1. What is your cultural and/or ethnic origin? Syrian.. Im from Syria!
2. What is the size of your primary and secondary families? Primary 4 .. secondary.. does that include allll uncles and aunts and cousins?? if so, then its about 60
3. What is your family structure? Matriarchal for sure!
Matriarchal or Patriarchal
4. What is the primary language spoken in your family? Arabic
5. What is your social class? In syria, we were upper/middle
6. What is the primary difference between American culture and your culture? Primary.. hmmm, It's an islamic society, and most important to anybody in syria is definitely family.. it superceeds (sp?) anything
7. What kind of food do you eat? Any ethnic foods? lots of vegetables and rice, and tons of olive oil =) mmm
8. What are your holidays and traditions? Ramadan is big.. 30 days of fasting from sun up to sun down, then 3 days following ramadan is our holiday, tradition is time with family and you always get a brand new outfit for the holiday season and visit family
9. What kind of government system do you have in your country? partial democracy
10. What kind of healthcare system do you have in your country? i know we have health insurance and all that and i know its limited, but im not sure how much? sorry
11. What are the primary industries?
How do you make a living? hmmm good question, crops are pretty big, nobody is syria uses any chemicals to grow the fruits and vegetables, its all fresh and yummmy yummy.. but im not sure what the biggest industry is
12. What kind of housing does your country have? very simmilar to NYC. houses are stacked in tall buildings.. we dont really have a lot of green grass in the city, and we dont really have apartments
13. How do people spend their leisure time in your culture? family time
14.What are some of your cultural customs? family (have you noticed its important) hijab is a religious cultural custom.. not a ton of women wear it, but the religious ones do. Its a covering that women wear meant to deter other men's eyes, because a woman's beauty is meant only for her husband.
15. What are some of your dating habits? group dating is very big. word gets around, so its hard to get any privacy. parents are a big part of "hooking" up their children
16. Have you noticed any differences in personal hygiene habits as opposed
hygiene practices in your country? LoL, funny question. nothing really big, but there are always stinky people and not so stinky people in every culture
17. What is a woman's role in society? majority of women dont work. Stay at home with the kids. Alot of women go to college, but most women dont stay single very long. They usual get married and have kids right away
How do you see it as compared to women in America? women in the US are alot more independant, and taught that they can do and be whatever they want. In syria, you can go to college, but a test decides what you study. So it's pretty limiting to men and women.
18. Is military service allowed for women? no
Is it mandatory for men? it is if you are not an only male in the family. For instance if you have 1 son, he doesnt have to attend, but if you have two sons, then they both have to serve a minimum of two years.
19. How much importance is placed on education in your culture? its very very important. School is syria is extremely tough. Nothng compared to the US
20. What is the primary religion in your culture? Islam
How important is it in your culture? Very important. Muslims marry muslims, and anything else is looked down upon.
21. Who are some of the important people in your culture? Definitely the president. He is held up with extreme importance. He is commonly refered to as our father.. sort of.. thats a literal translation.. but it's basically the person you look up to in your country. And anyone close to him is extremely important. The presidents name is Basil Al Assad
22. What kind of fashions do people wear in your country? There is a huge exreme of fashion in syria.. you have the women and men that are very conservative, the women that wear the hijab. Then you have the crazy women who spend $2,000 on a shirt because it's a one of a kind. Most women will save up all their money just to buy the "new thing". Looks are very important in syria. Plastic surgery is huuuuuuuuuuugeeeeeee and extremely popular.
hope this helps. feel free to ask any more questions
