. 14). But they leave over a little of every loaf pinching it off while they measure it. Then, when the measuring of the loaves is done, they put together the pieces of dough which they have pinched off and left over of every one, and knead them. Thereupon they make the piece of dough flat like the palm of the hand or like a tongue and bake it on the char- coal. And this is called sellase ') or Sek^lyob. And when all is baked, they give the sellfise to the leader of the party and saying: "Triu^lyob into as many equal pieces as there are men in the party. And he gives [them] to somebody who passes [them] on. And the one who passes [them] on receives them with both hands. From his hands he gives everybody his piece beginning with the breaker of the bread, and saying sellase. And every one that receives [it] says: "May the Trinity give us and give thee !" Finally also the man who passes [them] on eats his piece. When all have eaten this, one man passes to every one of them his loaf. And everybody breaks his own loaf saying: "Bread, bring bliss, 2 ) be traded in load[s] 3 ) and in bag[s] !" And when they begin to eat, the Moslem says "Mesmella",*} the Christian "Besbtfan",*} and they put their hands on the food.

was it with milk; who has meat, with it. He who has butter, breaks [the loaf] in small pieces, softens it in it and eats. He who has nothing to eat with it, eats it dry. And if they are thirsty while eating, they say to somebody who is the youngest of all: tt N. N., give us to drink being a man!", or: "N. N., may thy enemy be a messenger, ! ) give us to drink !" And taking the water-skin, he makes the round to all of them; he gives them to drink holding [the skin] for them. Then every one of them gives a small piece of his loaf to the water-bringer. And this small piece is called the fessotat of the water-bririger ; for it is of the same size as a fessotdt, i. e. piece of dried meat. - - When they have eaten and have done with it, every one of them says: "Praise be unto God! Make it to be healing and light for us! Let us eat and drink together! And after thou hast given us this, do not keep from us [thy gifts in] the future!" Or they say: "Praise be unto God! Make [us] find it and do not withhold it [from us] ! Let us eat and drink from plenty !" This is the use of unleavened bread all the time.



1) I. e. "trinity."

2) Play upon the words bread (berketta) and bliss (barakaf).

3) Literally "strap," used for tying loads on mules, asses and oxen.

4) For bismillah "in the name of Allah !"

5) For Besma W' "in the name of the father."