Have you ever heard of the Mesaharati, the traditional Ramadan drummer who calls out to fasting Muslims to have their last meal before dawn during Ramadan?
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According to historian Abdelmajid Abdul Aziz, the Mesaharati first appeared in Egypt during the Fatimid dynasty. The Ramadan drummers begin on the last day of the month of Shaaban and continue until after Eid Al-Fitr. They rhythmically bang a drum called a “baza,” which is said to be loud enough to wake up an entire neighborhood.
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Although they do receive gifts, the Musaharati don't usually expect financial rewards. They sometimes carry bags or straw baskets to store food and other gifts that are given to them.
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In Morocco, Ramadan has a different flavor, with drummers roaming the streets during the early morning darkness before the fast starts, tapping their drums to rouse people out of bed. They weave in and around the small streets, making the sound "echo" of the houses. This tradition of drumming is usually passed down from father to son and has been going on forever, continuing today.
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In the eastern province of Saudi Arabia, the custom remains a deep-rooted part of the holy month. Many old-timers have been Mesaharatis in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. They wear a traditional Palestinian costume, including a red hat and white scarf, and weave their way through the streets banging their drum for around 90 minutes before returning home to have a suhoor meal with their family.
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Ramadan drummers also awaken Syria's displaced among the tents in a tented settlement near the village of Killi. They bang on a saucepan, calling on their neighbors to wake up for a last meal before dawn, often shining a small torch into the darkness as they tour the tented settlement area.
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The Ramadan drummers in Istanbul keep the centuries-old tradition alive by wandering the streets to wake up residents for suhoor. Drummers continue to perform the tradition to this day, with apartments lighting up for the time of sahoor after the drummer beats his drum and sings poems extolling the holy month.
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In Sidon's Old City in south Lebanon, a Mesaharati strikes his drum to wake observant Muslims for their overnight "suhoor," the last meal before the day's fast during Ramadan.
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However, in Jordan, with the rise of mobile-phone alarm clocks and a decline in interest among the new generation to carry on the tradition, the art of the Mesaharati is slowly dying out.
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