Lifestyles of the Amish

1902 Words8 Pages
Lifestyles of the Amish Todd A. Viney ANT101 Instructor Lucy Lea Brown April 9, 2012 Lifestyles of the Amish What are the Amish? The Amish is a Christian church that traces its roots to the Protestant Reformation in sixteenth-century Europe. Amish accept basic Christian beliefs but also have some special interpretations and emphases that have emerged throughout their history. They originally migrated to the United States from Europe where they found themselves settling in places like Pennsylvania and Ohio. They initially started their migration in the early 1800’s and the sole purpose was to preserve the elements of the 17th century European rural culture. The Amish try to avoid many features of the modern society, thus developing practices and behaviors that isolate them from the American culture. Within my research paper we will be discussing topics such as kinship, beliefs and values, and social organization. The Amish can be classified as being Agriculturalists primarily because of the typical type of life they choose to live. There are a few differences between being considered a Horticulturalist and an Agriculturalist. Specifically, horticulture is described as a nonmechanized, nonintensive form of plant cultivation performed nonrepetitively on a plot of land. In contrast, agriculture is an intensive cultivation using irrigation, fertilizers, and possibly plows repetitively on a plot of land (Nowak & Laird, 2010). The Amish’s primary mode of subsistence is that of being agriculturalists and when mixed with the beliefs and values to the Christian church, being an agriculturalist could have a direct impact to all levels of kinship. The Amish tend to maintain social relations mainly but not exclusively with members of their group. In Group marriages and kinship solidarity reinforce the family based social structure. In group marriages occur in

More about Lifestyles of the Amish

Open Document