The Swartzentruber Amish are the best-known and one of the largest and most conservative subgroups of Old Order Amish. Swartzentruber Amish are considered a subgroup of the Old Order Amish, although they do not fellowship or intermarry with more liberal Old Order Amish.
There are four main groups — the Old Order, the New Order, the Beachy Amish and Amish Mennonites — with many subgroups and different rules within these categories.
The three affiliations: "Lancaster", "Holmes Old Order" and "Elkhart-LaGrange" are not only the three largest affiliations, they also represent the Old Order mainstream among the Amish.
The Pennsylvania Amish community in Lancaster County is the oldest and largest Amish community in the United States, numbering about 30,000. The population has more than doubled in size in the past 20 years.
Q: May outsiders join the Amish? A: Yes. Although the Amish do not actively evangelize, several dozen outside people have joined the Amish. Potential members must be willing to learn the dialect and accept the rules of the church in order to be baptized and become members of the church.
Leaving the community
Some Amish youth do indeed separate themselves from the community, even going to live among the "English," or non-Amish Americans, experiencing modern technology. Their behavior during this time does not necessarily prevent them from returning for adult baptism into the Amish church.
Marriage is deemed a sacred act in the eyes of God. As marriages between Amish and outsiders are forbidden, instances of Amish dating outsiders are rare but not entirely unheard of.
Not only do the Amish not actively practice polygamy, they certainly don't believe in it. They view polygamy as adultery. Although the various Amish settlements may interpret certain rules slightly differently, there is no deviation from this law. The Amish believe in traditional marriage between one man and one woman.
While the vast bulk of Amish in North America live in the United States, there are a small number of Amish living in Canada, particularly in Ontario.
Pennsylvania Dutch is the language used by the Amish population here in Lancaster County. It is considered to be their first and native language. The Amish learn to read, write and speak in English, allowing them to communicate with the 'outside world'.
Most Amish people enjoy talking with outsiders, if they don't feel like they are regarded as animals in the zoo. In some Amish communities shops and attractions may not be open on Sundays, so be sure to call ahead and plan accordingly.
There's no prohibition on alcohol in most communities, but certain strict Old Order communities aren't in favor of it. You'll never see Amish men going outside of the community to bars and other such establishments. If they do drink, they do so at home or in the community, at a social gathering.
The Mennonites are similar to the Amish, but they're not the same. They share a common heritage but are two distinct groups. Want to know more about these two cultures? Learn about their history, similarities, and differences in our Mennonite vs Amish guide.
The Amish believe that their religious faith and the way they choose to live are interdependent. These core beliefs lead to a very strong set of values of faith, family, community, and a simple unworldly life. In this blog post, we will explore these four core values of the Amish lifestyle.
Amish represent a collection of different demes or genetically closed communities. Since almost all Amish descend from about 500 18th-century founders, genetic disorders that come out due to inbreeding exist in more isolated districts (an example of the founder effect).
The Amish are a Christian group in North America. The term refers primarily to the Old Order Amish Mennonite Church. The church originated in the late 17th century among followers of Jakob Ammann.
While most Amish and Old Order Mennonites are of Swiss ancestry, nearly all speak Pennsylvania Dutch, an American language that developed in rural areas of southeastern and central Pennsylvania during the 18th century.
As part of their Ordnung, Old Order Amish forbid owning automobiles; tapping electricity from public utility lines; owning televisions, radios, or personal computers; attending high school or college; joining the military; and initiating divorce. All Amish groups expect men and women to wear prescribed clothing.
The Amish also believe marriage should be between a man and a woman. Same-sex relationships are not allowed within the Amish community. Unmarried Amish men and women aren't supposed to have any physical contact with each other. This includes kissing, hugging, and even holding hands.
In addition, members of the Amish community are allowed to remarry after their spouse passes. Widows sometimes garner financial assistance from their families or the church and may even find work outside of the home, according to Amish America.
The Old Order Mennonites and Amish have the same European roots and the language spoken in their homes is the same German dialect. Old Colony Mennonites use Low German, a different German dialect.
Amish bonnets serve as an identifier of civil status for women. Unmarried Amish girls wear black bonnets while married women wear white ones. So, people can easily distinguish their relationship status by the color of their bonnets.
In the case of Amish women, this identification of marital status is very simple. The bonnets they wear are how to tell if an Amish woman is married. They all wear traditional bonnets on their heads, but while single women wear black, married women wear white.
The blue door is typically a shade of navy that's been chosen to represent the "blue sky" of heaven. It symbolizes how the Amish believe in looking forward and striving for spiritual growth beyond our earthly lives.