The Amish Culture And The Mennonite Culture

I chose to research the Amish culture because it is very separate from the rest of the modern world. There are a lot of “reality” shows now that display the Amish but I cannot be sure that what is said on T.V. is actually accurate. “The Amish people in America are an old religious sect, direct descendants of the Anabaptists of sixteenth-century Europe.” (Powell 2014) The Amish are similar to, but should not be confused with the Mennonite culture. The founder of this culture was Jakob Ammann and he began this way of life in 1639. The Amish live a simple and plain lifestyle that remains “old-fashioned”. According to Wikipedia the population of the Amish community today is around 281,675 people (2014).

The origin of the culture comes from Switzerland and Germany. Today there are Amish populations all over the United States and other parts of the world. Wikipedia states that the regions with significant Amish populations are Pennsylvania, Delaware, Indiana, New York and Ontario in Canada. In the 18th century the Amish Mennonite began migrating due to things such as religious wars, poverty and religious persecution. (2014) “The first Amish immigrants went to Berks County, Pennsylvania, but later moved, motivated by land issues and by security concerns tied to the French and Indian War.” (n.a. 2014) Most Amish speak Pennsylvania Dutch, English and German. Pennsylvania Dutch is mostly used for things like dinner conversation and preaching in church. English is used for reading and writing, school instruction and business and German is used for prayer and songs in church service.

“Symbolic of their faith, Amish clothing styles encourage humility and separation from the world.” (Robinson 2012) All clothes are very simple usually dark and h...

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...average Amish family consists of about seven children due to the fact that the Amish do not believe in birth control.

As a sociologist working with the Amish culture I would need to know that the Amish try to avoid the outside world for religious and cultural reasons. I would also be aware of the fact that when in Amish country there are slow moving vehicles to look out for and that there are also private properties that I should not enter. I should understand that the Amish do not like to be treated as an attraction, and that they do not like to have their photo or any video of them taken as they consider it an unacceptable act of pride. Lastly, I would need to not be offended by the people keeping their distance and avoiding my company or conversation because they don’t do it to be rude but because I do not follow their lifestyle and they try to avoid “pollution”.