Enab Baladi – Majd al-Salem
“The bride dreams of her own house, but that dream has now turned into a tent of her own,” a phrase summarizing how young Hanadi described the changes in marriage customs and the dreams of girls in the Twainah camp in northern al-Hasakah.
The 27-year-old young woman residing in the camp said that girls prefer to buy gold during the engagement period, but the situation is now completely different. Some grooms buy a ring and a pair of gold earrings, while others limit themselves to just a ring, and most girls marry without any pieces of gold at all.
One of the most significant changes in marriage customs within the camp is the engagement period, which traditionally lasts for months or even years, where both parties exchange gifts. However, it has now been reduced to just a few days or even less than a week, according to Hanadi.
Once the families of the groom and the bride agree, weddings are held within a few days in one of the open spaces in the camp, and sometimes the groom’s friends collect money for renting a hall outside the camp as a favor to the groom.
The conditions of displacement in the Twainah camp have imposed changes on marriage and engagement customs, impacting the traditional requirements associated with them.
Families living in the camp, which houses about 16,000 displaced individuals, have had to adapt to the reality imposed by war and the years of displacement that began in 2019.
Cost reduction: “More simplicity”
While young men settled at least in the province suffer from rising marriage costs, the situation is much more challenging inside the camp, despite existing “facilitations.”
Omar al-Alawiy, a 32-year-old resident of the Twainah camp, stated that many weddings occur among the displaced in the camp, pointing out several differences in the requirements for the bride.
He added that the house uniting the bride and groom has become merely a tent made of iron rods and an insulating cover, set up near the groom’s family. There are no longer dedicated houses and rooms for sleeping, guests, or kitchens.
The young man mentioned that wedding celebrations have become simpler, often limited to relatives, and are held in a tent or a “very simple” place inside the camp. Both parties (bride and groom) are convinced that the solution to making the marriage successful under current circumstances is to reduce costs until “things improve.”
Despite this, the high costs of weddings remain one of the biggest challenges facing young men wishing to marry inside the camp, according to al-Alawiy.
Young man Mohammad al-Hamid, 29, got married about a year ago in the Twainah camp, under available circumstances, having paid eight million Syrian pounds (approximately $520) as a dowry for his wife.
Al-Hamid told Enab Baladi that young men dream of a big wedding that gathers all friends and family, but current conditions do not allow for that. Therefore, he held a small celebration in the camp, and what mattered most to him was marrying the one he loves and “starting a family.”
The young man mentioned that dowries start from four to five million Syrian pounds, an amount insufficient for buying everything the bride desires. Thus, he and others like him from the camp have to purchase simple necessities like “a few clothes and kitchenware, along with possibly an iron.”
According to young Hanadi, some girls from the camp may “get lucky” and marry outside the camp, either from the city or even from young men living in European countries they previously sought refuge in or Arab countries.
The camp has witnessed many such cases, where the groom is usually a relative of the bride.
Divorce cases: No privacy
In contrast to marriage, the camp has seen repeated divorce cases due to difficult economic conditions and social pressures, especially the problems arising from sharing the same tents among newlyweds and their families, leading to marriage breakdowns after just a few months.
An individual working for an organization active in the camp (who requested to remain anonymous due to lack of authorization to speak to the media) told Enab Baladi that many divorce cases in the camp happen among newlyweds, resulting from disputes between the wife and the groom’s family.
He added that the primary reasons for the disputes are economic issues, which lead to social pressures, as well as the lack of privacy due to living conditions in tents, which are significant factors causing divorce.
As an organization worker, he mentioned that organizations can provide married couples with counseling, guidance sessions, and register newlyweds for any assistance programs or food parcels after they obtain family registration papers.
The Twainah camp, governed by the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), houses about 16,000 displaced individuals from Ras al-Ain and its countryside, as well as from rural areas of Tal Tamr, located 13 kilometers northwest of al-Hasakah.
Displaced individuals in the camp experience recurring crises that change with the seasons, since their displacement following the Peace Spring operation that began in 2019, carried out by the Syrian National Army (SNA) with Turkish support in Ras al-Ain and Tal Abyad.
Camps of northwestern Syria
The changes in engagement and marriage customs have enforced themselves in the camps of northwestern Syria, where two million individuals live in dire economic and living conditions.
On average, dowries in northwestern Syria range from $500 to $3,000, depending on the family’s financial situation, while cases circulate on social media claiming that the dowry is symbolic or is just a Quran.
Despite the conditions of war and displacement, some families in northwestern Syria still maintain their inherited traditions and customs of joy, enduring the effort of traveling long distances to attend a celebration of a relative or friend’s happy occasion.
Organizations working in the area have overseen the organization and sponsorship of collective wedding ceremonies, including the marriage of 60 young men, with the cost per couple reaching about $1,200, covering furnishings, home equipment, and wedding celebrations.
Some families hold modest ceremonies “within their means” to overcome the burdens accumulated over years of war, creating a temporary atmosphere of joy and warmth, preserving happy moments in people’s memories.