Culture Entry #2: Arghileh

Being of Lebanese descent, I have had many opportunities to travel to Lebanon and observe their lifestyle, which is much more relaxed than the lifestyle of your average American. One thing that many Arab people enjoy when they are trying to relax is argileh (also known as "hookah"). It is a water pipe that is used to smoke flavored tobacco, which is called shisha. It comes in a variety of flavors including mint, apple, grape, and other fruit flavors. The shisha is vaporized and the vapor passes through a water basin, which is the base of the hookah. This base is glass and comes in a variety of colors, often times with some sort of design on it. Hookahs with very intricate designs can cost hundreds of dollars. The pipe is the body of the hookah, which is usually made of stainless steel. Rubber hoses are connected to the pipe and the ends are made of wood with a mouthpiece made of metal attached to it. A clay bowl at the top of the pipe holds the shisha, which is often covered by tin foil that has holes poked into it. Hot coals are used to heat up the shisha and are placed on top of the tin foil if present or directly on unflavored tobacco. The water pipe itself can also be called a "sheesha." Smoking argileh is very popular in the Middle East but its popularity has even spread to North America where there are many hookah cafes and lounges.

In Lebanon, all of my cousins and aunts and uncles smoke shisha. It is an activity that is done in groups which makes it a part of the daily social life of many Arab people. The most common time to do so for them is after a large meal and especially late at night. They would sit outside, drink Turkish coffee, and smoke their argileh. You do not have to be 18 to smoke shisha like in the United States where you must be 18 to purchase tobacco or go to a hookah cafe. The varieties of flavors are more common in America than they are in the Middle East. Most people smoke the mint or "double apple" flavor or sometimes even unflavored tobacco. When a guest who smokes argileh arrives at the house, members of the household will usually offer to prepare one for them. When you go to a restaurant in the Middle East, you are usually able to order a hookah with your meal. Many parents in the United States disapprove of their children smoking hookah, but most of my cousins in Lebanon actually smoke argileh with their parents.

While smoking argileh is an enjoyable pastime and a part of Middle Eastern social life, it can be very harmful. It has many risks in common with cigarette smoking. It delivers nicotine to the body just like cigarette smoking and when the tobacco is burnt, it becomes just as toxic as cigarette smoke. For this reason, it is important to smoke shisha in moderation to avoid getting cancer and other health problems.



References:
http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/tobacco_industry/hookahs/
http://www2.hawaii.edu/~ztomasze/hookahmanual.html