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American History Hit

The Amish: Origins and Society

Ep. 129

Simple living, plain dress and pacifism. This is not a lifestyle typical of the United States. So how did the Amish come to be in America? Where did this religion come from? And how has their society changed with modernisation?


In this episode, Don and Dr Joseph Donnermeyer journey from the Anabaptist practices of medieval Europe to the faith and farms of modern day North America.


Joseph is a Professor Emeritus in the School of Environment and Natural Resources at The Ohio State University. Specialising in community sociology and rural criminology, he has been researching the Amish for over 2 decades.


Produced by Freddy Chick and Sophie Gee. Edited by Anisha Deva. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.


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