Amish and Mennonites

The Amish and Mennonites are Evangelical ethno-religious communities with roots in Germanic Europe. In the United States they are prevalent in rural Lancaster County in Pennsylvania and the Wooster area of Ohio. The Amish community in Canada is small, but Mennonites are widely dispersed across the country, with clusters in the Region of Waterloo in Ontario, and the Steinbach area of Eastern Manitoba. Mennonites are also prominent in the Gran Chaco in Paraguay and in Chihuahua in Mexico.

Understand
Both the Amish and Mennonites are Anabaptists, Protestant groups with roots in the Radical Reformation in the 16th century. Many of them immigrated to colonial North America to escape religious persecution in Europe in the 18th century.

The Amish live by the Ordnung, a set of religious rules. The most visible outcome of the Ordnung is that some Amish to a greater or lesser degree reject modern clothing, motor vehicles and electric machinery. The Amish do not see technology in itself as evil, but they reject inventions which challenge virtues such as diligence and family ties.

There are taboos among these peoples about having their photographs taken: most Amish and Mennonites will refuse if asked. This prohibition is based on the Biblical verse "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image", and the Amish interpretation of this verse considers taking photographs of people to be idolatry.

Talk
While German-speaking peoples made up a large portion of European settlers in North America, the Amish are among the few who have preserved their language to present day. Their traditional language in Pennsylvania is known as Pennsylvania German, or Pennsylvania Dutch (a mispronunciation of Deutsch).

High German is the liturgical language for the Amish, but generally speaking, only members of the clergy are conversant in High German.

In modern times, most Amish speak English as well, to communicate with non-Amish clients for their businesses, so you should have no problem getting by. In Amish parlance, the word "English" is used broadly to refer to all non-Amish people.

Buy
The Amish are famous for textile and woodcraft. You will also be able to find a lot of fresh and delicious foods, including breads, dairy products, and preserves. If you go to an Amish area on a Saturday, you will often see the women holding garage sales selling their quilts.



Eat
Amish women are known for being good cooks, and several Amish women have set up catering businesses to earn some extra income for their families. Amish areas often have buffet restaurants where you can sample some home-style Amish cooking. One particularly common highlight in Amish restaurants is Amish fried chicken.