Amish



The Amish are a unique people, almost as well-described as a monastic order as a denomination. They are often featured in fiction because their seemingly idyllic lifestyle attracts Wish Fulfillment.

The Amish are a Christian denomination, originally a subsect of the Mennonites who were in turn a subsect of the Anabaptists (or "re-baptizers," because they re-baptized adult converts who had been baptized as infants in the Catholic church or in very early Protestant churches that still practiced infant baptism; children born into the Amish tradition then and now are not baptized as infants, but only after age 16 or more when they make their own profession of faith). The name "Amish" refers to Jakab Ammann their founder. The original Amish were ethnic Germans and to this day they speak a variety of West Central German as their first language, though most know English as well as that is needed for talking to "Fancy Englishchers" (other Americans, also occasionally referred to as "Yankees" - a slightly more disparaging term). They call themselves "Plain Folk" because of the studied plainness of their lifestyle.

The Amish fled from Germany during the Wars of Religion when Europe was not really a good place for a small and pacifistic sect to live. They settled in the USA at the invite of William Penn, and Pennsylvania is sort of their headquarters, although there are also large populations in Ohio and Indiana, and in fact Ohio has the highest population of Old Order Amish. By now there are almost no Amish in Europe.

Amish beliefs emphasize nonviolence, humility, and community. Their famous deliberate archaism reflects that. New innovations are suspiciously examined as to whether they would harm this and though their criteria for deciding can seem opaque to outsiders, they tend to have explanations that make sense to them. Church organization is minimal and in fact instead of holding services in a Church building they rotate the houses of congregants.

Amish are usually thought of as farmers. But they are also known for their fine crafts which sell at gift shops. In recent times their image has been made famous and slightly commercialized, and cookbooks, antiques and other Macguffins connected to their culture sell well.

See Space Amish for where writers take an Amish-like community and transplant it to a more fantastic environment.

Tropes connected to them include:

 * Arcadia: That is their image
 * Beauty Equals Goodness: At least the faces of Amish women on the covers of romance novels seem to indicate it.
 * Big Brother Mentor: Mennonites are this to Amish. They act as emissaries to the outside world. For instance Mennonite lawyers often handle Amish Estates. The relationship is analogous to that between "Sabbath goys" (gentile associates who handle work for Jews on the Sabbath) and Jews.
 * Crowning Moment of Heartwarming: The aftermath of the tragic school shooting in 2006, in which the Amish impressed many with their forgiveness, and the outside community reached to out to the Amish in support.
 * And yet of course some people publicly took the attitude that "this probably wouldn't have happened if the Amish weren't such freaks".
 * Fate Worse Than Death: The ultimate punishment among Amish is "Shunning" (silent treatment) by the whole village. For someone brought up in such a community based culture, being cast out and ignored by said community can turn into this trope. The Values Dissonance, as well as possibilities for Moral Dissonance, involved in the shunning process often gets a lot of attention in fiction and public consciousness, to the point that shunning tends to be the next thing an outsider knows about the Amish after "they don't use electricity."
 * Food Tropes: Amish food has a high reputation, as it tends to be the peak of what many people think of as "homestyle cooking."
 * Good Old Ways: Obviously
 * Initiation Ceremony: The famous Rumspringa in which Amish teenagers spend some time exploring the world before deciding whether or not to commit and swear to the Ordnung, as traditional Amish Laws are called.
 * Leave the Two Lovebirds Alone: According to Amish custom when young Amish are courting, everyone looks the other way to give them privacy, until the betrothal is announced by posting it on the bulletin board.
 * Some Amish still practice "Bundling"; that is courting in bed between fiancees with two sleeping bags and full pajamas (or variations thereof) to preserve from temptation, and parents in the next room. Apparently it is considered enough. Presumably the idea of an Amish youngster thinking about taking advantage of the opportunity is rather like the idea of a Spartan running in battle.
 * Morality Pet: Honestly, sometimes they seem to be the USA's Morality Pet.
 * One time an Amishwoman was hit in the face by a flying beer bottle from a drunken driver. The public felt bad enough about that to finance her plastic surgery with private contributions.
 * They weren't always a Morality Pet. They have had problems because of conscientious objection, and if there was war or simple chaos in the area it was always hard on them (which is why they were never notable as frontier settlers). But they got along better than in Europe and they have become popular of late.
 * This is so very true. Today, the Amish have about three times the chance of facing a home invasion style burglary, mostly due to the fact that they keep their money around the house, probably don't have a phone or gun, and as believers in nonviolence won't normally fight back. (If the idea of robbing an Amish home makes you feel ill, hold on to that feeling; it means you're still human.)
 * True Companions
 * Turn the Other Cheek
 * What Do You Mean It's Not Heinous?: In 2011 a squabble between a rogue Amish order and more mainstream Amish led to members of the rogue order breaking into Amish homes...in order to cut their hair, which is a serious offense in Amish culture